If you’re into Women’s History, you will LOVE this episode. Dr. Sarah Bell, Director of the newly-renovated Kansas Museum of History in Topeka, Kansas, joins IWAW and shares fascinating stories of three Kansas women: Clarina Nichols, Annie Diggs, & Mamie Dillard.

In the 19th century, the story of women was supposed to take place–exclusively–in the “home,” and yet, everything outside the home profoundly affected women. The only way forward was to change the narrative. And that’s what these three women did, rewriting women’s story through writing, public speaking, teaching, and mentoring.

You may not know this, but Kansas claims a lot of “firsts” in American history, and the lives of Nichols, Diggs, and Dillard intersect with crucial 19th century issues like abolition, suffrage, reforms in women’s dress and diet, temperance, and gaining custody and property rights for women. Dr. Bell says, “Kansas is full of surprises,” and, indeed, so is her interview. Have you heard of the Moneka Women’s Rights Association? Do you know why voting rights and prohibiting alcohol went hand-in-hand? And what on earth was the Octagon Colony? Dr. Bell knows!

Along the way, Sonja organizes a field trip, and Vanessa explains how she got a glass bowl with a rose floating in it 25 years ago.