Belva Lockwood

Hello. My name is Belva Lockwood. I was born a long, long time ago, in the year 1830. When I was a little girl, I loved to learn new things. I read every book I could find. Back then, some people thought girls did not need to go to school for very long, but I did not agree. I knew that learning was a superpower that could help me do great things.

As I grew up, I saw that some things were not fair, especially for women. I wanted to help fix that. I decided to do something very few women had ever done. I went to school to become a lawyer. It was hard work. Some schools did not want to let me in just because I was a woman. But I did not give up. In the year 1873, I finally became a lawyer. I used my job to help other women, like making sure they were paid the same as men for doing the same work.

I wanted to show everyone that women could be great leaders. So, I did something that surprised the whole country. In the year 1884, I ran for President of the United States. No one had ever seen a woman run for president before. I knew I might not win, but I wanted every little girl to see that she could dream of being anything she wanted to be, even the president.

I lived a long and busy life and was 86 years old when my story came to a peaceful end. Today, people remember me for being brave and never giving up. I helped open doors for women to become lawyers, leaders, and anything else they dream of. I hope my story shows you that you can make the world a fairer place, too.