Celebrating 5 Great Women In Automotive History for Women’s Equality Day

Aug 26, 2023

Women’s Equality day is celebrated in commemoration of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution, which awarded women the right to vote in 1878. In 1971, Congress deemed August 26th would be henceforth Women’s Equality Day. We’re going to share 5 mini profiles on notable women who pioneered the automotive industry from driving to design to engineering, and highlight some big names in racing. And stick around to the end to check out some great YouTube Videos of notable women in the automotive industry who are disrupting the status quo and changing the game!

5 Notable Women in Automotive History

Bertha Benz – Bertha completed the first successful cross-country trip in August of 1888 – a whopping 66 miles from Mannheim to Pforzheim. With no road signs to guide her, and many roadways being unpaved dirt roads. It successfully promoted the first automobile, created by her husband Carl Benz in Mannheim in 1886 two years prior.
Margaret Wilcox – Margaret is considered one of the pioneers of automobile history thanks to her invention of the in-car heater system. In November of 1893, her heating system received an official patent; she had created a combustion chamber consisting of a system of pipes beneath the passenger seat which disbursed hot water. In addition to heating the interior, this invention also helped defog the windshield during cold or inclement weather.
Wilhemine Erhardt – Wilhelmine was the wife of Eisenach Vehicle Factory manager, Gustav Ehrhardt. She became Germany’s first female car driver, and on August 3rd 1901, she was able to participate in the Eisenach-Meiningen long distance auto trip through the Hainich Mountain range. Though she didn’t win the race, it was by a narrow margin that she’d lost placing.
Mary Anderson – This young woman was inspired to create the very first automatic windshield wiper design, and applied for a patent in 1903; she was awarded the patent for her window-cleaning device on the 10th of November that same year. The original device had a hand-operated level mounted at steering wheel level, which removed snow, rain, and sleet from the glass.

Suzanne Vanderbilt – A member of General Motors only women-led “Damsels of Design” team, which disbanded in the early 1960s. Suzanne worked her way up the company roster, eventually being dubbed the Chief Designer of Chevrolet’s Interiors Studio in 1972, and was in charge of the interior soft trim on all GM lines. She helped design interiors for models such as the Chevy Nova, Camaro, and the Chevette.

How The Car Mom, Kelly Stumpe, is shaking things up in the automotive industry: