The History Behind Women's History Month

March may now be Women’s History Month, but it hasn’t always been that way.

The first recognition of women’s history came in 1982, when Congress passed a public law declaring the week beginning March 7, 1982, as “Women’s History Week.” For the next five years, Congress continued to pass a joint resolution each year designating one week in March as “Women’s History Week.” In 1987, after being petitioned by the National Women’s History Project, Congress passed a public law to designate the month of March 1987 as Women’s History Month. Between 1988 and 1994, Congress passed more resolutions requesting that the President proclaim March of each year as Women’s History Month.

Since 1995, presidents have issued a series of annual proclamations that designate March as Women’s History Month, which celebrate the contributions that women have made to the United States. Join us in celebrating the specific achievements women have made over the course of American history in a variety of fields by visiting womenshistorymonth.gov.