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Lydia E. Pinkham Businesswoman
Cobblestone American History Magazine for Kids
|Cobblestone February 2025: Women Trailblazers of the 1800s
Women were the first line of defense when it came to the good health of their families in the 1800s.
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Wives, mothers, sisters, aunts, and daughters nursed sick family members. Housewives made their own remedies, which were passed from one generation to the next. One home remedy called for a teaspoon of salt dissolved into water to cure a toothache. Another remedy suggested drinking boiled sweetened water and cherry bark as the cure for a cold. One woman, Lydia E. Pinkham (1819-1883), turned her home remedy into a profitable business. She became the most successful American businesswoman of the 19th century.
Lydia Estes was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, in 1819. She worked as a teacher, a midwife, and a nurse.
She participated in the abolition and temperance movements. She also studied phrenology. In 1843, Lydia married Isaac Pinkham. Isaac was a wealthy real estate businessman. For nearly 30 years, Lydia kept house and raised their children.
This story is from the Cobblestone February 2025: Women Trailblazers of the 1800s edition of Cobblestone American History Magazine for Kids.
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