What name springs to mind when you say the phrase “famous female inventor?” If you’re having a tough time answering this, you are not alone.

In 1980 only 1.7% of all the patent filings were filed by women.

The first U.S. patent was issued in 1809 to Mary Dixon Kies, a Connecticut native who invented a process for weaving straw with silk or thread. First Lady Dolley Madison publicly thanked her for boosting the nation’s hat industry.

Until about 1840, only 20 other patents were issued to women

During the next decade, from 1865 to 1875 the number of women-issued patents increased to 67.3 compared to men’s 11,918.4 patents.

A rare exception to the social norm in 1843, Ada Lovelace wrote a scientific paper that anticipated the development of computer software, artificial intelligence and computer music.

Profits were part of the motivation for Beulah Henry of Memphis who created about 110 inventions and held 49 patents. Beulah Henry was considered one of the “Lady Edisons”