On International Women's Day, here are 8 L.A. women you should know
March 8 is International Women's Day. The date has roots in political rebellion, and today is no different: It's what the Women's March organizers have designated the official "Day Without Women."
L.A., like the rest of America, has a proud history of important women. Here are a few you should know.
real estate mogul and church founder
Biddy Mason walked to California from Mississippi behind her master's wagon. She met freed slaves in San Bernardino and went to court to win her freedom in 1856. She saved as much money as she could from her job as a midwife and bought plots of land in what is now downtown Los Angeles. She founded a daycare center and orphanage on the property and started running First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles out of her home. The first building for the church was on another piece of property she owned. When she died in 1891, she was one of the wealthiest women in the city.