Sculpture with three faces.

Many women of achievement are depicted in the art of the United States Capitol. As the following list shows, these women have played significant roles in the development of the American nation from colonial times through the modern era. In addition to these figures, numerous unidentified women appear in historical works and in generalized scenes of American life; many allegorical figures, such as the Statue of Freedom, are female.

Podcast Episode: Women in Capitol Art

This podcast is part of the Shaping History: Women in Capitol Art series created by the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center. Listen below to hear about the women artists and women historical figures depicted in the art of the Capitol.

Download the transcript or read more about this episode.

Locations for works in public areas are provided.

See also: Women Artists

Paintings and Portraits

  • Representative Diane Black
    Chair of the House Committee on Budget
    Oil on canvas by Ying-He Liu, 2018.

    Representative Corinne "Lindy" Boggs
    Representative for whom the Congressional Women's Reading Room was named.
    Oil on canvas by Ned Bittinger, 2004.
  • Senator Hattie O.W. Caraway
    First woman elected to the Senate.
    Oil on canvas by J.O. Buckley, 1996.
    Senate wing, second floor, main corridor.
  • Representative Shirley Chisholm
    First black woman elected to Congress.
    Oil on canvas by Kadir Nelson, 2008.
    House Connecting Corridor, first floor.
  • Electoral Commission of 1877
    Depicts wives and daughters of Presidents and Members of Congress, leading female reporters, and other notable women of the day.
    Oil on canvas by Cornelia A. Fassett, 1879.
    Senate wing, third floor, east corridor.
  • Embarkation of the Pilgrims
    Depicts Mrs. Brewster, Mrs. White, Mrs. Winslow, Mrs. Fuller, Mrs. Rose Standish, Mrs. Bradford, and Mrs. Carver.
    Oil on canvas by Robert W. Weir, 1843.
    Capitol Rotunda.
  • Eveline Fessenden Freeman
    Future wife of Edward Clark, Architect of the Capitol.
    Oil on canvas by Constantino Brumidi, 1853.
  • Representative Florence Prag Kahn
    First Jewish woman elected to Congress.
    Oil on canvas by Andre White, 2009.

  • Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson
    Chair of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.
    Oil on canvas by Ying-He Liu, 2022.
    House wing, east stairway.

  • Representative Patsy Mink
    First woman of color and first Asian-American woman elected to Congress.
    Oil on aluminum by Sharon Sprung, 2022.
    House Connecting Corridor, first floor.
  • Mrs. Motte Directing Generals Marion and Lee to Burn her Mansion to Dislodge the British
    Oil on canvas by John Blake White, 1810–1815.
    Senate wing, third floor, south corridor.
  • Representative Mary Teresa Norton
    Chair of the Committee of the District of Columbia, Committee on Labor, Committee on Memorials, and Committee on House Administration.
    Oil on canvas by Elaine Hartley, 1930–1935.
  • Speaker Nancy Pelosi
    Speaker of the House of Representatives; first woman to serve as Speaker.
    Oil on canvas by Ron Sherr, 2014.
  • Baptism of Pocahontas
    Depicts Pocahontas, her sister, Mrs. Forrest, and Anne Laydon.
    Oil on canvas by John G. Chapman, 1840.
    Capitol Rotunda.
  • Pocahontas
    Daughter of Chief Powhatan who assisted colonial settlers in Jamestown.
    Oil on canvas by unknown artist, after an unidentified artist, English School, after 1616 engraving by Simon de Passe.
  • Representative Jeanette Rankin
    First woman elected to Congress.
    Oil on canvas by Sharon Sprung, 2004.
    House Wing, third floor, elevator lobby.
  • Representative Edith Nourse Rogers
    Chair of the House Committee on Veteran Affairs.
    Oil on canvas by Howard Chandler Christy, 1950.

  • Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
    Chair of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
    Oil on canvas by Brian Drury, 2015.

  • Senator Margaret Chase Smith
    First woman to win election to the House and the Senate.
    Oil on canvas by Ronald Frontin, 2005.
  • Representative Leonor Sullivan
    Chair of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries.
    Oil on canvas by Charles J. Fox, n.d.
  • Amanda Gardiner Walter
    Second wife of Thomas Ustick Walter, Architect of the Capitol.
    Oil on canvas by Abraham Woodside, 1851.
  • General George Washington Resigning his Commission
    Depicts Martha Washington and her granddaughters.
    Oil on canvas by John Trumbull, 1824.
    Capitol Rotunda.

Statues and Busts

  • Daisy Lee Gatson Bates
    Activist and publisher.
    Bronze by Benjamin Victor, placed 2024.
    National Statuary Hall.
  • Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune
    Educator and activist.
    Marble by Nilda M. Comas, placed 2022.
    National Statuary Hall.
  • Willa Cather
    Novelist, editor and journalist.
    Bronze by Littleton Alston, placed 2023.
    Capitol Visitor Center, upper level pedestrian corridor.
  • Amelia Earhart
    Aviator, author and activist.
    Bronze by Mark and George Lundeen, placed 2022.
    National Statuary Hall.
  • Mother Joseph
    Humanitarian and one of the first architects in the Northwestern United States.
    Bronze by Felix W. de Weldon, placed 1980.
    Capitol Visitor Center, Emancipation Hall.
  • Helen Keller
    Humanitarian and the first deaf and blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree.
    Bronze by Edward Hlavka, placed 2009.
    Capitol Visitor Center, Emancipation Hall.
  • Esther Hobart Morris
    First woman to hold judicial office in the modern world.
    Bronze by Avard Fairbanks, placed 1960.
    Hall of Columns.
  • Rosa Parks
    Civil rights pioneer.
    Bronze by Eugene Daub, placed 2013.
    National Statuary Hall.
  • Jeannette Rankin
    First woman elected to Congress.
    Bronze by Terry Mimnaugh, placed 1985.
    Capitol Visitor Center, Emancipation Hall.
  • Dr. Florence Rena Sabin
    Chair of the committee responsible for the Sabin Health Laws, which led to major reforms in the Colorado medical system.
    Bronze by Joy Buba, placed 1959.
    Hall of Columns.
  • Sakakawea
    Guide and interpreter who accompanied Lewis and Clark in their exploration of the Western United States.
    Bronze by Leonard Crunelle, 1909; copied by Arizona Bronze Atelier in 2003.
    Capitol Visitor Center, Emancipation Hall.
  • Maria L. Sanford
    One of the first women named to a college professorship.
    Bronze by Evelyn Raymond, placed 1958.
    Capitol Visitor Center, Emancipation Hall.
  • Sojourner Truth
    Abolitionist and women's rights activist.
    Bronze by Artis Lane, placed 2009.
    Capitol Visitor Center, Emancipation Hall.
  • Frances E. Willard
    Founder and president of Women's Christian Temperance Union.
    Marble by Helen Farnsworth Mears, placed 1905.
    National Statuary Hall.
  • Sarah Winnemucca
    Author of the first book written by a Native American woman.
    Bronze by Benjamin Victor, placed 2005.
    Capitol Visitor Center, Emancipation Hall.
  • Portrait Monument to Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Susan B. Anthony
    Depicts the three women leaders of the Women's Suffrage Movement.
    Marble by Adelaide Johnson, placed 1921.
    Capitol Rotunda.

Murals

  • Captain Smith and Pocahontas
    Depicts Pocahontas saving John Smith's life.
    Fresco by Constantino Brumidi, 1880.
    Capitol Rotunda, Frieze.
  • Challenger Crew
    Depicts Christa McAulliffe and Judy Resnik, the two female astronauts that died on the Challenger mission.
    Oil-on-canvas mural by Charles Schmidt, 1987.
    Senate wing, first floor, outside Room S-121.
  • Clara Barton (vignette)
    Founder and first president of the American Red Cross.
    Oil-on-canvas mural by Allyn Cox, 1982.
    House wing, first floor, central east–west corridor (Great Experiment Hall).
  • Ann Hutchinson (vignette)
    Co-founder of Rhode Island.
    Oil-on-canvas mural by Allyn Cox, 1982.
    House wing, first floor, central east–west corridor (Great Experiment Hall).
  • Jeannette Rankin (vignette)
    Oil-on-canvas mural by Allyn Cox, 1982.
    House wing, first floor, central east-west corridor (Great Experiment Hall).
  • Rotunda as a Hospital During the Civil War, 1862
    Depicts Clara Barton serving as a nurse.
    Oil-on-canvas mural by Allyn Cox, 1974.
    House wing, first floor, eastern north-south corridor (Hall of Capitols).
  • Women's Suffrage Parade
    Depicts Anna Howard Shaw and Carrie Chapman Catt.
    Oil-on-canvas mural by Allyn Cox, 1982.
    House wing, first floor, central east–west corridor (Great Experiment Hall).

Interior Sculpture

Exterior Sculpture

  • Queen Isabella, in Columbus Doors panel "Audience at the Court of Ferdinand and Isabella" and statue in niche beside panel.
    Bronze by Randolph Rogers, 1861.
    East Rotunda entrance.
  • Lady Beatrix de Bobadilla, statue in niche beside Columbus Doors panel "Departure from the Convent of La Rábida."
    Bronze by Randolph Rogers, 1861.
    East Rotunda entrance.