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Why Mary Katharine Goddard Is The Only Woman’s Name On The US Declaration Of Independence
The early American female printer stood out due to her involvement in a male dominate business world and for making the brash decision to help the colonies break away from England
The Declaration of Independence is one of the most important documents in the history of the United States. Officially laying out the British colonies’ plan to extract themselves from the Crown and start their own country, it set the U.S. on the path to the present day. Written in 1776, it is unfortunately not a surprise that at that time, the group of leaders who put their heads together to construct the remarkable charter were all men. However, there is one woman whose name is printed on the Declaration, and that is Mary Katharine Goddard.
Goddard was born in what would be the State of Connecticut in 1738. She grew up in the midst of printing, as her father was the local postmaster and one of her brothers, William, apprenticed in the printing trade.
Although women did not typically participate in business, she found footing with her own career as a young woman after her father fell ill and needed her to help run the business. Later, her brother…
