On Monday, President Joe Biden issued a proclamation establishing Frances Perkins National Monument. It is the eighth monument created by Biden under the authority of the Antiquities Act.
The monument is located in Newcastle, Maine, at the family home of Frances Perkins. 2.3 acres were donated to the Federal government by the Frances Perkins Center, which has maintained the family property and upheld Perkin’s legacy.
The boundary of the monument surrounds the fifty-seven acre Frances Perkins Homestead National Historic Landmark. Outside of the 2.3 acres donated for the national monument, the buildings, gardens, and walking paths of the Homestead will continue to be managed by the Frances Perkins Center.
A legacy that touches all Americans
Born in 1880, Frances Perkins played a central role in progressive movements across the early 20th century.
In her early career, Frances Perkins witnessed the horrific Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, which resulted in the deaths of 146 garment workers. As a result, Perkins embarked on a quest to reform worker safety standards.
Frances Perkin’s work in the state of New York resulted in dozens of laws improving worker safety, working conditions, and workplace sanitation. As a result, she caught the attention of New York Governor, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who asked her to head the state labor department in 1929.
When Roosevelt ascended to the presidency in 1933, Frances Perkins joined his cabinet as the Secretary of Labor. She was the first female cabinet secretary in United States history.
Frances Perkins relied on her experience in New York to craft significant New Deal policies that are still felt by all Americans. The fact sheet released today by the Biden Administration clearly outlines her impact on all Americans:
“During her 12 years as Secretary of Labor under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, she envisioned and helped create Social Security; helped millions of Americans get back to work during the Great Depression; fought for the rights of workers to organize and bargain collectively; and established the minimum wage, overtime pay, prohibitions on child labor, and unemployment insurance.”
Department of Interior recognizes additional landscapes connected to the contributions of women
While often associated with natural landscapes, the National Park Service is also charged with educating the American public on all aspects of United States history.
Alongside the proclamation to establish Frances Perkins National Monument, the Department of the Interior announced additional actions to honor the contribution of women to American history.
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced the creation of five new National Historic Landmarks recognizing women’s history. National Historic Landmarks are sites with nationally significant historical, archeological, and architectural value. They are managed by the National Park Service.
In addition, the National Park Service announced a half-million dollar grant to support the restoration of the Seneca Knitting Mill. The mill is located within the Seneca Falls Village National Register District in New York. The first Women’s Rights Convention took place in Seneca Falls in 1848.
Frances Perkins National Monument is not the first national park site to be created by President Biden in honor of significant American women. In summer of 2023, Biden established the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument to honor the life and work of Mamie Till-Mobley after the brutal lynching of her son in 1955.
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