Though many states were already observing the occasion, President Jimmy Carter officially declared the first week in March to be “Women's History Week” in 1980. Since then, the observance has grown and March has become known as “Women's History Month.” We feel that this month provides a great opportunity to learn more about the women that have made great contributions to our country throughout history. To celebrate the occasion, we're taking time to highlight some of the most happening women (past and present) in Bucks County. There have been a number of women who have helped to make our county a great place to live and work and we want to say “Thanks.”

Pearl S. Buck

Originally from Hillsboro, West Virginia, Pearl S. Buck was a deeply influential writer/teacher during much of the 20th century.

Her novel The Good Earth was the best-selling fiction book in the U.S. in 1931 and 1932, and in 1932 she won the Pulitzer Prize. In 1938, she became the first American woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, “for her rich and truly epic descriptions of peasant life in China and for her biographical masterpieces.”

She spent much of her early life teaching and writing in China, before eventually settling in Pennsylvania with her second husband. Buck was passionate and outspoken about a range of issues including women's rights, Asian cultures, immigration, adoption, missionary work, and war. In 1949, She established Welcome House, Inc., the first international, interracial adoption agency. In nearly five decades of work, Welcome House has placed over five thousand children.

Buck died of lung cancer in 1973 in Danby, VT and was interred in Green Hills Farm in Perkasie, PA. Pearl S. Buck International was founded in 1964 to carry out the address the issues of poverty and discrimination faced by children in Asian countries. Today the organization is dedicated to preserving the legacy of this incredible woman through the programs and causes for which she dedicated her life.

Stay tuned for more more information on Bucks County's Happening Women in coming weeks!