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North Carolina News You Can Use

Billy Ball Explains NC: 3 North Carolina women who changed history

By Billy Ball, Staff Reports

March 23, 2026

Three stories of history-making North Carolina women who should be household names. It’s the latest episode of Billy Ball Explains NC.

The first recorded women-led protest in US history happened in North Carolina. A NC woman helped create Mother’s Day. And another NC woman broke a 90-year drought in Congress. But most people have never heard of any of them.
In a new Billy Ball Explains NC, we go deep on three history-making North Carolina women, just in time for Women’s History Month.
Billy Ball Explains NC is a weekly conversation about North Carolina politics, culture, and news, led by Cardinal & Pine Senior Newsletter Editor Billy Ball. Make sure to like and subscribe so you never miss an episode!
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Written by Billy Ball
Edited by Kim Lawson
Video produced by Melanie Duran

Authors

  • Billy Ball

    Billy Ball is Cardinal & Pine's senior newsletter editor. He’s covered local, state, and national politics, government, education, criminal justice, the environment, and immigration in North Carolina for almost two decades. His reporting and commentary have earned state, regional, and national awards. He's also the founder of The Living South, a journalism project about the most interesting people in the American South.

    Have a story tip? Reach Billy at [email protected]. For local reporting that connects the dots, from policy to people, sign up for Billy’s newsletter.

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  • Staff Reports

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Billy Ball Explains NC | LOCAL HISTORY
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