1st woman US patent holder - Mary Dixon Kies in 1809

The Patent Act of 1790 opened the door for anyone, male or female, to protect his or her invention with a patent. However, because in many states women could not legally own property independent of their husbands, many women inventors didn't bother to patent their new inventions. Mary Kies broke that pattern on May 5, 1809. http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blkeis.htm