Norah O’Donnell’s new e-book, “We the Ladies,” uncovers historical past’s hidden feminine revolutionaries

There is a girl’s title on the Declaration of Independence, and CBS Information senior correspondent Norah O’Donnell admits she by no means knew it till researching her upcoming e-book.

The invention of Mary Katharine Goddard — the printer who risked treason prices to provide the founding doc — exemplifies the “treasure hunt” O’Donnell embarked upon for “We the Ladies,” which chronicles forgotten feminine pioneers from 1776 to right now.

O’Donnell appeared on “CBS Mornings” Tuesday to debate the e-book’s launch forward of America’s 250th birthday celebration in 2026.

“This was such a ardour undertaking,” O’Donnell mentioned. “In class, I did not be taught quite a bit about ladies in historical past, ladies within the American Revolution, ladies through the Civil Battle, ladies as medical pioneers.”

O’Donnell mentioned the ladies featured in her e-book would have been well-known in fashionable instances.

“I like to consider these ladies as true revolutionaries and had they been alive right now, they might all have gone viral for certain,” she mentioned.

The e-book additionally options Katharine Wright and Emily Warren Roebling. 

“Had she been a male, she would have been the third Wright brother,” O’Donnell mentioned of Wright. Of Roebling, she famous, “She largely constructed the Brooklyn Bridge.”

O’Donnell mentioned the bravery of the ladies in her e-book is monumental and impressed her daily of writing.

“These ladies had such grit and such braveness at instances once they had only a few rights,” O’Donnell mentioned she hopes it conjures up little women too.

“We the Ladies” is scheduled for launch Feb. 24, 2026, and is obtainable for preorder.