8 women who broke down barriers and set the stage for future generations

There are thousands of women who perform the feat every day. There are also great women.

Every woman on our list is a heroine who has inspired thousands of people. Let's take a look at our selection and congratulate our beloved women on International Women's Day.

8 PHOTOS

1. Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman in space.

2. Marie Curie was the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize in 1903.

3. In 1970, Junko Tabei reached the summit of Mount Everest, becoming the first woman ever to do so.

4. Ann Dunwoody was the first female four-star general in the army in 2008.

5. Edith Wharton was the first woman to win the 1921 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

6. Katherine Bigelow became the first woman to receive an Academy Award for Best Director in 2010.

7. Ella Fitzgerald was the first woman to ever win a Grammy in 1959.

8. Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States in 1849.