Lydia Hamilton Smith, housekeeper and confidante to Thaddeus Stevens, managed to own property and run businesses in the 19th century, long before women were able to strike out on their own, in business.

Although history recorded few details of Smith's life, the Stevens and Smith Historic Site wants local women to learn about her and use her as a role model to pursue entrepreneurial dreams.

"In the Spirit of Lydia" Women's Conference will be held Saturday, March 29, at the YWCA of Lancaster to promote women in business.

Gail Tomlinson is director of the Stevens and Smith Historic Site, which, along with the YWCA, is sponsoring this year's conference, the first for the organization. This year's topic will be "African-American Women in Non-Traditional and Entrepreneurial Jobs."

Smith was chosen as the inspiration because of her success in Lancaster.

"Thaddeus Stevens was the most powerful … [U.S.] representative our country has ever seen, probably because of the times in which he lived," Tomlinson said. "Smith was a woman of color who ran businesses for Stevens and later acquired property in her own right."

Read the complete article at Lancaster Online