Katie, Big and Strong

"Even from a young age, Katie Brumbach was BIG and STRONG. She could lift heavy weights, bend steel bars, and lift several men at once. She boldly named herself "Katie Sandwina" after Eugen Sandow, the world's strongest man, and her women's record for an overhead lift of 296 pounds remained unbroken for over 75 years.

In 1912, at the height of her American fame, she publicly rallied with her fellow circus performers for women's suffrage.