Womankind Books

Womankind Books was the first feminist bookstore in Nashville. Founded by Carole de Bra Powell in 1977, the store was an important resource center for women in the city and surrounding rural areas.

Carole was born in Pensacola, Florida in 1946 and attended the University of Florida. As a student, she became involved in civil rights and women’s rights activism. She and her husband separated while she was in school, which left her a single mother of two boys. Her financial instability and role as sole caretaker informed her commitment to an inclusive feminist movement.

Once in Nashville, she connected with the lesbian community through her work with the Edgehill United Methodist church. Powell organized a program in which she and other single women visited churches to discuss women’s treatment in “a culture that gives women value, because of who they’re married to.” In 1975, she met Dorrie Woodson, and two years later they opened a storefront together in Nashville and Womankind Books was born! The store experienced great success. In fact, there were nearly 1000 women on their mailing list. Shortly after, Powell became the sole owner of the store. She also began a relationship with Joanna Morrison, who remained her partner for twenty years.

Womankind was a place where women, both queer and straight, could find support and community. Two of their major initiatives included the Womankind Support Project and the Womankind Health Center, which offered gynecological and mental health services. In addition, Womankind hosted a monthly coffee house and even served as a distributor for Olivia Records, a women’s music label founded by lesbians.

Powell closed Womankind Books in 1984 when she moved to Chicago, but community members still fondly recall Womankind as a place that supported all women regardless of income or education. Powell said in a 2012 interview: “[M]any women aren’t privileged. [For them] gender issues were much less of an intellectual pursuit than it might have been for us. And I was always aware of that. And these women were, in real life, in need of support, and appreciation of their lives. [W]e went to great lengths to make sure that people on the whole scale of income were not excluded from participation.”

Turn around and head south on Belmont Boulevard about 1.5 miles until you reach Woodmont Boulevard. Take a RIGHT onto Woodmont Blvd. and then RIGHT onto Hopkins Street. Your next stop, the First Unitarian Universalist Church, will be on your right. You can park on the street or in the church parking lot.