A pioneering investigative journalist who broke gender stereotypes, Nellie Bly (1864–1922) was widely known for her record-breaking trip around the world and groundbreaking undercover work.

Born Elizabeth Jane Cochran in a former Armstrong County settlement known as Cochran’s Mills, Bly—her pen name—spent most of her childhood in the nearby town of Apollo. She moved to what is now Pittsburgh’s North Side at age 16 and began her career at the Pittsburgh Dispatch. She later moved to New York City, where she gained national fame in 1887 by feigning insanity to expose the brutal conditions inside a New York mental asylum. Her famous exposé Ten Days in a Mad-House led to major reforms in mental health care.

In 1889, Bly set out to circle the globe, inspired by the popular Jules Verne novel Around the World in 80 Days. She completed the journey in just 72 days—a remarkable feat for the time— and she chronicled her experiences in a successful book.

Working in a male-dominated field, Bly broke barriers for women in journalism, and her writings sparked real social change, earning her a lasting place in both media history and the broader struggle for women’s rights.