1857 - Women from clothing and textile factories staged one such protest in March in New York City. The garment workers were protesting very poor working conditions and low wages.

1908 - More protests followed on the 8th of March in subsequent years, most notably in this year when 15,000 women marched through New York City demanding shorter hours, better pay and voting rights.

1909 - The first IWD was observed on the 28th of February in the United States following a declaration by the Socialist Party of America.

1910 - The first international women's conference was held in Copenhagen, Denmark.

1913 - Women across Europe held peace rallies on March 8th in 1913 on the eve of World War I.

1917 - Demonstrations marking International Women's Day in Russia proved to be the first stage of the Russian Revolution of 1917.

1910’s ~ 1920’s - In the West, International Women's Day was commemorated but support dwindled. It was revived by the rise of feminism in the 1960s.

1965 - On May 8, 1965 by the decree of the USSR Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, International Women's Day was declared as a non working day in the USSR.

1975 - “International Women’s Year” the United Nations gave official sanction to and began sponsoring International Women's Day.

2005- Conference of the British Trades Union Congress overwhelmingly approved a resolution calling for IWD to be designated a public holiday in the U.K.

The day remains an official holiday in Armenia, Russia, Cuba, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekist