Pioneer women in nuclear science

It is a commonly accepted myth that Marie Curie and Lise Meitner were the only women working in the field of nuclear science during the early part of this century. In fact, there were at least 14 others who published work in this field between 1900 and 1915. This paper provides biographical notes on these women and explores the role of the supervisors. Part of the reason for the significant number of women researchers could have been the supportive attitude of Ernest Rutherford toward female physics graduates. In addition, we argue that several of these women provide better role models for potential women physicists than Marie Curie.