Science  People  Locations  Timeline
Index: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Home > Elizabeth Blackwell


Elizabeth Blackwell ( February 3, 1821 - May 31, 1910), though a less famous name than Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, was in fact the first woman to practice medicine in modern times. She was born in Bristol, England, the daughter of a sugar refiner who could afford to give his numerous daughters, as well as his sons, an education. In 1831, the family emigrated to the United States, and set up a refinery in New York City. After the death of her father, she took up a career in teaching. Desiring to apply herself to the practice of medicine, she took up residence in a physician's household, using her time there to study from the family's medical library. She became active in the anti-slavery movement (as did her brother Henry Brown Blackwell, who married Lucy StoneLucy Stone. 1840 1860 Lucy Stone ( August_13, 1818 October_18, 1893) was an American suffragette and the wife of abolitionist Henry Brown Blackwell ( 1825- 1909) (the brother of Elizabeth Blackwell). Born in West Brookfield, Massachusetts, Stone was educa), in the course of which she made friends with Harriet Beecher StoweHarriet Beecher Stowe ( June 14, 1811 July 1, 1896) was an abolitionist, and writer of more than 10 books, the most famous being Uncle Tom's Cabin which describes life in slavery, and which was first published in serial form from 1851 to 1852 in an abolit. Another brother, Samuel C. BlackwellSamuel Charles Blackwell ( 1823 1901). He was born in England, the son of sugar refiner Samuel Blackwell. The father moved his family to the United States in 1832, first living in New York City, and later in New Jersey. The father's interest in social ref, married another important figure in women's rights, Antoinette BrownAntoinette Brown later Antoinette Brown Blackwell ( May 20, 1825 November 5, 1921), was the first female to be ordained as a minister in the United States, when she was called to be the pastor of the Congregational church in South Butler, New York in 1853.


Blackwell applied to several prominent medical schools but was rejected by all. Her second round of applications was sent to smaller colleges, including Geneva CollegeGeneva College is a small, private, liberal arts college located in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1848 in Northwood, Ohio, by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, Geneva was named after the Swiss center of the Reformed faith movemen in New YorkNew York is a state in the northeastern United States whose U. postal abbreviation is NY . It is sometimes called New York State when there is need to distinguish it from New York City. History See: History of New York New York was one of the thirteen col. She was accepted there -- anecdotally, because the faculty put it to a student vote, and the students thought her application a hoax -- and braved the prejudice of some of the professors and students to complete her training. She persisted, ranking first in her class. On January 23January 23 is the 23rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 342 days remaining, 343 in leap years. Events 1556 The deadliest earthquake in history kills 830,000 people in Shanxi Province, China. 1570 The assassination of regent James Stewa, 1849Events January 23 Elizabeth Blackwell is awarded her MD by the Medical Institute of Geneva, New York, thus becoming the United States' first woman doctor January 31 Corn Laws abolished in the United Kingdom February 14 In New York City, James Knox Polk be, she became the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States.

Barred from practice in most hospitals, she founded her own infirmary, the New York Infirmary for Indigent Women and Children , in 1857. When the American Civil War began, she trained nurses, and in 1868 she founded a Women's Medical College at the Infirmary to formally train women physicians.

In 1869 she left her sister Emily in charge of the College and returned to England. There, with Florence Nightingale, she opened the Women's Medical College. Blackwell taught at the newly-created London School of Medicine for Women and became the first female physician in the UK Medical Register . She retired at the age of 86.

Her sex education guide, The Moral Education of the Young, was published in Britain, as was her autobiography, Pioneer Work in Opening the Medical Profession to Women ( 1895). On her death, she was buried in a remote part of Scotland.



Read more »

Non User