Today In History: Elizabeth Blackwell Is Born

Tuesday, January 23, 1849 --- The day, the grand day is nearly finished; and now whilst visitors are dropping in I must record my first entrance into public life -- 'twas bright and beautiful and very gratifying. Great curiosity was felt  ... Elizabeth Blackwell,  Pioneer Work for Women.  Extracts of the Journal from 1849.   "At College". p. 70.

On February 3rd, 1821 Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States, was born in Bristol, England to Samuel and Hannah Blackwell. When Elizabeth was eleven years old, her family moved to New York in hope of better fortune and one that embraced greater opportunities for the social good. Her father, a sugar refiner, and her mother, a Congregationalist, believed in children's rights, women's education, and abolition, and  they strove to create a household which ensured that their daughters were as well educated as their sons.

After twenty-eight applications to medical school, Elizabeth Blackwell was accepted into Geneva Medical College (now SUNY Upstate Medical University) where she graduated with the highest honors on January 23rd, 1849.  She spent time in England and France to further her training, before she moved to New York City where she opened a free health clinic. She drew hundreds of patients, many poor women and children among them, and started with her sister Emily (also a doctor) The New York Infirmary for Women and Children in 1857. Elizabeth opened The Women's Medical College of the New York Infirmary in 1868 before returning to native England where she laid the groundwork for the National Health Society to further educate people about disease, health, and hygiene.

Despite the difficulties and prejudices she faced in being the first woman doctor in America, Elizabeth Blackwell stayed her course and became a role model by opening the doors for all the female doctors who followed.

The following articles are drawn from Proquest Historical Newspapers, which informs and inspires classroom teaching and learning.

• She Received the First Dip: Something About the Pioneer Woman Doctor.  (1896, Aug 09). The Atlanta Constitution (1881-1945) 
• First Woman Doctor Gone: Elizabeth Blackwell Dies in England.  Rendered Service to Union Soldiers During War. Won Physician's Degree in Hard Struggle.  (1910, Jun 01). Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922)
• A Daily Lesson in History: Dr. Elizabeth Backwell, the First Woman in the United States to Obtain the Degree of Doctor of Medicine. (1911, Mar 16). Boston Daily Globe (1872-1922) 
• Farrington, E. (1918, Aug 31). Incidents in the Lives of Famous Women: How Elizabeth Blackwell Became America's First Woman Doctor. The Statesman (1916-1921) 
• The First Woman Doctor. (1949, Jan 23). New York Times (1923-) 
• Two Ceremonies Honor First U.S Woman Doctor: Elizabeth Blackwell Awards Given to 17 at Infirmary Here and Hobart College. (1949, Jan 24). New York Herald Tribune (1926-1962) 
• 5 Women Get N. Y. Infirmary Medical Honor: Elizabeth Blackwell Award Is Given to Doctors for Outstanding Services. (1952, Jan 21). New York Herald Tribune (1926-1962) 
• Markoutsas, E. (1979, Jan 07). Doctor or Nurse?: Role Reversals Healthy. Chicago Tribune (1963-1996) 
• Kent, D. A. (1981, Mar 01). First U.S. Woman Doctor Featured on 18-Cent Stamp. The Hartford Courant (1923-) 
• SCUTTS, J. (2021, Jan 24). Healthy Ambition: The Sisters Who Became America's First Women Doctors. New York Times (1923-) 

Tips:

• Baker, Rachel. The First Woman Doctor ; the Story of Elizabeth Blackwell, M.D. J. Messner, Inc., 1944.  Closed Stacks Curr ; R154.B623 B3 1944.
• Blackwell, Elizabeth. Pioneer Work for Women. J.M. Dent & Sons, Ltd, 1900.  TCANA ; AC1 .E8 no. 667.  e-book.
• Heyn, Leah Lurie. Challenge to Become a Doctor : The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell. Feminist Press, 1971.  Closed Stacks Curr ; R154.B623 H4 1971.
• Matthew, Scott, and Wayne Atkinson. The First Woman of Medicine : The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell. C.P.I., 1978.  Closed Stacks Curr ; R154.B623 M35.
• Nimura, Janice P. The Doctors Blackwell: How Two Pioneering Sisters Brought Medicine to Women -- and Women to Medicine. New York, N.Y. : W.W. Norton & Company, [2021].  Butler Stacks R692 .N56 2021.
• Stone, Tanya Lee. Who Says Women Can’t Be Doctors? : The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell. Illustrated by Marjorie Priceman, First edition., Christy Ottaviano Books/Henry Holt and Co., 2013.  Curriculum ; R692 .S755 2013.
• Tabor, Margaret E. Pioneer Women Elizabeth Fry, Elizabeth Blackwell, Florence Nightingale, Mary Slessor. Sheldon Press, 1925.  TCANA ; CT3320 .T3.

Images:

• Cover Design Detail for Pioneer Work for Women. J.M. Dent & Sons, Ltd, 1900. TC ANA  ;  AC1 .E8 no. 667.
• Portrait of Elizabeth Blackwell, Canva.

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