Elizabeth Blackwell

By:Amanda

Elizabeth Blackwell was born in 1821 in Bristol, England. She had always wanted to be a doctor while growing up. She applied for medical school but 29 schools turned her down. It was harder for her to get admitted to a college because she was a woman. She was finally admitted to Geneva College in Geneva, New York. In 1849, she graduated at the head of her class. She also got her medical degree at Geneva Medical School. Elizabeth became the first female doctor in the United States of America.

Things started to get tough for her. She and her sister Emily started the New York in 1857. They had to fight for their rights as women. She faced discrimination, prejudices, male doctors ignored her, she couldn't go in the wards of hospitals and very few patients went to her. She gained her recognition in Britain for a series of lectures about ways to prevent diseases, personal hygiene and being sanitary that she delivered in 1859.

Elizabeth Blackwell did many great things in her life. She wrote two books. In 1852, she wrote The Physical Education of Girls, and in 1895, she wrote Pioneer work in Opening the Medical Profession to Women. She also saved many people's lives.

During the Civil War, many medical problems came up. Her and her sisters helped organize the Women's Central Association of Relief. They selected and trained nurses for them to serve in the war. She saved many lives by her efforts. She was a better doctor than many male doctors were. Without her, many people would have died and not made it through their troubles. She helped people not because she wanted money but to save their lives and help them, too. Through all that she went through, she never gave up but just keep trying. After the Civil War, she went back to England. She died at her home in Hastings, England on May 31, 1910.

Bibliography:
Ø http://www.sjsu.edu/depts/museum/bla.html
Ø http://library.advaned.org/tq-admin/month.cgi
Ø http://library.thinkquest.org/20117/blackwell.html
Ø http://optonline.com/comptons/ceo/00577_A.html
Ø http://www.ask.com
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