Elizabeth Blackwell

Born in Bristol, England, in 1821, Elizabeth Blackwell moved with her family to the United States as a child. After years of resistance from medical schools, she was admitted to Geneva Medical College in New York and graduated in 1849, becoming the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States.

Blackwell did far more than break a barrier for herself. With her sister Emily Blackwell and colleague Marie Zakrzewska, she helped found the New York Infirmary for Women and Children, creating medical care for underserved patients and professional opportunities for women physicians. She later took part in opening a medical college for women, reflecting her long commitment to training future doctors.

In later years she lived in Britain, where she continued to write, lecture, and advocate for women in medicine. Remembered on both sides of the Atlantic, she remains a landmark figure in the history of medicine not only because she was first, but because she worked to make sure others could follow.