Elizabeth Blackwell Siblings

Speech on Elizabeth Blackwell “For what is done or learned by one class of woman becomes, by virtue of their common womanhood, the property of all woman. ” Elizabeth Blackwell once said. Elizabeth Blackwell was the first woman doctor in the USA and was the first woman to get her name added to the Medical Register in the United Kingdom. Without her there wouldn’t be as many woman doctors as there are today. Elizabeth Blackwell was born on February 3, 1821 in Counterslip Bristol in England.

She was the third daughter to Samuel and Hannah Lane Blackwell. Elizabeth had seven other siblings.

Her father owned a sugarcane factory, but when Elizabeth was 11 years old the factory was burnt down by a fire. After the factory was destroyed the Blackwells moved to America. About eight years after moving to America, Samuel Blackwell died. To support the family Elizabeth’s mother, Elizabeth’s two older sisters, and Elizabeth opened a school for black children. One day she went to visit Mary Donaldson, a family friend dying of cancer.

That day Mary told Elizabeth, “You are fond of study, you have health, leisure and cultivated intelligence. Why don’t you study medicine?

Had I been treated by a lady doctor, my worst sufferings would have been spared. ” Elizabeth was displeased at the idea. She liked philosophy and literature, but not really science. And anyway medical school was extremely expensive and women were not allowed to study medicine. But why did she become a doctor even if she really didn’t like the idea? Well there are many reasons, but one of the major reasons was because she was inspired by the challenge and opportunities for service in a medical career.

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Elizabeth applied to many colleges, but many of them did not accept her because she was a woman.

Finally, Elizabeth was admitted into one college, Geneva College in New York City. She was discriminated by all of her male peers, but she ignored all of the insults and jokes and graduated first in her class becoming the first woman doctor. She was named as the pioneer for women in medicine. After graduating she left for England because America would not allow her to practice medicine even though she was top in her class. There she worked and studied medicine in hospitals in Birmingham and London. From there she went to Paris and worked in a hospital called La Maternite Hospital.

Why Did Elizabeth Blackwell Want To Become A Doctor

While she was working here she got an eye infection which caused her to remove her left eye. She could not achieve her dream of becoming a surgeon due to this infection. Soon Blackwell headed back to America. They still did not accept woman to work as doctors in hospitals. So Elizabeth and her younger sister, Emily who was the second woman doctor opened a clinic for just women and children as patients with all women doctors. She also started a college named Woman’s Medical College of the New York Infirmary. This was the first American medical college just for women.

During this time the Civil War broke out. Elizabeth with the help of 3,000 women sent food, medical supplies, and clothes to the soldiers. Elizabeth left for England where she lived the rest of her life. While she was living here she published a couple of books called The Religion of Health and Pioneer Work in Opening the Medical Profession for Women. In England she also started another college with her sister, Emily, and other women. The school was called London School of Medicine. Blackwell worked as a professor in gynecology for many years.

But she got into an accident which forced her to retire from teaching. On May 31, 1910 Elizabeth Blackwell died at the age of 89. At the time of her death America had 7,000 women doctors, just imagine how many there are today. Without Elizabeth Blackwell’s intelligence and determination there wouldn’t be nearly as many women doctors there are today. She stood up for herself and made a change in lives today and back then. She ignored all the discouraging remarks everyone made and achieved her dream to become a doctor. Blackwell showed everybody that if you believe in yourself you can follow your dream.