Elizabeth Blackwell's Geneva Medical College diploma courtesy of, Glasgow University Archives
Breaking the Gender Barrier
In 1847, Blackwell was accepted to Geneva Medical College in New York. Blackwell would have never gotten in medical school, but she was lucky enough that the males in the class voted, yes, to a woman coming to school as a joke. Many did not like the idea of a female doctor because they think that women are not strong enough or smart enough to take on such a big job. Neither a professor or the students had ever seen a woman enter the classroom as a medical student. It was unheard of that a female would want to enter the male world of medicine. At first Blackwell was harassed by the other students and could not participate in certain demonstrations. Blackwell took her studies seriously and earned the respect of her classmates.
“I do not wish to give (women) a first place, still less a second one - but the complete freedom to take their true place, whatever it may be.”
~ Elizabeth Blackwell
This church is where Elizabeth Blackwell graduated, got her diploma, and became the first female doctor.
Presbyterian Church, Geneva, N.Y., Courtesy of Geneva Historical Society, Geneva, N.Y.
On January 23, 1849 Elizabeth Blackwell graduated Geneva medical school as top of her class and the first female to receive a medical degree from an American school. This was a huge moment in Elizabeth’s life because she was finally able to prove all of the doubters wrong. It was not easy for Blackwell to get her degree because many people harassed her and told her to give up because she would never be able to become a doctor.