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Class Date: October 16th
Location: Your couch! See your weekly e-mail for Zoom link!
Is There A Doctor In The House?
Is There A Doctor In The House?
Even though Abigail Adams implored her husband and other leaders to ‘remember the ladies’, women continued to struggle for rights and representation. Elizabeth Blackwell was a pioneer in the medical field, forging a path forward for women. Before we talk about her life, let’s see what else was going on at the time:
1773 - Phillis Wheatley published her poetry
Phillis publishes Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral, in London, England. Her book also becomes popular in the colonies, though many struggle with the clear illustration that enslaved African Americans have souls, minds, and thus deserve human treatment and liberty.
February, 1777 - Washington orders the mass inoculation of the Continental Army
Variola, a small pox virus, was ravaging the Continental Troops, to the point that BEnedict Arnold, Benjamin Franklin, and Washington all feared it would be the army’s ultimate downfall. Europeans had been infecting individuals with less-deadly forms of the disease, so most British troops were immune, giving them an enormous advantage. Though an unpopular decision, Washington committed to the policy of mass inoculation and ordered commanding officers to oversee the operation. Smallpox raged throughout the war, ravaging Native American and Black populations, but failed to incapacitate a single Continental regiment.
1786 - Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals
After struggling with glasses on and off and wearing double spectacles, Franklin writes happily to his friend that he has invented spectacles that allow him to see objects at a distance and near ones. Many who wear glasses today can thank Ben for his ingenuity!
1789 - George Washington is inaugurated as the first president
Washington had been chosen unanimously by electors, with John Adams as his Vice President. There was no direct presidential election at the time. Washington was elected in February and inaugurated in New York City in April. In September of the same year, the Federal Judiciary Act was passed to create the Supreme Court.
1792 - A Vindication of the Rights of Woman published
British writer and women’s rights advocate Mary Wollstonecraft published “A Vindication of the Right of Woman: with Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects”. She argued that women were able and should receive an education, rather than simply learn how to keep a home. Her book was very popular among feminists of the day, including American women who would later reference her work at the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention and their publication of the Declaration of Sentiments.
1793 - Eli Whitney invents the cotton gin
Further back on our timeline, but a pivotal moment in the perpetuation of slavery in America. The cotton gin easily separated cotton from its seeds, making it a more lucrative crop to grow. The South would transition largely to growing cotton, reinforcing their reliance on slave labor to yield more profit.
1791 - The First Bank of the United States is chartered
The bank is chartered in Philadelphia for 20 years by Congress, part of an overall federal fiscal policy. A federal mint and excise taxes were also established.
1805 - Lewis and Clark reach the Pacific
After 2 years of struggling across harsh and unforgiving terrain, the Lewis and Clark expedition reached the Pacific coast near present-day Astoria, Oregon. Along the way, the group swelled with ranks with Shoshone-born Sacagawea, who joined the expedition with her husband, a French-Canadian fur trapper. Though pregnant, Sacagawea traveled with the group and interpreted when necessary. Her son, whom she named Jean Baptiste, was born along the way before they reached the Pacific.
1816 - French doctor Rene Laennec invented the stethoscope
The French physician invented an instrument for doctors to listen to hearts and lungs. He used the new tool to support observations he had made during autopsies. He introduced many clinical terms still used today in the examination of the chest.
1830 - 1850 - ‘Trail of Tears’
Approximately 100,000 Native people are forcibly removed and marched to areas east of the Mississippi River. The removal of the Cherokee in 1838 was prompted by the discovery of gold in their native lands. Thousands of Native people died before reaching their destination, due to inadequate supplies, harassment by the military and frontiersmen, and exposure during the hottest and coldest months of the year. Some historians estimate that ⅓ of the Choctaw tribe perished along these forced marches.
1843 - The ‘Great Migration’ begins west
Though the Oregon territory would not be officially established until 1846, Americans began flocking west. In 1843, approximately 1,000 migrants gathered to head West to Oregon. To read more about this massive migration, click here: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/a-thousand-pioneers-head-west-on-the-oregon-trail
1846 - Ether first used as an anesthetic
Georgia physician Crawford Williamson Long became the first doctor to use ether as a general anesthetic during surgery, when he used it to remove a tumor from the neck of his patient James M. Venable. To read more about the development of ether and chloroform, click here: https://www.history.com/topics/inventions/ether-and-chloroform
1848 - Seneca Falls Convention
The first organized women’s rights convention is held in Seneca Falls, New York. Organized by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the convention attracted 300 attendees and many signed the Declaration of Sentiments, declaring that women should be granted equal rights and the right to vote. The Convention sparked decades of activism and many more speaking venues for prominent suffragette supporters.
That is where our timeline leaves us for this week! Tune in this week to learn about the life of Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell!
Recommended Reading
Recommended Reading
Who Says Women Can’t Be Doctors?: The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell by Tanya Lee Stone
In the 1830s, when a brave and curious girl named Elizabeth Blackwell was growing up, women were supposed to be wives and mothers. Some women could be teachers or seamstresses, but career options were few. Certainly no women were doctors.
But Elizabeth refused to accept the common beliefs that women weren't smart enough to be doctors, or that they were too weak for such hard work. And she would not take no for an answer. Although she faced much opposition, she worked hard and finally―when she graduated from medical school and went on to have a brilliant career―proved her detractors wrong. This inspiring story of the first female doctor shows how one strong-willed woman opened the doors for all the female doctors to come.
Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? by Tanya Lee Stone is an NPR Best Book of 2013
Elizabeth Blackwell: America’s First Woman Doctor by Trina Robbins
Discover the brilliant life of Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States, in this powerful graphic novel. With comic book-style illustrations and short, engaging sentences, this biography will inspire, entertain, and inform young readers about an individual who made a significant contribution to society. This must-have graphic novel includes a bibliography, extended reading list, glossary, and further Internet sources.
Pioneer Work in Opening the Medical Profession to Women: Autobiography of the First Woman In the USA to Receive a Degree in Medicine by Elizabeth Blackwell
Elizabeth Blackwell's autobiographic history of the brave accomplishments of those who made the USA's medical profession accessible to women is illuminating and uplifting. Writing toward the end of the 19th century, Blackwell strikes a dignified and resolute tone throughout this memoir. Prior to Victorian times, women had only a diminished role in the medical profession, which - like most other professional trades at the time - was closed to female participation. Elizabeth Blackwell however was adamant that she could serve as a medic; her persistence led her to become the first woman ever taught in medical school, studying in the USA. Blackwell discusses famous figures in English medicine, such as Florence Nightingale, as well as several more obscure - but nevertheless important and influential - contributors to the progress of women in the medical profession. Towards the end of the book, set in 1858, Elizabeth Blackwell revisits England to behold the hospitals and medical community of that nation.
Elizabeth Blackwell: Trailblazing Woman Doctor by Matt Doeden
Elizabeth Blackwell shattered the glass ceiling in medicine as the first woman doctor. After her father's death, she used her unusually high level of education to earn a living. Blackwell began working as a teacher while saving up for medical school. The rejection letters piled up, but she persisted until she was admitted to Geneva University. Life still wasn't easy once she had her diploma. She had to fight sexism and challenge stereotypes about women in the medical field.
Hoping to break down barriers for other aspiring women physicians, Blackwell opened the Women's Medical College of the New York Infirmary and the London School of Medicine for Women. These schools were specifically for women and offered extensive training to help them in the medical field. Read about Blackwell's life and her lasting legacy in medicine.
Works Cited
Works Cited
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