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Elizabeth Blackwell Photo sourced from

10 Amazing Facts about Elizabeth Blackwell

Elizabeth Blackwell, born on February 3rd 1821 was a British physician, notable as the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States, and the first woman on the Medical Register of the General Medical Council for the United Kingdom.

Blackwell played an important role in both the United States and the United Kingdom as a social awareness and moral reformer, and pioneered in promoting education for women in medicine.She is among the most known women in the medical field. Lets take a look at some of the most amazing facts about her;

1.Elizabeth was born in Bristol, England as a 3rd born to a family of 9 children

A group portrait of members of the Blackwell and Spafford families Photo sourced from

Elizabeth was born on 3 February 1821, in Bristol, England, to Samuel Blackwell, who was a sugar refiner, and his wife Hannah (Lane) Blackwell. She was the third born in a family of nine children. She had two older siblings, Anna and Marian. 

She also had six younger siblings: Samuel (married Antoinette Brown), Henry (married Lucy Stone), Emily (second woman in the U.S. to get a medical degree), Sarah Ellen (a writer), John and George. She also had four maiden aunts: Barbara, Ann, Lucy, and Mary, who also lived with them. 

Read more about her here

2.Her father Samuel Blackwell was liberal and believed in education for all children

Her father Samuel Blackwell was liberal and believed in education for all children regardless of their gender.  Samuel Blackwell was a Congregationalist and exerted a strong influence over the religious and academic education of his children. He believed that each child, including his girls, should be given the opportunity for unlimited development of their talents and gifts.

This perspective was rare during that time, as most people believed that the woman’s place was in the home or as a schoolteacher. Elizabeth  Blackwell had not only a governess at home, but also private tutors to supplement her intellectual development. 

3.Most of her siblings went on to become great people

Dr. Emily Blackwell, Elizabeth’s sister Photo sourced from

Most of Elizabeth’s siblings, the Blackwells went on to become great people in the society because they were well educated and were given an opportunity to realize their full potential. Several Blackwell children went on to achieve great things, including those from both genders. 

Elizabeth’s elder sister Anna became a poet and wrote for many newspapers, her younger sister Emily was the third woman in U.S. to get a medical degree and her younger brother Henry became a successful journalist, editor and businessman, and married Lucy Stone, the famous women’s rights activist. 

4.The idea of pursuing a career in medicine came to her after a close female friend

The idea of pursuing a career in medicine came to Elizabeth after a close female friend, who was dying of a painful disease, expressed that her suffering would have been less if she had had a lady doctor.She had initially wanted to pursue a different course and her favorite subjects, then were history and metaphysics. 

Another factor was that she wanted to be engrossed in a pursuit that would keep her independent and away from ordinary marriage. She also believed that motherly instincts of women would make them better doctors.She could later become one of the best doctors in the world. 

5.She initially wanted to become a surgeon but she could not because of an accident

Elizabeth Blackwell traveled to Europe to continue her studies and wanted to become a surgeon but her dream was shuttered because of an accident. She had in June 1849, joined the famed maternity hospital in Â鶹APP, La Maternité. She was acclaimed by her teachers as a superb obstetrician.

On 4 November 1849, Elizabeth accidentally sprayed contaminated solution in her left eye while treating an infant with a bacterial infection of the eyes. She could not continue with her dream of being a surgeon because of this unfortunate incident because she lost sight in her left eye and had to nurse it for sometime.

6.She was active in fight against Slavely

Elizabeth was active in the fight against Slavely and supported women rights to an extent that she supported the North, during the Civil War and even said that she would leave U.S. if the northern states compromised on their stand on slavery.

She was also involved in several reform movements including those supporting women’s rights, hygiene and family planning. She was also an author and published several books including an autobiography titled Pioneer Work in Opening the Medical Profession to Women. 

7.She was the first woman and doctor with a foreign degree to be recognized in Britain 

In 1858, under a clause in the Medical Act of 1858 that recognized doctors with foreign degrees practicing in Britain before 1858, she was able to become the first woman to have her name entered on the General Medical Council’s medical register (1 January 1859).

She also became a mentor to many because of her achievements which made her one of the most sought after female doctors in Europe and even in America. She helped in the formation of The London School of Medicine for Women. Established in 1874, it was the first medical school in Britain to train women.

Read more about her in Top 10 Most Famous Doctors in the world

8.She has an award named after her and was inducted into the hall of fame

She has an award named after her and was inducted into the hall of fame. Since 1949, the American Medical Women’s Association has awarded the Elizabeth Blackwell Medal annually to a female physician. Hobart and William Smith Colleges awards an annual Elizabeth Blackwell Award to women who have demonstrated “outstanding service to humankind.”

In 1973, Elizabeth Blackwell was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame.She has also received other honors even in her death for example, In 2013 the University of Bristol launched the Elizabeth Blackwell Institute for Health Research and on 3 February 2018, Google honoured her as a doodle in recognition of her 197th birth anniversary. 

9.Elizabeth was also an author who produced several works 

She was also an author who produced several works including; The Causes and Treatment of Typhus, or Shipfever (thesis), The Laws of Life with Special Reference to the Physical Education of Girls, An appeal in behalf of the medical education of women, Medicine as a Profession for Women and  Address on the Medical Education of Women. 

Her other works include; Counsel to Parents on the Moral Education of their Children in Relation to Sex, Medicine and Morality, Purchase of Women: the Great Economic Blunder, The Religion of Health, Wrong and Right Methods of Dealing with Social Evil, The Influence of Women in the Profession of Medicine and many more. 

10.Elizabeth was never married but adopted one child and lost her life to stroke

Elizabeth with her daughter Kitty Photo sourced from

Elizabeth was never married all her life as like most of her sisters but she later adopted a child Katherine “Kitty” Barry (1848–1936), an Irish orphan from the House of Refuge on Randall’s Island. Later in her life and on her deathbed, in 1936, Barry called Blackwell her “true love”, and requested that her ashes be buried with those of Elizabeth. 

She died aged 89 in her home in Hastings, Sussex after suffering a stroke that paralyzed half her body when she fell down a flight if stairs, during a holiday in Kilmun, Scotland. Her ashes were buried in the graveyard of St Munn’s Â鶹APPh Church, Kilmun, and obituaries honouring her appeared in publications such as The Lancet and The British Medical Journal.