A pioneer for women's health and women's rights, Elizabeth Blackwell became the first modern woman to break through the centuries-old barrier to women practicing medicine. Educated by tutors, Blackwell first studied medicine on her own. Then, wishing to practice formally, she applied to many U.S. medical schools, all of which rejected her because of gender prejudice. Finally she was admitted to Geneva Medical College in New York, from which she received her M.D. degree in 1849. After completing her internship in her native England, she returned to the United States - to find no hospital willing to hire female physicians. So, with her sister Emily, also a physician, Blackwell opened a clinic in the slums of New York City. The clinic's success led to the women establishing the New York Infirmary for Women and Children, to which they later attached a medical college for women, the first of its kind. Blackwell continued her promotion for women in medicine for many years via her activities in the medical community and through her writings.
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