Who was the first Black woman to graduate from law school?
Asked by: Arlie Lemke | Last update: November 3, 2025Score: 4.4/5 (31 votes)
Charlotte E. Ray (born January 13, 1850 - January 4, 1911) became the first African-American woman to graduate from a law school, and the first to formally practice law in the United States in 1872. In the 19th century, most women – and particularly women of color – were barred from the legal profession.
Who was the first Black woman to go to law school?
In 1872, Charlotte Ray became the first woman to graduate from Howard University School of Law, the first Black woman to practice law in the United States, and the first woman admitted to the District of Columbia bar. Before becoming a lawyer, Ray worked at Howard University as a teacher.
Who was the first Black woman to pass the bar?
1872. Charlotte E. Ray became the first African-American woman lawyer admitted to the bar.
Who was the first woman to graduate from law school?
Ada Kepley
Encouraged by her husband to study law and join him in his practice, Kepley attended Northwestern University's Pritzker School of Law, graduating with honors in 1870, making her the first woman to graduate from law school in the U.S.
Who was the first Black woman to graduate from Yale Law School?
Jane Matilda Bolin was the first Black woman to graduate from Yale Law School, who later became the first Black female judge in the United States. Jane Matilda Bolin made history as the first Black female judge in the United States and the first Black woman to graduate from Yale Law School.
At 19, She’s the Youngest Black Woman to Graduate from Law School in America
Who was the first black person to graduate from Harvard Law?
George Lewis Ruffin (December 16, 1834 – November 19, 1886) was an American barber, attorney, politician, and judge. In 1869, he graduated from Harvard Law School, the first African American to do so. He was also the first African American elected to the Boston City Council.
Who was the first black female Harvard graduate?
Portrait of Mildred Jefferson, ca. 1947. Mildred Jefferson Papers. Mildred Jefferson was not only the first African American woman graduate of Harvard Medical School, she was also the first woman employed as a general surgeon at Boston University Medical Center.
When was the first black female lawyer?
Charlotte E. Ray graduated from Howard Law School on February 27, 1872, becoming not only the first female African-American lawyer in the United States but also the first practicing female lawyer in Washington, D.C.
Who was the first black graduate of Harvard Law School?
Hint: George Lewis Ruffin was the first black person to graduate from HLS, and he went on to become the first African-American judge in Massachusetts.
Who is the youngest woman to graduate law school?
Haley Taylor Schlitz graduated from the SMU Dedman School of Law at 19 years old. That's only one of many things you should know about her.
Who is the most famous Black lawyer?
Thurgood Marshall
Perhaps none are more famous than his victory in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka in 1954, which overturned the “separate but equal” statute in public education established in Plessy v. Ferguson. He was nominated by President Lyndon B.
Who was the first Black woman to teach?
Susie King Taylor (1848-1912) was the first black teacher to teach openly in a school for former slaves. She was born as a slave on a plantation in Georgia, and later lived with her grandmother, who was influential in her education.
Who was the first Black woman to become first lady in America?
First Lady Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is a lawyer, writer, and the wife of the 44th and current President, Barack Obama. She is the first African-American First Lady of the United States.
Who was the first Black girl to go to a white school?
The morning of November 14, 1960, a little girl named Ruby Bridges got dressed and left for school. At just six years old, Ruby became the first Black child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans.
Who was the first Black woman to graduate from college?
Mary Jane Patterson (d. 1894)
Without question, however, Patterson was the first African American woman to receive a bachelor's degree when she graduated from Oberlin College in 1862.
Who was the first Black woman to win a court case?
Sojourner Truth (c. 1797-1883) made legal history in 1828 becoming the first Black woman to win a legal victory against a white man to secure a family member's freedom. Truth's success in securing her son Peter's freedom shattered legal norms, challenged gender biases, and became a part of U.S. history.
Who was the first Black person to graduate from Yale Law School?
In 1880, Edwin A. Randolph became the first Black person to graduate from Yale Law School and first Black person to be admitted to the Connecticut bar. Prior to Yale, Randolph was enrolled in seminary school in Washington, D.C.
What black actress went to Harvard?
Yara Shahidi
The actress — who graduated from Harvard University in 2022 — studied within the university's social studies and African American studies departments and told Vogue her concentration was "Black political thought under a neocolonial landscape."
Who was the first Black person to get a PhD from Harvard?
W. E. B. Du Bois, the first Black person to earn a PhD from Harvard, used his talent and intellect to pave a path toward racial uplift.
Who was the first Black woman to pass the bar exam?
In 1872, Charlotte E. Ray graduated from Howard University Law School and passed the bar exam becoming the first Black female lawyer in the United States.
Who was the first woman to get a law degree?
1870 – Ada Kepley became the first woman to graduate from law school in the United States; she graduated from Chicago University Law School, predecessor to Union College of Law, later known as Northwestern University School of Law.
Who was the first Black woman to get a master's degree?
1925 Aletha Hebron Washington becomes the first African American woman to earn a Master's degree at Ohio State University (M.A.). 1926 Otelia Cromwell becomes the first African American woman to earn Ph.
Who was the first black graduate of Harvard Law?
Richard Theodore Greener. Harvard's first Black graduate, Richard T. Greener, went on to become the first Black professor at the University of South Carolina and dean of the Howard University School of Law. Born in Philadelphia in 1844, Richard T.
Who was the first woman at Harvard Law?
Quick side note - women have been at HLS for less than seventy years, so - more to come. In 1947, Soia Mentschikoff became the first woman to teach at HLS.