1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:02,000 Speaker 1: The Day in History Class. It's a production of I 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:07,520 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hi everyone, welcome to the show. I'm Eves 3 00:00:07,640 --> 00:00:10,800 Speaker 1: and you're listening to this Day in History Class, a 4 00:00:10,880 --> 00:00:14,600 Speaker 1: show that uncovers a little bit more about history every day. 5 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:30,280 Speaker 1: Today is January one. The day was January one, eight forty. 6 00:00:30,960 --> 00:00:35,960 Speaker 1: Sophia Jacks Blake was born in Sussex, England. Jax Blake 7 00:00:36,120 --> 00:00:39,200 Speaker 1: is remembered for advocating for women in Britain to study 8 00:00:39,240 --> 00:00:43,120 Speaker 1: medicine and for being the first female doctor to practice 9 00:00:43,159 --> 00:00:48,080 Speaker 1: in Scotland. Sophia was born into a wealthy family. Her 10 00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:52,120 Speaker 1: father was Thomas jacks Blake, a retired barrister, and Mary 11 00:00:52,200 --> 00:00:55,600 Speaker 1: Jacks Blake was her mother. Both of her parents were 12 00:00:55,640 --> 00:01:00,640 Speaker 1: Evangelical Anglicans and strict when it came to religion. As 13 00:01:00,640 --> 00:01:03,760 Speaker 1: a child, she bounced from one private boarding school to 14 00:01:03,800 --> 00:01:07,520 Speaker 1: the next her their traditional views. Her parents did not 15 00:01:07,640 --> 00:01:11,640 Speaker 1: want her to attend college, but Sophia had gained an 16 00:01:11,640 --> 00:01:16,120 Speaker 1: interest in teaching. Despite her parents feelings about college, Sophia 17 00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:20,680 Speaker 1: enrolled at Queen's College in eighteen fifty eight. The next year, 18 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:23,000 Speaker 1: while she was still a student, she took a job 19 00:01:23,080 --> 00:01:26,440 Speaker 1: as a mathematics tutor at the school, though her parents 20 00:01:26,440 --> 00:01:28,800 Speaker 1: made her agree not to take a salary for it. 21 00:01:29,880 --> 00:01:33,240 Speaker 1: There she also learned bookkeeping and lived with Octavia Hill, 22 00:01:33,600 --> 00:01:38,080 Speaker 1: who would become a social reformer. While in London, Sophia 23 00:01:38,160 --> 00:01:42,440 Speaker 1: made friends with feminists like Elizabeth Garrett, Emily Davies, and 24 00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:46,920 Speaker 1: Emily Faithful. Sophia finished her term at Queen's College in 25 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:50,520 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty one. The next year she traveled to Germany 26 00:01:50,520 --> 00:01:54,280 Speaker 1: and began teaching at Grand Ducal Institute for Women in Mannheim. 27 00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:58,280 Speaker 1: Throughout the early eighteen sixties, she spent time in the 28 00:01:58,360 --> 00:02:01,520 Speaker 1: United States. She worked as an assistant at the New 29 00:02:01,520 --> 00:02:04,760 Speaker 1: England Hospital for Women and Children in Boston, and she 30 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:07,720 Speaker 1: applied to study medicine at the University of Harvard in 31 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:11,480 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty seven, but they denied her at mission because 32 00:02:11,560 --> 00:02:14,760 Speaker 1: she was a woman. She wrote a book called a 33 00:02:14,840 --> 00:02:19,280 Speaker 1: Visit to Some American Schools and Colleges. When her father died, 34 00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:22,560 Speaker 1: she returned to England, but her time in the US 35 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:26,639 Speaker 1: greatly influenced her views on women in education. She turned 36 00:02:26,639 --> 00:02:29,600 Speaker 1: her attention to becoming a doctor rather than a teacher. 37 00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:34,880 Speaker 1: In eighteen sixty nine, Jex Blake published the pamphlet Medicine 38 00:02:34,919 --> 00:02:37,680 Speaker 1: as a Profession for women, in which she argued the 39 00:02:37,720 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 1: case for women becoming doctors. When she applied to Edinburgh 40 00:02:41,680 --> 00:02:46,000 Speaker 1: University to study medicine, the school approved her application, but 41 00:02:46,120 --> 00:02:50,320 Speaker 1: the university court rejected it. But her story gained press 42 00:02:50,400 --> 00:02:53,040 Speaker 1: and she became part of a group of women seeking 43 00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:57,360 Speaker 1: at mission called the Edinburgh Seven. In eighteen sixty nine, 44 00:02:57,720 --> 00:03:01,160 Speaker 1: the women were admitted to the university medical School, though 45 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:04,200 Speaker 1: they had to pay higher fees and arranged lectures for 46 00:03:04,240 --> 00:03:07,359 Speaker 1: themselves because they could not sit in lectures with men. 47 00:03:08,639 --> 00:03:11,400 Speaker 1: They faced a lot of opposition at the school. In 48 00:03:11,400 --> 00:03:14,640 Speaker 1: November of eighteen seventy a mob of students tried to 49 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:18,480 Speaker 1: keep them from taking their exams. The event became known 50 00:03:18,560 --> 00:03:22,400 Speaker 1: as the Surgeon Halls Riot. They passed their exams, but 51 00:03:22,440 --> 00:03:26,200 Speaker 1: they weren't allowed to get medical degrees. Their story was 52 00:03:26,200 --> 00:03:29,520 Speaker 1: picked up in the press. In eighteen seventy six, Parliament 53 00:03:29,560 --> 00:03:32,360 Speaker 1: passed a law that allowed women to take exams to 54 00:03:32,400 --> 00:03:36,000 Speaker 1: get a medical degree, but it did not require schools 55 00:03:36,040 --> 00:03:39,640 Speaker 1: to do so. The University of Edinburgh did not admit 56 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:43,200 Speaker 1: women undergraduates to its medical program until eighteen ninety two. 57 00:03:44,320 --> 00:03:47,920 Speaker 1: Sophia turned to the University of Berne in Switzerland, where 58 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:51,720 Speaker 1: she got a medical degree. In eighteen seventy seven, the 59 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:55,360 Speaker 1: College of Physicians in Dublin became the first British university 60 00:03:55,400 --> 00:03:59,800 Speaker 1: to license women doctors. That same year, Jack's Blake qualified 61 00:03:59,840 --> 00:04:03,200 Speaker 1: as licentiate of the College of Physicians, which made her 62 00:04:03,360 --> 00:04:05,720 Speaker 1: the third woman to register as a doctor with the 63 00:04:05,760 --> 00:04:10,280 Speaker 1: General Medical Council. Jacks Blake opened a private practice in 64 00:04:10,400 --> 00:04:15,120 Speaker 1: Edinburgh in eighteen seventy eight, becoming Scotland's first female doctor. 65 00:04:15,960 --> 00:04:19,520 Speaker 1: She also opened to Edinburgh Hospital and dispensary for women 66 00:04:19,560 --> 00:04:24,640 Speaker 1: and children, but soon her mother died and her assistant died. 67 00:04:25,279 --> 00:04:28,359 Speaker 1: This took a toll on her. She closed her practice 68 00:04:28,440 --> 00:04:32,239 Speaker 1: and left her dispensary to colleagues, but after a couple 69 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:35,440 Speaker 1: of years, jack's Blake dove back into advocating for women 70 00:04:35,480 --> 00:04:39,840 Speaker 1: in medicine. She and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson established the Edinburgh 71 00:04:39,839 --> 00:04:43,560 Speaker 1: School of Medicine for women. Many of the students ended 72 00:04:43,640 --> 00:04:46,600 Speaker 1: up not liking the strict rules at the school, and 73 00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:49,720 Speaker 1: that drove some of them to found a new medical school. 74 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:54,200 Speaker 1: The Edinburgh School eventually closed after struggling with low enrollment 75 00:04:54,279 --> 00:04:59,960 Speaker 1: and financial issues. Jack's Blake retired in eight She lived 76 00:05:00,160 --> 00:05:03,000 Speaker 1: with Margaret Todd, one of her former students, and was 77 00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:07,159 Speaker 1: likely in a romantic relationship with her. In these later years, 78 00:05:07,320 --> 00:05:11,840 Speaker 1: Jex Blake supported the suffrage movement. She died in January 79 00:05:11,839 --> 00:05:16,200 Speaker 1: of nineteen twelve. Todd wrote her biography, which was published 80 00:05:16,240 --> 00:05:20,359 Speaker 1: in nineteen eighteen. I'm Eve Jeff Cote and hopefully you 81 00:05:20,400 --> 00:05:23,760 Speaker 1: know a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 82 00:05:24,440 --> 00:05:27,600 Speaker 1: If you've seen any good history means lately, you can 83 00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:31,440 Speaker 1: send them to us on social media at t d 84 00:05:31,480 --> 00:05:35,960 Speaker 1: i h C Podcast. If emails your thing, send us 85 00:05:35,960 --> 00:05:40,000 Speaker 1: a note at this day at I heeart media dot com. 86 00:05:40,000 --> 00:05:42,520 Speaker 1: Thanks for tuning in and we'll see you again tomorrow. 87 00:05:53,160 --> 00:05:56,000 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from iHeart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, 88 00:05:56,120 --> 00:05:58,680 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or where ever you listen to your favorite shows.