On this day in 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell received her medical degree from Geneva College in New York, making her the first woman to be officially recognized as a physician in U.S. history.

Zemma Haynes Taylor of Farmerville, Louisiana made this pictorial quilt, titled “American Pride,” between 1932-33. The quilt was documented as part of the Michigan Quilt Project.

From this Quilt Index record:

Zemma Haynes Taylor (1886-1951) was the wife of Farmerville, Louisiana physician Jordan G. Taylor. She made this quilt for the quilt contest sponsored by Sears & Roebuck as part of the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition. Later that year, Taylor sent the quilt to industrialist Henry Ford as a gift from “the wife of a country doctor who appreciates the Ford car.” Physicians were often the first to acquire automobiles in smaller towns and rural communities. Many doctors chose to drive a dependable Ford automobile to visit their patients—at a time when doctors still made house calls.

View this quilt on The Quilt Index to find out! Read more about its history, design and construction. Be sure to use the zoom tool for a detailed view or click the “See full record” link to see a larger image and all the data entered about that quilt.

Source:
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-woman-md

Posted by Amy E. Milne
Executive Director, Quilt Alliance
amy.milne@quiltalliance.org