In Her Own Words: An Incomplete History of Women at the Law College

IN HER OWN WORDS:

An Incomplete History of Women at the Law College hen the Law College opened its doors on St. Antoine Street in 1891, visitors to its austere lecture room would’ve been surprised to see a young woman reading law alongside her 30 male classmates. Though women had been fghting for their place in the professional world for decades, it was still uncommon for law schools to admit female students. Lizzie McSweeney was one of the frst students to enroll at the then-Detroit College of Law (today Michigan State University College of Law); she would graduate in 1893.¹ McSweeney, like several of the early women students, had fathers and brothers in the legal profession; others had worked as stenographers in law ofces. By 1899, the Law College counted four women among its graduates.² Though they found a rare opportunity at the Law College to further their ambitions, they didn’t fnd a community: women in the early years graduated alone or in pairs. Their graduations were remarked upon in local papers under headlines like “Two Women Will Receive Their Degrees Next Saturday”³ and “One Woman Among Those Who Received Diplomas.” 4

The old Detroit College of Medicine Building, DCL's frst home.

MILESTONES FOR WOMEN AT THE LAW COLLEGE 1891 The Law College welcomed its inaugural class of approximately 30 students, including one woman.

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1912 Miss Mabel Grifths, described as “brilliant” by the Detroit Free Press, was the Law College’s frst woman valedictorian.

1948 Elizabeth M. Gallagher was hired as a librarian; she would eventually become the Law College’s frst female teacher.

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1920 The Law College started its frst student organization for women law students.

1980 Kathleen Payne, ’77, was the frst alumna hired to the full-time faculty.

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1922 Barbara F. Keene became the frst black woman in Michigan to graduate from law school.

2008 Joan W. Howarth was hired as the frst woman Dean of the Law College.

¹Gwenn Bashara Samuel, The First Hundred Years are the Hardest: A Centennial History of the Detroit College of Law 9 (1993). \ ²Id. at 22. \ ³Bachelors of Laws: Two Women Will Receive Their Degrees Next Saturday: Misses Marsh and Hogan Graduate From College of Law, Det. Free Press, Apr. 16, 1899, at A3. \ ⁴Detroit College of Law: First Commencement Exercises Held Last Night, Twenty-Four Graduates in the Class of 1893. One Woman Among Those Who Received Diplomas, Det. Free Press, June 24, 1893, at 6.

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