Rebecca Lee Crumpler (1831-1835)

Rebecca Lee Crumpler was born on February 8, 1831, in Christiana, Delaware. Crumpler was raised by her aunt, who cared for sick people, starting Crumpler’s interest in medicine. In 1852, Rebecca married Wyatt Lee and began working as a nurse. In 1960, she enrolled in the New England Female Medical College, one of the few colleges accepting women. Rebecca faced opposition from male members of the medical community and wasn’t always treated fairly by her professors. She graduated in 1864, then began working to help provide medical care to formerly enslaved people. Rebecca Lee Crumpler persevered through discrimination by her peers to become the first Black woman to earn a medical degree in the U.S.​
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