Belva Ann Lockwood

Engraved by Belva Ann Lockwood

Belva Ann Bennett Lockwood (born October 24, 1830 in Royalton , New York , † May 19, 1917 in Washington, DC ) was an American lawyer and suffragette . She was the first woman to stand before the US Supreme Court as a lawyer . In 1884, she became the first woman to officially run her own campaign as a presidential candidate .

Childhood and youth

Lockwood was born Belva Ann Bennett and grew up on a farm. At the age of 14, her parents decided to take Belva out of the local school so she could help out with the house. Her father considered schooling for girls to be superfluous, as was not unusual at the time. However, the school offered the talented girl to become a teacher, which Bennett accepted. After she found out that her wages were only half the wages of male colleagues, the then 15-year-old complained to the pastor of the congregation, among others. When she wanted to give up her job as a teacher three years later in order to receive further training at a university, her father finally refused to give her the necessary financial support. At the age of 18, Bennett married Uriah McNall, a neighbor of the adjoining farm who also ran a sawmill . Since her further education seemed closed to her, Bennett regarded marriage as the only further path in life she could take.

In 1850 their daughter Lura was born. Shortly thereafter, McNall suffered an accident at his sawmill, as a result of which he was unable to work. Bennett then took over both childcare and work in the sawmill. However, her husband's health continued to deteriorate during this time until McNall finally died of a lung disease in 1853. Widowed and raised with a toddler, Bennett, 22, resumed her childhood dream and enrolled in college .

Career

After Bennett graduated from college, she taught in New York State before moving to Washington, DC in 1866. There she began teaching again. Two years later she married Ezekiel Lockwood, a dentist and Civil War veteran, and took his last name. With her second husband, Lockwood had another daughter who, however, died in toddler age.

In 1870 Lockwood wanted to enroll at Columbian College (now George Washington University ) to study law , but was turned down. She then applied to the National University Law School , where she was accepted into the course. However, when she had successfully completed her course workload in 1873, she was initially refused graduation. Lockwood then turned to President Ulysses S. Grant , who presided over the institution ex officio. He intervened and ensured that Lockwood received her formal degree. Still, Lockwood was initially not admitted to the bar, with the explicit note that women did not lose in courtrooms. By 1879, however, Lockwood persistently and successfully campaigned for their approval. That year she was sworn in before the US Supreme Court. In 1880, she became the first woman to hear a case before that Supreme Court.

In 1884 Lockwood caused a sensation when she ran as an independent candidate for the office of US President. She justified her step by stating that as a woman she did not have the right to vote, but men had the right to vote. Four years later it was erected again.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Jill Norgren: Belva Lockwood. The Woman Who Would Be President. NYU Press, 2007, ISBN 978-0-8147-5834-2 , pp. Preface .
2. ↑ Before her, Victoria Woodhull was nominated as a presidential candidate by the Equal Rights Party in 1872.
3. ^ Averil Evans McClelland: The Education of Women in the United States: A Guide to Theory, Teaching, and Research . Routledge, New York 1992, ISBN 978-1-135-77602-2 .
4. ^ ^{A b c} Jill Norgren: Belva Lockwood: Equal Rights Pioneer . Twenty-First Century Books, Minneapolis 2009, ISBN 978-0-8225-9068-2 .
5. ↑ ^{a b} Belva Lockwood. In: www.archives.gov. Retrieved September 29, 2016 . 
6. ↑ ^{a b c} Belva Lockwood - Early Woman Lawyer. Retrieved September 29, 2016 .