Oh, Father, How You Will Be Missed!

          Oh dear! It has been a while since I have posted another journal entry, but oh my have I had just a wretched day. Just only a couple of weeks ago, my family moved once again but this time to Cincinnati, Ohio. The move was imperative because back in New York, my father’s sugar business was terribly burnt down by a devastating fire. Oh, how the fire engulfed his whole building not even leaving behind a single memory of his thriving business. The fire had left my family in such a poor state of bankruptcy; it was just not possible to stay in our beloved New York. We then first moved to America believing there would be a chance to start over, but my father was not able to deal with the cruel treatment of black slaves. He could not bear knowing that the sugar he was making huge profits from was actually coming from the hard work of his poor slaves. Once again, my family relocated to where we are today, Cincinnati, Ohio. Today, it has been roughly two weeks, and I am experiencing the worst pain one could imagine. Samuel Blackwell, my beloved father, passed away this morning. I cannot even describe the sorrow I feel. It feels as if someone has just broken into my heart and just stole a piece of it away without warning. After the doctors came to examine his body, they have come to the conclusion that his death occurred due to biliary fever. Even though I did not say this much when he was alive, I hope he knows that I love him very much and have appreciated spending every moment of my life as his daughter. His lessons will always be in my heart, and now I strive even more to bring equality to young men and women. To my father: You have been a great influence in my life, and you will continuously stay in my thoughts. I love you and I promise that I will take care of our family.

Recent photograph taken !

This is what I may look like now though, if you ever come for a check-up or examination ! Just so you don't get confused if you're seeing the right doctor .

http://myhero.com/images/freedom/blackwell/blackwell.jpg

Yes, This Is My Life

            Hello my fellow readers and followers ! I would first like to start off by formally introducing myself to you all. My name is Elizabeth Blackwell, and yes, THE Elizabeth Blackwell. Some may know me as Bess, or as my father’s favorite name to call me, “Little Shy” since I was a timid and meek girl in my childhood. I was born on February 3, 1821 to two unique and loving parents, Samuel and Hannah Blackwell. My native town is Bristol, England and I was born the fourth child of my large family. My parents were fortunate enough to have a large family consisting on nine children, giving me two brothers and six sisters. Unfortunately, as I grew up I experienced the many losses of my siblings and even relatives. All of my sibling, including the two brothers and six sisters I had, along with eight of my cousins passed away at a young age as I was still coming of age. After I saw the reality of life and how much the death of a family member, or in my case, almost all of my family members, I made a solemn to my deceased siblings, my parents, and myself that I would one day grow up to become a doctor to babies and woman. You may wonder why I didn’t include men. Well, that is because, men already have all the rights and privileges they can dream of, but as for women it is a different story. It is hard for us women to have the same equal rights that men are given. Therefore I would like to become a doctor specifically for women. That brings me to yet another important factor that contributed to the many aspects of my childhood that helped develop me into the woman I am today. As for my education as a child, my parents are the ones to thank for that. They tried to instill a sense of equality into our family and household life. My father refused to accept the rule of the established church which led to some disadvantages, such as my siblings and I being denied acceptance into public schools. Being rejected from such schools, private tutors were hired by my father to instruct us. My siblings and I were not taught what other regular students learned though. Instead, my brothers, my sister, and I were all taught the same subjects. My private instructors went against English tradition so my sisters and I were given equal learning opportunities, which were the exact same as my brothers. It may seem as if I grew up through an easy life, but my family has been through our own burdens as well. When I was eleven, my father’s thriving sugar business was burnt down in a fire, causing our family to go into complete poverty. He soon died after the destruction, leaving our family without an income. That left me searching for a job, to help earn wages for my family’s income. After receiving some more encouragement of becoming a doctor from close family and friends, I seeked opportunites of going to a college to further my studies. My life has now grown tremendously from all the experiences of my childhood. I am now proud to say I am the first woman doctor in the United States of America, and have paved the way for other young women to accomplish their dreams of helping people.

Oh ! Here's a decent self-portrait !

http://www.elizabeth-blackwell.com/images/artist/11507.jpg