Helen Walker McAndrew (6 February 1825 – 26 October 1906) was a

Scottish-American Scottish Americans or Scots Americans (Scottish Gaelic: ''Ameireaganaich Albannach''; sco, Scots-American) are Americans whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in Scotland. Scottish Americans are closely related to Scotch-Irish Americans, d ...

doctor and the first documented female physician in

Washtenaw County, Michigan Washtenaw County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the population was 372,258. The county seat is Ann Arbor. The county was authorized by legislation in 1822 and organized as a county in 1826. Washtena ...

. According to some sources, she was also the first female physician in the U.S. state of

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

Early life and education

Helen Walker was born in Kirkintilloch, Scotland, to Thomas Walker and Margaret Boyd. In 1849, she married William McAndrew in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. The couple emigrated from Scotland shortly after their marriage and arrived in

Ypsilanti, Michigan Ypsilanti (), commonly shortened to Ypsi, is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 20,648. The city is bounded to the north by Superior Township and on the west, south, an ...

, by way of New York.William McAndrew Jr.
Helen Walker McAndrew, 1826-1906
Ypsilanti, Michigan, 1931 On June 24, 1852, McAndrew gave birth to their first-born son, Thomas. On August 20, 1863, she gave birth to another son, William Jr., who later became a noted educator.

Career

Medical career

In Ypsilanti, McAndrew practiced as a self-trained nurse. When her son was still an infant, she decided to pursue medicine. No medical school west of New York would admit female students, so she traveled to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

to attend the Trall Institute (New York Hydropathic and Physiological School), where she earned her

M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...

in 1855. When McAndrew returned to Ypsilanti, she was ostracized by the public she had previously nursed. She turned to practicing medicine for the marginalized poor and African Americans in her community. She was not accepted as a doctor by most members of her community until she saved the life of local State Senator Samuel Post's long-suffering wife, helping her where distinguished physicians from Ann Arbor failed. As a proponent of the water cure, she subsequently established a private practice with a

sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal, make healthy'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, are antiquated names for specialised hospitals, for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often ...

in her home and

mineral baths Mineral spas are spa resorts developed around naturally occurring mineral springs. Like seaside resorts, they are mainly used recreationally although they also figured prominently in prescientific medicine. Origins Spas were used for millen ...

in the nearby Huron River. By numerous accounts, McAndrew was the first female licensed physician in the state of Michigan.

Activism

McAndrew was a leader of the push to admit women into the department of medicine at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, which succeeded in 1870. She, along with her husband, participated in the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. ...

, temperance societies and the suffrage movement in Washtenaw County. She worked with several prominent leaders on the suffrage movement including Elizabeth Cady Stanton and

Susan B. Anthony Susan B. Anthony (born Susan Anthony; February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906) was an American social reformer and women's rights activist who played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement. Born into a Quaker family committed to s ...

Later life and death

McAndrew was widowed after the death of her husband on October 22, 1895. She died eleven years later on October 26, 1906, in

. In 1931, McAndrew was posthumously named Ypsilanti's "Most Distinguished Business and Professional Woman." She was inducted into the

Michigan Women's Hall of Fame The Michigan Women's Hall of Fame (MWHOF) honors distinguished women, both historical and contemporary, who have been associated with the U.S. state of Michigan. The hall of fame was founded in 1983 by Gladys Beckwith and is sponsored by the Michi ...

in 1994.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McAndrew, Helen 1825 births 1906 deaths People from Kirkintilloch People from Ypsilanti, Michigan Scottish emigrants to the United States 19th-century American women physicians 19th-century American physicians Washtenaw County, Michigan Scottish suffragettes Underground Railroad people