Frances Daisy Emery Allen (born Frances Daisy Emery; September 5, 1876 – December 7, 1958) was an American physician. She was the first female graduate of a medical college in the state of Texas and one of the first female physicians to practice in Tarrant County.

Early life and education

Emery was born September 5, 1876, in

Kaufman County, Texas Kaufman County is a county in the northeastern area of the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 145,310. Its county seat is Kaufman. Both the county, established in 1848, and the city were named for David S. Kaufman ...

, to James Wallace and Elizabeth Brown Emery. James Wallace Emery had a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

from

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. It was chartered in 1794. The main Bowdoin campus is located near Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River. In a ...

and had been an outspoken

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was Kingdom of France, France in 1315, but it was later used ...

in the 1850s. The ninth of twelve children, four-year-old Daisy announced her intentions to become a doctor, a goal encouraged by her parents. The Emery family moved to Fort Worth when Daisy was fourteen years old. She attended Fort Worth public schools, where her father was also a teacher, and graduated from Fort Worth High School. Emery applied to and was initially refused admission to the medical college of Fort Worth University, but was admitted when she pointed out that no rules specifically excluded women from the school. She was thus admitted to the charter class of Fort Worth Medical College (also known as Fort Worth Medical School and Fort Worth School of Medicine) in 1894, where she was the only female student for a full year. In 1897, she graduated with honors, ranking second in a class of seventeen students. She had the distinction of being the first woman to graduate from a medical college in Texas.

Career

Emery worked in private practice in Fort Worth for two years, making her one of the first female physicians in the Tarrant County. She also worked as an evaluating physician for

Penn Mutual The Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company, commonly referred to as Penn Mutual, was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1847. It was the seventh mutual life insurance company chartered in the United States. As of 2019, it had 3,140 employee ...

Life Insurance's female applicants. In 1899, she moved to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

for postgraduate education. She lived with a married sister in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

while completing an

internship An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used to practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and g ...

and

residency Residency may refer to: * Artist-in-residence, a program to sponsor the residence and work of visual artists, writers, musicians, etc. * Concert residency, a series of concerts performed at one venue * Domicile (law), the act of establishing or m ...

at Women and Children's Hospital in Washington. There she became involved in women's

suffrage Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

, developing an interest in women's voting rights, attending lectures by Susan B. Anthony and other activists, and even sewing her own

bloomers Bloomers, also called the bloomer, the Turkish dress, the American dress, or simply Victorian dress reform, reform dress, are divided women's garments for the lower body. They were developed in the 19th century as a healthful and comfortable a ...

. Dr. Daisy Emery returned to Texas in 1901 to care for her mother, who was suffering from

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects synovial joint, joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and h ...

, and accepted a teaching position at Dallas Medical College. In 1910, the Allens moved their practice a few miles east to

Goldsboro, Texas Goldsboro is an unincorporated community in Coleman County, Texas, United States. According to the ''Handbook of Texas'', the community had an estimated population of 30 in 2000. History The Pecos Valley and Northern Texas Railway was what esta ...

, where their second daughter, Sheila Emery, was born; in 1912, they relocated again to

Newark, Texas Newark is a city in Tarrant and Wise counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 1,096 in 2020. History According to the '' Handbook of Texas'', settlement began in the mid-1850s, referring to the community as Caddo Village becaus ...

, about 20 miles northwest of Fort Worth. In December 1913, the Allens were planning to move to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

when Walter died unexpectedly during surgery to remove

kidney stones Kidney stone disease (known as nephrolithiasis, renal calculus disease, or urolithiasis) is a crystallopathy and occurs when there are too many minerals in the urine and not enough liquid or hydration. This imbalance causes tiny pieces of cr ...

. Finding herself a widow at age 37, Allen packed up her two young children and returned to Fort Worth. She served as

clinical professor Clinical professor, sometimes known as professor of practice, is an academic appointment made to a member of a profession who is associated with a university or other academic body, and engages in practical (clinical) instruction of students (e ...

of children's diseases at Fort Worth Medical College until Fort Worth University closed in 1917 and its medical school, which had been chartered separately, merged with

Baylor College of Medicine The Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) is a private medical school in Houston, Texas, United States. Originally as the Baylor University College of Medicine from 1903 to 1969, the college became independent with the current name and has been se ...

. Allen served on the staffs of Harris, All Saints, and St. Joseph hospitals in Fort Worth. She also treated patients at free clinics at City-County Hospital and the Wesley Center, where she delivered many of Fort Worth's babies. She was a founding member of the Fort Worth Academy of Medicine, a member of the Tarrant County Medical Society, the Tarrant County Association for Mental Health, the

American Medical Women's Association The American Medical Women's Association (AMWA) is a professional advocacy and educational organization of women physicians and medical students. History The '' Woman's Medical Journal'' began publication in the 1893. As World War I broke out ...

, and was a life member of the

Texas Medical Association The Texas Medical Association (TMA) is a professional nonprofit organization representing over 59,000 physicians, residents, medical student and alliance members. It is located in Austin, has 110 component county medical societies around the state ...

. Allen was a member of the

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV) is a nonpartisan American nonprofit political organization. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include Voter registration, registering voters, providing voter information, boosting voter turnout and adv ...

. She traveled the United States and Europe with her daughters and took them to political rallies. With her mother's influence, her daughter, Frances, became a

social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

er and pioneering advocate for

child welfare Child protection (also called child welfare) is the safeguarding of children from violence, exploitation, abuse, abandonment, and neglect. It involves identifying signs of potential harm. This includes responding to allegations or suspicions ...

in Texas and Illinois.

Retirement and death

Allen retired from medicine in 1950, having practiced for more than half a century. She died of

heart disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is any disease involving the heart or blood vessels. CVDs constitute a class of diseases that includes: coronary artery diseases (e.g. angina pectoris, angina, myocardial infarction, heart attack), heart failure, ...

in Fort Worth on December 7, 1958, aged 82, and was buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Fort Worth. At her death, she owned extensive property in Runnels, Callahan, and Tarrant Counties, having accepted property in lieu of payment from patients. She is noted on the

Texas Historical Marker The Texas Historical Commission is an agency dedicated to historic preservation within the U.S. state of Texas. It administers the National Register of Historic Places for sites in Texas. The commission also identifies Recorded Texas Histor ...

at the site of the Fort Worth Medical College, near the intersection of 4th and Jones Streets in downtown Fort Worth.

References

{{reflist Health professionals from Fort Worth, Texas American women physicians Physicians from Texas 1876 births 1958 deaths