The first edition of the first book by the first woman in America to earn a medical degree. Elizabeth Blackwell was rejected by all the leading medical schools to which she applied, and almost all the other schools as well. When her application arrived at Geneva Medical College at Geneva, New York, the administration asked the students to decide whether to admit her or not. The students, reportedly believing it to be only a practical joke, endorsed her admission. Blackwell graduated first in her class in January, 1849, becoming the first woman to graduate from medical school, and the first woman doctor of medicine in the modern era. While well represented in institutional collections this title rarely appears on the auction block, with this being only the fourth copy recorded at auction in at least 30 years. 1852 gift inscription on front free endpaper, later embossed ownership mark on half title.