Lockwood, Belva (1830-1917)

Title

Lockwood, Belva (1830-1917)

Lockwood, Belva Ann (1830-1917)

Lockwood, Belva Ann Bennett (1830-1917)

Source

"Lawyer Belva Lockwood, half-length portrait, seated, facing right," Library of Congress.

birthday

1830-10-24

Birthplace

Royalton, NY

Death Date

1917-05-19

Occupation

Lawyer

Author

Politician

Principal

Teacher

Biographical Text

Belva Lockwood was one of the first women in the United States to become a lawyer, as well as the first woman to legally run for president. Born to farmer Lewis Johnson Benett and Hanna Green, Lockwood would pursue higher education after the death of her first husband at Genesee College, where she graduated with honors in 1857. Lockwood then worked as a teacher, headmistress, and principal at various schools in upstate New York before moving to Washington D.C. in 1866, where she opened a co-ed private school. With the encouragement of her second husband, Lockwood decided to pursue law, receiving her master’s degree from Syracuse University in 1871 and her Bachelor of Laws from the National University School of Law in 1873. Lockwood was then admitted to the District of Columbia Bar, though many challenged her legitimacy as an attorney on account of her gender. Lockwood became increasingly involved as a proponent of various feminist issues such as suffrage and equal pay. In 1879, she became the first woman to be sworn into the U.S. Supreme Court Bar after successfully passing a bill allowing women to practice as federal attorneys. Lockwood would later run for president in both 1884 and 1888 as a National Equal Rights Party candidate, though she did not aim to win so much as she aimed to bring attention to issues of women’s rights. During this time she also published several essays in various journals, covering both feminism and world peace. Lockwood was also a representative of the Universal Peace Union and delegate to the International Peace Congress, and would advocate for world peace from the mid-1880s until her passing.

Lockwood was married at 18 to farmer Uriah Mcnall, and the two had a daughter named Lura before McNall’s passing in 1853. Lockwood later married Civil War veteran, minister, and dentist Ezekiel Lockwood in 1868, and they remained together until his passing in 1877. They had a daughter named Jessie, though she died in early childhood. Lockwood died of natural causes at age 86.

Contributor

Raisch, Elly

Bibliography

Wikipedia