Dr Justina Ford – First Black Female Doctor in Colorado
By
John C Abercrombie
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Dr Justina Laurena Ford is best know as the first Black physician in the State of Colorado and her work in gynecology, obstetrics and pediatric care.
Doctor Ford was born Justina Laurena Warren in Knoxville, Illinois shortly after the Civil War developed an interest in medicine at an early age. One of many children, her other was a nurse and she often accompanied her and helped tend to patients.
Justina was known to dissect dead animals hat she came across and even volunteered to cut up chickens when she helped in the kitchen to study their anatomy. When she played, her favorite activity was playing hospital and she insisted on being the doctor.
In 1892 she married John Ford a Baptist minister. They moved to Chicago where she graduated from Hering Medical College in 1899. The college closed in 1915. Note: There was also a Hering Medical in St Louis
Following graduation from Hering she worked for a short time in Alabama before moving to Denver in 1902. She applied for a medical license in Colorado and was told by the examiner “I feel dishonest taking a fee from you. You’ve got two strikes against you to begin with and you’re colored.
At this time Blacks were barred from working in hospitals or joining the Colorado Medical Association. While this may seem strange today, there were many laws and de facto practices that prevented Blacks from all but the most menial jobs. There is a residual legacy that has affected many families through the generations. To show the effect of this requirement, it was necessary to be a member of the Colorado Medical Association to be able to admit or practice in a hospital.
As a sign of her ingenuity, she set up a private practice, and worked in her home and that of her patients. She refused to settle for anything less than the ability to take care of her patients. Practice in the home and the homes of patients was not particularly unusual in those times.
Dr Justina Ford practiced medicine from her home for years. Here clientele was diverse and included under or unserved people such as poor Whites, Blacks and non-English speaking immigrants who were turned away from hospitals. Yes, you read that correctly, non-White people were often denied service in hospitals and doctors offices even when in dire need. This policy did not see large changes until the mid-1960’s.
She provided service despite the inability of some patients to pay, often she would be paid in goods like beans or chickens. She also was generous to families that were poor, providing food and in the winter coal so they could keep warm. During her career, she delivered about 7,000 babies and for this reason was often referred to as “The Baby Doctor” or “The Lady Doctor”.
Despite the decades of refusal of membership in the Colorado and American Medical associations, she was allowed membership in1950 becoming the first Black female doctor in Denver. Dr Ford continued to practice medicine until 2 weeks before her death in 1952.
In 1988, Ford’s home in Five Points, Denver, was converted into the Black American West Museum and Heritage Center, sometimes referred to as the Black Cowboy Museum. One room is devoted to an exhibition of her life and work.
Among other honors, Dr Ford was inducted into the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame in 1985 and named a “Medical Pioneer of Colorado Medical Society in 1989. In 1998, a sculpture of Dr Ford holding a baby was erected outside of the house, now museum
Doctor Ford has begun to receive recognition and her 150th Birthday was widely celebrated in 2021. Some of the videos show footage of the event. We encourage you to view these videos and take a look at the books accompanying this and our other posts. Keep in mind that not only do you see the book and a written sample, clicking on the icon will allow you to sample the book either electronically or audibly. Enlighten and entertain yourself by doing addition exploration.
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Colorado Experience:
Justina Ford Born with two strikes against her, Dr. Justina Ford overcame barriers of race and gender to become the first African-American woman to practice medicine in Colorado and delivered over 7,000 babies.
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Medical Books
At times we feel intimidated at the mere thought of reading books that may be filled with technical information, however, here you have a chance to study the subject of your choice at your own pace. This allows you to study items that you don’t understand again, at your own pace. Please note that these can be of great benefit to those who have concerns about a personal medical condition to themselves or others. Please don’t let the subject matter unnecessarily intimidate you.
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Justina Ford: Baby Doctor (Great Lives in Colorado History)
(English and Spanish Edition) (Great Lives in Colorado History / Personajes importantes del la historia de Colorado)
Justina Ford arrived in Denver in 1902. She practiced medicine in the Five Points area of Denver until her death in 1952, delivering more than 7,000 babies in those years. Dr. Ford courageously challenged prejudice against both women doctors and against African Americans. She was the first African-American woman to be licensed to practice medicine in Colorado. Great Lives in Colorado History biographies bring the stories of notable Coloradans to elementary grade readers. Each book in the series is bilingual, containing full text in both English and Spanish. Ages 8 to 10 Bilingual in English and Spanish
ABH – Justina Ford Baby Doctor
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Happy Birthday, Dr. Justina Ford
‘Happy Birthday, Dr. Justina Ford, the film, continues the yearlong tribute to recognize the first female African American licensed doctor in Colorado. Produced and directed by Sylvia Lambe, the story includes interviews with Denverites who saved her home from demolition in the early 80s with rare footage of the house being physically moved from Arapahoe Street to its current location on California Street, now home to the Black American West Museum.
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Passion and Purpose:
Black Female Surgeons Passion and Purpose is a complete collection of all 75 beautiful stories created to inspire women everywhere to believe in the power of their dreams. These phenomenal women have experienced heartache and challenges along their paths that only served to make them more determined to accomplish their goals. You will laugh, cry, cheer them on, and find courage to reach your dreams whatever obstacles you face. It is a truly inspiring read! Even though their stories are about becoming surgeons, they will inspire every young woman to believe they can accomplish anything they set their hearts and minds to achieve.
ABH – Passion and Purpose Black Female Surgeons
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Vitamins and Dietary Supplements
ABH – Vitamins and Dietary Supplements
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Dr. Justina Ford —
pioneering healthcare in emerging Denver | Jasmine Armstrong | TEDxMileHigh This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. Denied her medical license and so the ability to work in a hospital after graduating medical school in 1899, Dr. Justina Ford went on to practice from her home in the emerging city of Denver, Colo. She treated whoever needed medical attention, including many turned away from hospitals for financial, ethnic or gender-related reasons. In this witty and informative performance, Jasmine Armstrong plays Dr. Ford, Colorado’s first female African-American doctor.
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Medical Supplies and Equipment
ABH – Medical Supplies and Equipment
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The Beauty in Breaking:
A Memoir Michele Harper is a female, African American emergency room physician in a profession that is overwhelmingly male and white. Brought up in Washington, D.C., in a complicated family, she went to Harvard, where she met her husband. They stayed together through medical school until two months before she was scheduled to join the staff of a hospital in central Philadelphia, when he told her he couldn’t move with her. Her marriage at an end, Harper began her new life in a new city, in a new job, as a newly single woman.
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Personal Care
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Dr. Justina L. Ford Mural Dedication
In celebration of Black History Month, Connect for Health Colorado® commissioned award-winning street artist Max Sansing to depict the legacy of Dr. Ford. The mural, completed on Feb. 1, is located at the corner of 27th and Welton Street on the U.S. Bank building in the Historic Five Points Neighborhood in Denver. A medical pioneer and beloved community physician, it is estimated that Dr. Ford delivered more than 7,000 babies during her 50 years of practice in Denver.
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Oral Care
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Reminiscences of My Life in Camp:
An African American Woman’s Civil War Memoir Near the end of her classic wartime account, Susie King Taylor writes, “there are many people who do not know what some of the colored women did during the war.” For her own part, Taylor spent four years―without pay or formal training―nursing sick and wounded members of a black regiment of Union soldiers. In addition, she worked as a camp cook, laundress, and teacher. Written from a perspective unique in the literature of the Civil War, Reminiscences of My Life in Camp not only chronicles daily life on the battlefront but also records interactions between blacks and whites, men and women, and Northerners and Southerners during and after the war. Taylor tells of being born into slavery and of learning, in secret, to read and write. She describes maturing under her wartime responsibilities and traveling with the troops in South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. After the war, Taylor dedicated herself to improving the lives of black Southerners and black Union Army veterans. The final chapters of Reminiscences are filled with depictions of the racism to which these efforts often exposed her.
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Dr. Justina Ford 150th Birthday Celebration From Denver Community Media, the live recording of the 150th birthday party celebration for Dr. Justina Ford. Recorded on location Jan. 22, 2021, at Zion Baptist Church in the historic Five Points neighborhood of Denver.
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Dr Justina Ford had a goal which she pursued despite the obstacles she faced. This should serve as an example that you too can have dreams and that with determination achieve it. Many times we look at a task and believe it too complicated for us. Take your time and build a strong foundation and you will conquer it. The world is dependent on dreamers like you who are persistent in achieving goals.