Breckinridge, Sophonisba Preston
1866 - 1948
New York World, April 9, 1897
Details
Born: 4/1/1866 in Lexington, Kentucky
Died: 7/30/1948
Ethnicity: White/Caucasian
Professional Facts
Practice Area:
Civil RightsCriminal Law
International Law
Labor Law
Profession:
Immigration law / Criminal law / Social Welfare / Labor law
Regions and States of Practice:
DC, SouthKY, South
Legal Education:
University of Chicago Law School, 1904
Other Education:
Agricultural and Mechanical CollegeWellesley
M.A., University of Chicago (1897)
Ph.D., University of Chicago (1901)
Positions During Her Career:
High school teacher of mathematicsInstructor in the Department of Household Administration at the University of Chicago (1909-1920)
Head of the research department at the Chicago School of Civics and Philanthropy (1907-1909)
Dean of the Chicago School of Civics and Philanthropy (1909-1920)
President of the American Association of Schools of Social Work
Professor at the University of Chicago
Charter member of the Chicago branch of the Women’s Trade Union League
Member and National Secretary of the National American Women’s Suffrage Association
Helped form the Women’s Peace Party and served as their treasurer
Helped organize the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom
Delegate to the Seventh Pan-American Conference held in Montevideo, Uruguay
Founding member of the Chicago branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in Chicago
Member of the Urban League and the Association of Colored Women
Helped establish the Wendell Phillips Settlement, an African-American settlement
Served on a city commission to study race riots and develop strategies for educating Chicagoans on how to improve the strained race relations in the city
Chaired the Subcommittee on Colored Children that was a part of the State Department of Public Welfare
Firsts:
Woman admitted to the bar in Kentucky (1892)Woman at the University of Chicago to be awarded a doctorate degree in political science
Woman to graduate from the University of Chicago law school
Woman admitted to the Coif at the University of Chicago law school
Taught the first class in the nation on public welfare administration
Established "the Social Service Review," the first journal dedicated to social work issues
Woman to serve as an official delegate of the United States
Accomplishments:
Founded the "Social Service Review" (1927)Samuel Deutsch Professor of Public Welfare Administration (1929)
Further Research Materials
References:
First Women Lawyers in the United States
C. Sleeth, First Women Lawyers in the United States, Bar Association (July 18, 1997)
C. Sleeth, First Women Lawyers in the United States, Bar Association (July 18, 1997)
John E. Kleber (editor-in-chief) and Thomas D. Clark, Lowell H. Harrison, and James C. Klotter (associate editors), The Kentucky Encyclopedia.
Lexington, Kentucky: University Press of Kentucky, 1992
Kentucky's First Woman Lawyer
Kentucky's First Woman Lawyer, New York World, February 5, 1897, at 3
Kentucky's First Woman Lawyer, New York World, February 5, 1897, at 3
Miss Breckinridge, Attorney-At-Law
Miss Breckinridge, Attorney-At-Law, New York World, April 9, 1897, at 3
Miss Breckinridge, Attorney-At-Law, New York World, April 9, 1897, at 3
Woman Attorneys-at-Law
Woman Attorneys-at-Law, Woman's Journal
Woman Attorneys-at-Law, Woman's Journal
Links:
Student Papers:
A Woman of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical Sketch of Sophonisba P. Breckinridge
Day, Hollie, 2002
Day, Hollie, 2002
Potential Paper Topics:
An analysis of Breckinridge's relationship with Susan B. Anthony.An examination of the classes Breckinridge taught while she was an instructor in the Department of Household Administration.
Research into her work to merge the School of Civics and Anthropology into the University of Chicago, forming the Graduate School of Social Service Administration.
Research into her work to found the American Association of Schools of Social Work.
An analysis of her work on women and children's labor issues, and her advocacy of protective legislation for women workers.
Research into her involvement with the garment workers' strike of 1910.
An analysis of her work on the Committee for Women on Juries.
An analysis of her work to improve housing for immigrants and African-Americans.
An analysis of her attempts to end racial segregation in housing at the University of Chicago.
Research into her struggle to have minority children included in programs for temporary foster care and her role in the establishment of the Department of Child Placing for Negro Children program.
An analysis of her work with the Immigrants\rquote Protective League.
Analyses of her books.
An analysis of her work on children's issue. Breckenridge was active in promoting the creation of juvenile courts, she fought for child labor laws, and she was active in the struggle to establish children's services provided by the state.