I thought I would throw a little dental trivia your way this week in case they ever come up with the game "Dental Trivial Pursuit"!  Dr. Lucy Beaman Hobbs was born on March 14, 1833 in Constable, New York at a time in our nation's history when the expected role of women was narrowly limited to motherhood or to a typically "spinsterish" occupation such as teacher or nurse.  Early in her life, however, Lucy showed little interest in doing the expected.  She taught school for ten years in Michigan before moving to Cincinnati in 1859.  Lucy held a steadfast interest in advanced medical studies and was intrigued by the advancements in medicine so she applied to the Eclectic College of Medicine.  Unfortunately, because she was a woman, Lucy was turned down for admission to the school.  Determined and driven, Lucy continued in private studies and under her mentor's suggestion decided to look into dentistry as a profession.  When Lucy applied to dental school, she was once again denied because of her gender.  Undaunted, Lucy apprenticed herself to a graduate of the Ohio College of Dental Surgery and opened her own practice in Cincinnati at the age of 28.  Lucy moved her practice to Iowa where she lived from 1862-1865.

In July of 1865, the Iowa State Dental Society accepted her as a member and she was sent as a delegate to the American Dental Association convention in Chicago.  In the fall of 1865 she was admitted to the senior class of the Ohio College of Dental Surgery and in February 1866 (after receiving credit for her years of private practice) she earned her degree.  Lucy Hobbs was the first woman in U.S. history to earn a doctorate in dentistry!  Moving to Lawrence, Kansas in 1867, she continued her long and successful career in dentistry until her retirement from practice in 1886.

My how the times have changed!  Since the middle of the 1970's women have attended dental schools and began dental practices in increasing numbers.

According to the ADA's Dental Workforce Model, the number of female graduates in 2003 represented 39.5% of the graduating class.  Currently women make up 14% of the general dentists in the United States and the forecast is that 29.2% of active private practitioners will be female by 2020.  The men of Lucy's era made a big mistake by not initially allowing a woman into dental school.  Fortunately she was persistent and her efforts allowed our society of today to be blessed with some incredibly talented women in the field of dentistry.  Because of Dr. Lucy Hobbs women of today have the same opportunity as men to call themselves "doctor" - Way to go Lucy!  I hope you have an incredible week and if you have any questions e-mail me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it