Belva Lockwood: Equal Rights Pioneer

Retells the life and career of Belva Lockwood, a women's rights advocate in the nineteenth century, who became the first woman to practice law before the United States Supreme Court and run for president.

Grade 6–9—This thoroughly researched book successfully places Lockwood's many achievements within a larger social and historical context. Norgren begins with her subject's early years and how her family scoffed at her plans to go to college. As a young widowed mother she decided to take destiny into her own hands and get an education. With determination Lockwood became not only one of the first women lawyers of her time, but also the first woman to argue a case before the Supreme Court. Committed to equal rights, she was also the first woman to launch a full campaign as a candidate for president in 1884. She explained, "I cannot vote, but I can be voted for." At the end of her career she represented the Eastern Cherokee Indian Nation, helping her clients win a five million dollar settlement from the U.S. government. The archival photographs, reproductions, and political cartoons are interesting and appealing. Through a clear and engaging text, this biography shows how Lockwood, a relatively unknown historical figure, was an inspiring pioneer of the equal-rights movement.—Mari Pongkhamsing, St. Perpetua School, Lafayette, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

This entry in the Trailblazer Biographies series profiles the nineteenth-century suffragist and peace activist who devoted her life to advancing equal rights for women and for other disenfranchised segments of the population. In a concise and engaging narrative, Norgren focuses on Lockwood’s professional achievements, most notably her struggle for acceptance in the legal profession, which resulted in Lockwood becoming the first woman to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court and her two-time nomination as presidential candidate for the Equal Rights Party. Lockwood also advocated for the rights of Native Americans and worked on behalf of the International Peace Movement. Although Lockwood never attained the prominence of fellow suffragists like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Norgren ably portrays the important role Lockwood played in the advancement of rights for women. The text is illustrated throughout with black-and-white photographs and other archival images. Appendixes include a time line, source notes, a bibliography, and suggestions for further reading. Grades 5-8. --Ed Sullivan