Blanche Braxton and Dorothy Crockett

Portia Law School 1921 and 1931

Braxton sent her business card to the school when she set up her practice. The image of Crockett is from an article in the Boston Chronicle about her admission to the Rhode Island bar.
Courtesy of New England School of Law Library Archive (for Braxton)
Courtesy of the Boston Chronicle (for Crockett)

While New England School of Law eventually became a school of opportunity for both men and women of all races and economic backgrounds, African American women attended Portia from its earliest days. Blanche Braxton and Dorothy Crockett were both pioneers in their own right, and in their own states. In 1923, Braxton was the first African American woman admitted to the Massachusetts bar, and in 1932, Crockett was the first in the state of Rhode Island.