Caroline Still Anderson

Caroline Still Anderson was born November 1, 1848, and was the oldest daughter of four to Letitia and William Still.[4] Both of her parents were leaders in the American abolitionist movement. Her father led the Philadelphia branch of the Underground Railroad, which began shortly after Caroline's birth.[3]

As a child, Still attended Mrs. Gordon's Private School, The Friends' Raspberry Alley School, and the Institute for Colored Youth (now Cheyney University of Pennsylvania). Though these schools were expensive, her father's lucrative career in the coal industry allowed him to afford a good education for his daughter.[2]

Still was very fortunate to have this opportunity because 19th-century Philadelphia was not a welcoming for most black people, but some black families prospered socially and economically. Being a part of this community Still was protected from the ill-treatment, less fortunate blacks were given and was able to take full advantage of her privileges.[5] Still's father valued the importance of education for his daughters and encouraged Caroline to pursue her education seriously.[1]

Portrait of Anderson in 1868, while a student at Oberlin College

Still completed her primary and secondary education at the age of 15. In 1864, she matriculated at Oberlin College as the only black student in her class. She earned her degree in 1868 at the age of 19 as the youngest student in her graduating class.[4] After earning her Bachelor of Arts degree, she was elected the first black president of the Ladies' Literary Society of Oberlin.[2]

Still married her first husband, Edward A. Wiley, a fellow Oberlin alumnus and former slave, in a ceremony at their home on December 28, 1869. The wedding was attended by many prominent members of the U.S. antislavery movement, and included a performance by Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield.[3]

Two years after her husband's sudden death, in 1875, Still matriculated at the Howard University College of Medicine, though she earned her Doctor of Medicine degree at the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania, where she transferred in 1876 and graduated in 1878. She was one of only two black students in her class of 17.[4] While in school, she worked as a drawing and speech teacher to pay her way.[2]

After graduating from college, Still returned to Philadelphia and worked as a teacher of elocution, drawing, and music until 1875. In 1878, she began her medical career with an internship at Boston's New England Hospital for Women and Children. Still's initial application was rejected by the board of the hospital due to her race, and she was appointed only after visiting the city and meeting with the board in person. Reportedly awed by her talent, they repudiated their earlier decision, appointing Still to the internship by a unanimous vote.[4]

Portrait of Anderson from "Who's Who in Philadelphia" (1912) by Charles Frederick White

After her internship ended in 1879, Still returned to Philadelphia, where she opened a dispensary in her new husband Matthew Anderson's church and opened a private medical practice. Now going by Anderson in 1889, she resumed her career as an educator, teaching hygiene, physiology, and public speaking while continuing her medical practice.

Also in 1889, Still and her husband founded a vocational and liberal arts school called the Berean Manual Training and Industrial School, Anderson was the assistant principal in addition to her teaching roles.[2][4] She also practiced medicine at Quaker institutions in Philadelphia.[3] Her career came to an end when she suffered a paralytic stroke in 1914.[2][4]

While studying at Oberlin, Still met Edward Wiley and married him in 1869 at the age of 21. In the four years they were married, the couple had two children, Letitia and William. The marriage ended when Wiley died suddenly in 1873. Still married again in 1880, to a minister named Matthew Anderson.[4] Anderson was also an Oberlin alumnus, and had also studied at Yale University and Princeton University.[3] The Andersons had five children together, three of whom survived to adulthood: Helen, Maude, and Margaret. Anderson died on June 1 or 2, 1919, in Philadelphia of complications from her strokes.[3][4] She was 70 years old.[6] Multiple dates are given for her death.[2][3][4]

• Smith, Jessie Carney, ed. (2003). Notable black American women, Book III. Detroit: Gale Group. ISBN 978-0787664947.
• Wayne, Tiffany K. (2011). American women of science since 1900. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1598841589.

• One of Anderson's papers, a case study of a patient with popliteal aneurysm
• Anderson's thesis