The Remarkable Life and Career of Ellen Swallow Richards: Pioneer in Science and Technology

Chapter 12

The Woman’s Laboratory

“Instead of shutting the door of technical and professional work to women they who love mankind should hold it wide open to allow the utilization of the added energy which may, perchance, move the car of progress up and over the Hill of Difficulty.”

~ Ellen Swallow Richards

Once Ellen had earned her degree from MIT in the spring of 1873, and had done so in far less time than most other students, she was shocked to learn that although “The Swallow Experiment” had been considered to be an obvious success, the Institute had no plans to admit more women students. The faculty and administration believed Ellen to be an exception, a fluke. After all, the men thought, what were the chances that there could be other females up to the task of handling the rigorous scientific and technical curriculum?

Refusing to accept that notion, Ellen made up her mind to make the men change theirs. It would take some doing, but she already had part of the groundwork in place. In the winter of 1873, she and the president of the Women’s Education Association (WEA) of Boston had discussed a plan whereby Ellen would teach science and laboratory techniques to women. The class would be taught after school hours in the new science facility at Boston’s Girls’ High School. Most of the women who would be taking the semester-long course were teachers who desperately needed to learn more science in order to keep their jobs.

Ellen was still a student herself when she began teaching ...