Trout, Dr. Jenny National Historic Person
Kingston, Ontario
Dr. Jenny Trout
(© Park Bros., Toronto / Library and Archives Canada // Bibliothèque et Archives Canada / PA-212242)
Address :
216 Ontario Street, Kingston, Ontario
Recognition Statute:
Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date:
1995-07-06
Life Date:
1841 to 1921
Other Name(s):
-
Trout, Dr. Jenny
(Designation Name)
Research Report Number:
1995-023
Importance:
First female licenced doctor in Canada; supporter of women's medical education
Plaque(s)
Existing plaque: 216 Ontario Street, Kingston, Ontario
In 1875 Jenny Trout became the first woman licenced to practise medicine in Canada. Made famous by the event, Dr. Trout was a role model for women. She encouraged them through public lectures, private financial support, tutoring and counselling to follow her profession. The prejudice Dr. Trout faced in obtaining her own degree convinced her to advocate a separate medical college for women. Funded in part by Dr. Trout, the Kingston Women's Medical College, opened here in 1883, provided a segregated environment for study, and helped women overcome restrictions imposed by a male profession.