Mary Louise Brown
Mary Louise Brown was an African American doctor and teacher who served the Black community in Washington, D.C., for more than 25 years. She became the first African American woman to receive a wartime medical commission when she joined the Red Cross in 1918 during World War I. Brown graduated from Howard University College of Medicine in 1898, one of a small group of Black women doctors, and she also studied medicine in Scotland at the University of Edinburgh in 1899–1900. Before becoming a doctor, she taught English at a Black high school and later taught at Black normal schools, often providing medical care for free. She lived for many years at 1813 Vermont Avenue NW in Washington, D.C. Her father, John Mifflin Brown, was a bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Brown died on March 9, 1927, and was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 18:14 (CET).