Georgia E. Lee Patton Washington (April 16, 1864 – November 8, 1900) was an American missionary and physician. Following her education, she served as a medical missionary in Liberia. She was the first black woman to become a licensed surgeon in Tennessee.
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Early life and education
Georgia E. Lee Patton was born into slavery on April 16, 1864 in Grundy County, Tennessee. Her father died soon after her birth. Her mother was freed and endured hardship caring for their large family. She died when Georgia was 16 and she went to live with her eldest sister. Georgia attended school during the winter, accruing just 26 months of education by the time she was 17.
Patton moved to Nashville in 1886 and enrolled in Central Tennessee College. She walked two miles from her brother's home to attend classes at the college. During the summers, she was employed as a teacher at a rural school. She completed the senior normal course in 1890 and later entered Central Tennessee College's Meharry Medical Department. She graduated from Meharry Medical College in 1893, the first black woman to do so.
Medical missionary
Patton was very religious and attended a Methodist Episcopal church. Though the church did not officially back her, she decided to become a medical missionary in Africa. She set sail for Liberia on April 5, 1893. She spent two years supporting herself as a physician in Monrovia, making do with outdated equipment and often short on supplies. She contracted tuberculosis and returned to the United States in 1895 after her health started failing.
Career in Memphis
Patton went to live in Memphis, Tennessee, where she established her own medical practice. She was the first black woman licensed surgeon and physician in Tennessee. She was also the first black woman to practice medicine in Memphis.
Patton married letter carrier David W. Washington on December 29, 1897.
Later life
Patton died on November 8, 1900.