Jane Bolin (1908-2007) enjoyed a number of firsts during her lifetime. She was the first black woman to graduate from Yale Law School, the first to join the New York City Bar Association, the first to join the city’s law department and the first black woman to serve as a judge in the United States.
Born on April 11, 1908, in Poughkeepsie, NY, Bolin was the youngest of four siblings. Her father, Gaius Charles Bolin, was the first black to graduate from Williams College and became a lawyer. Her mother, Matilda, a white Englishwoman, died when Bolin was eight. Bolin graduated from high school in Poughkeepsie and was one of two black students in her class at Wellesley College.
She lived off campus with the other black student while most of the white students ignored her. In a 1974 essay in Wellesley After Images, she said:
“There were a few sincere friendships developed in that beautiful, idyllic setting of the college but, on the whole, I was ignored outside the classroom. I am saddened and maddened even nearly half a century later to recall many of my Wellesley experiences but my college days for the most part evoke sad and lonely personal memories. These experiences perhaps were partly responsible for my lifelong interest in the social problems, poverty and racial discrimination rampant in our country.
I report my memories honestly because this racism too is part of Wellesley’s history and should be recorded fully, if only as a benighted pattern to which determinedly it will never return and, also, as a measure of its progress.”
A career adviser at Wellesley tried to discourage her from applying to Yale Law School because of her race and gender, but Bolin always knew she wanted to be a lawyer. In 1931, she became the first black woman to receive a law degree from Yale and passed the New York state bar exam the following year. She practiced with her father for a short period and then with her first husband, Ralph E. Mizelle. In 1937, she was named Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of New York, serving on the Domestic Relations Court.
On July 22, 1939, Mayor Fiorello La Guardia appointed 31-year-old Bolin as a judge of the Domestic Relations Court becoming the first black female judge. In 1941, she gave birth to her only child, a son, Yorke Bolin Mizelle. After her husband died in 1943, she balanced motherhood and a career. “I don’t think I short-changed anybody but myself,” she said. “I didn’t get all the sleep I needed, and I didn’t get to travel as much as I would have liked, because I felt my first obligation was to my child.” She married a minister, Walter P. Offutt Jr., in 1950. He died in 1974.
Five years later, after having served on the bench for 40 years, Bolin retired. With Judges Justine Wise Polier and Hubert Delaney she achieved two major changes: the assignment of probation officers to cases without regard for race or religion; and a requirement that private child-care agencies that received public funds had to accept children without regard to ethnic background.
An activist for children’s rights & education, Bolin, after retirement, volunteered as a tutor in math and reading for children in the New York City public school system. Bolin devoted much of her life to community activities and served on numerous boards including those of the Wiltwyck School for Boys, the Dalton School, the Child Welfare League of America, New Lincoln School, United Neighborhood Houses, Neighborhood Children’s Center, and the local and national NAACP.
She also served on the New York State Board of Regents and received honorary degrees from Tuskegee Institute, Williams College, Hampton University, Western College for Women and Morgan State University. Bolin died at the age of 98 on January 8, 2007, in Queens, NY.
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Concrete Loop will feature ‘Black History Spotlights’ each week. These features honor black people through the years and submissions are welcome.
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Thank you for telling HERstory! M
go ahead ma’am you deserve all the respect!
#59, kill yourself.
Note to CL to avoid future controversy please post someone with 2 black parents.
Apparently some mixed people think people with 2 black parents don’t have any accomplishments.
inspiring
Wonderful, CL. I’d never heard of her. To hear that she outlived two husbands…how lonely that must have been. Anyway, that just goes to show that you can still have something to look forward to after your twenties.
J.Dakar, this is an inspiring piece and it’s especially poignant b/c I’m a black female at a top law school, and as much the folks here like to act like race doesn’t matter, it does…I’ve experience only a snippet of what this woman went through, and I’ve just about had enough…thankfully, I’m about to graduate. I can only imagine what it was like for her back then. Anyway, keep it coming w/ these posts! If only BET did pieces like this on a weekly basis to educate these kids b/c let’s face it, they’re not getting this kind of inspiration from 106&Park.
Also, it’s unfortunate that this turned into talk about her race rather than just focusing on the caliber of success that she achieved – but while we’re on the topic, FLORIDABOY, I completely feel you on this…yes, when you’re mixed society may see you as black, but one can still stay true to his or herself by claiming EVERY part of who they are…why be forced to choose sides when God made you that way?
I really love these Black history moments CL is doing. I especially love the fact that it didnt stop after Black History Month. On top of that, you guys always pick people who don’t get the usual Black history fanfare. I’m glad to see CL isn’t BET’ing and caving in to the temptation of being a coon blog site like some other blog sites I dont need to mention. I applaud you all at CL.
glad u posted this……..I had never heard of Jane Bolin in all my learning of Afro-History.
Great meaningful post! It’s good to hear about all the ones who paved the way for us today.
Very cool! Ive never heard of this lady. Dr King and Malcom X; Ida B Wells & Rosa Parks r all the “history” that is taught. Please keep up the good work CL !
Im from POUGHKEEPSIE, this is inspiring. : )
Wow She really made some BIG BIG accomplishments that really helped us folks out man, I never even head of her until now, good lookin’ out CL GREAT JOB!!!
Yall, if you dont know it by now we are all black some just lighter than others stop haten’ and comparing and just be happy about who you are embrace your culture and backgrounds. Damn all that ignorant bull crap about being mixed! And this is coming from someone who is mixed. P.S. you dont have to “act black” to be black everyone that is raised in poverished situations don’t have to continue on that route, the only responsibility that they have is to do good for others that were in the same situation and worse.
Great story J. thanks for keeping us informed.
I’m so honored to have the same last name as her !! Its a very uncommon spelling as well ! I’m wondering how could I find out if, my family are descendent’s of Ms. Jane Bolin ??
Блеск.
Невероятно красиво!
ha ))
Спасибо большое!
жжот))
Прикольно))
“лучше и не скажешь”
“спасибо за инфу”
Шикарно, возьму в дневник
Не пойму в чём дело, но у меня тока 2 картинки загрузилось. ((( А ваще понравились!
Вах-вах-вах
вот это позитив) просто класс)
Красота, особенно первая фотка
“Добавил в закладки”
“этот вне конкуренции”
“Всегда приятно читать умных людей”
“Ты один из немногих, кто действительно хорошо пишет”
Спасибо!, в цитатник!
“Спасибо”
“Мне очень помогали ваши записи”
“Достаточно интересная и познавательная тема”
“Класс”
“я в восторге от Вашего стиля”
“Спасибо за пост, а это тема”
“лучше и не скажешь”
Забавно.
=))))))
“шикарно”
жжот))
“Блог в ридер однозначно”
Спасибо огромное!
здорово)
“респект”
“соглашусь с автором”