1813
Literature
Birth of Camilla Collett
Camilla Collett was born on January 23, 1813, in Kristiansand, Norway.
View detailsThis Day
23January
23 indexed achievements across recorded history.
1849
Medicine
First female medical student to complete training as America's first woman physician
Blackwell became the first female medical student in the U.S. to complete a full course of study, becoming the country's first woman physician.
View details1849
Medicine
First medical article published by a female medical student in the U.S.
Blackwell's thesis on typhoid fever was published in the Buffalo Medical Journal, the first medical article by a female medical student in the U.S.
View details1849
Medicine
First woman to earn an M.D. from a U.S. medical school
Blackwell graduated from Geneva Medical College with highest honors, becoming the first woman to earn a regular M.D. from an American medical school.
View details1849
Medicine
First woman in the U.S. to graduate from medical school as a modern woman doctor
Blackwell's 1849 graduation made her the first woman in the United States to complete medical school and become a modern woman physician.
View details1867
Medicine
Graduated from New York Medical College for Women
Emily Stowe graduated from New York Medical College for Women on January 23, 1867.
View details1882
Activism
Speech on Utah women's voting rights
Phoebe Couzins spoke at the NWSA convention about Utah women's suffrage rights.
View details1897
Arts
Birth of Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky
Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky was born on January 23, 1897, in Vienna, Austria.
View details1900
Literature
Publication of Claudine à l'école under her husband's name
Colette's first novel, Claudine à l'école, was published under her husband Willy's name alone, launching the wildly popular Claudine series.
View details1909
Science
Birth of Tatiana Proskouriakoff in Tomsk, Russia
Born on January 23, 1909, in Tomsk, Russian Empire, to a family that would emigrate to the United States following the Russian Revolution.
View details1912
Science
Resilient wheel patented in her mid-seventies
US Patent 1,015,761 for a resilient wheel design, an automotive-era invention patented when Knight was 73.
View details1917
Science
Files U.S. patent application for electric water heater
Ida R. Forbes filed U.S. patent application Serial No. 144,791 for an 'Electric Water Heater' using thermostatically controlled electric heating elements.
View details1918
Science
Birth of Gertrude Belle Elion
Gertrude Belle Elion was born in New York City, New York, United States.
View details1918
Science
Birth of Gertrude Belle Elion
Gertrude Belle Elion was born in New York City, later becoming a pioneering pharmacologist and biochemist.
View details1931
Arts
Death of Anna Pavlova
Anna Pavlova passed away on January 23, 1931, in The Hague, Netherlands.
View details1950
Law
First woman to lead in an English murder case
Heilbron led the defense in the Cameo Cinema murder case, marking a historic first for women barristers.
View details1973
Science
Field observation of Icelandic volcanic eruption
On 23 January 1973, Krafft was summoned to observe an eruption in southern Iceland, exemplifying her hands-on field methodology.
View details1977
Politics
First woman and first economist U.S. Secretary of Commerce
Sworn in as U.S. Secretary of Commerce, becoming the first woman and first economist to hold the post and one of the earliest women in a U.S. Cabinet.
View details1986
Arts
Death of Yvonne Lefébure in Paris
Yvonne Lefébure died on January 23, 1986, in Paris, closing a career of nearly seven decades as a pianist, teacher, and champion of French repertoire.
View details1993
Science
Elected Leader of the Liberal Party of Prince Edward Island
Callbeck was elected leader of the PEI Liberal Party, succeeding Premier Joseph Ghiz.
View details1997
Science
Sworn in as first female U.S. Secretary of State
Sworn in as the 64th U.S. Secretary of State, becoming the first woman to hold the post and the highest-ranking woman in U.S. government history at the time.
View details2011
Sports
World Championships gold in Christchurch 2011 - 200m T11
Wins gold in the 200m T11 at the 2011 IPC World Championships.
View details2025
Medicine
Modern medical‑history article on Metrodora’s life and work
On 23 Jan 2025, Hektoen International published a medical‑history article portraying Metrodora as an Egyptian physician, midwife, and pioneering surgeon.
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