Florence Ellinwood Allen

ABOUT FLORENCE ELLINWOOD ALLEN

Associate Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court who was the first woman ever on a state supreme court. She was the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from 1958 to 1959.

Initially studying music, she turned to journalism when an injury to her arm ended aspirations of professional piano playing, and then developed an interest in law.

She combined her knowledge of the law with a deep conviction of women's suffrage to start challenging laws keeping women away from the polls.

She was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, her father Clarence Emir Allen, a member of the Utah House of Representatives.

After President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed her to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, she became just the second female federal judge.