Honor Dr. McKinney-Steward Centennial

Senate Resolution No. 5006 BY: Senator HAMILTON COMMEMORATING the 100th Anniversary of the passing of Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to recognize and pay tribute to those individuals within the medical field who distinguished themselves through professional excellence and who made significant contributions to the quality of life of citizens in the State of New York; and WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the passing of Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward; and WHEREAS, Prospect Place from New York Avenue to Nostrand Avenue was co-named Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward Place in 2008; and WHEREAS, Susan Marie Smith was born on March 18, 1847, to Sylvanus and Anne Smith in Weeksville, Brooklyn, New York; her unique mixed heritage included African-American, European, and Shinnecock Indian; and WHEREAS, At a young age, Susan M. Smith learned to play the organ; later, she became the organist for the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Brooklyn; and WHEREAS, In 1867, Susan M. Smith became a student at the New York Medical College and Hospital for Women in New York City at the age of

20; after three years, she graduated as Valedictorian on March 23, 1870; and WHEREAS, Dr. Susan M. Smith became the first African-American woman to formally enter the medical profession in New York, and the third in the United States; from 1870 to 1895, she ran her own practice out of her home in Brooklyn; and WHEREAS, In 1871, Dr. Susan M. Smith married Reverend William G. McKinney from South Carolina, and together, the couple raised two children; and WHEREAS, As her reputation grew, Dr. Susan McKinney's practice drew interracial clientele across the social barriers; a hard-working and compassionate woman, she was extremely successful as a pediatrician, treating all kinds of childhood diseases; and WHEREAS, Dr. Susan M. McKinney opened her second clinic in Manhattan; during this time, she established the Women's Royal Union of New York, and was actively involved in the Kings County Homeopathic Society; and WHEREAS, In 1881, Dr. Susan M. McKinney co-founded the Women's Hospital & Dispensary in Brooklyn, which later became the Memorial Hospital for Women and Children; she was also a staff member for her alma mater, New York Medical College, and managed the Home for Aged Colored People; and WHEREAS, After the passing of her first husband, Dr. Susan M. McKinney married Theophilus Gould Steward in 1896; she and her husband moved to Nebraska, Montana and then Texas, where she treated many African American Buffalo Soldiers as a Doctor for the Regiment; their next stop was AMEs Wilberforce University in Ohio where Dr. McKinney-Steward held the position of College Physician; and WHEREAS, Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward used her knowledgeable voice to serve as an advocate for social reform by giving public lectures about medicine health and nutrition; she was also involved in campaigns calling for female suffrage and temperance; and WHEREAS, Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward was active in missionary work around the city and was a prolific writer of both secular and sacred writings; she read a paper on "Women in Medicine" in 1914, before the National Association of Colored Women; and WHEREAS, Four years later, Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward passed away at Wilberforce University at the age of 71; she was laid to rest in the Green-Wood Cemetery in her birth town of Brooklyn, and was eulogized by W.E.B. DuBois; and WHEREAS, Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward's legacy lives on; in addition to co-naming a street in Brooklyn, The Susan Smith McKinney Junior High School and The Susan Smith McKinney-Steward Medical Society will forever stand as a testament of her many good deeds, and her role as the first African-American woman to enter the medical profession; and WHEREAS, Throughout her illustrious life, Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward served as a role model, not only for women, but for anyone who wanted to make the world a better place; she truly altered and intensified our understanding of healing and society and will forever serve as a paradigm for tenacity and courage; and WHEREAS, As a leader in her profession, Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward provided herself to be a great asset to medicine and to the health and welfare of the citizens of the State of New York; and WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that when individuals of such noble aims and accomplishments are brought to our attention, they should be celebrated and recognized by all the citizens of this great Empire State; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the passing of Dr. Susan M. McKinney-Steward; and be it further RESOLVED, That this historically significant 100th Anniversary of her passing will be commemorated at a Ceremony to be held at the North East corner of Prospect Place and Nostrand Avenue with the presentation of this Resolution her Descendants and Representatives of the organizations that carry on her legacy.