Born in 1884 in Woodville, Mississippi, to parents who had been enslaved, Dr. Lucille F. Weathers Miller overcame extraordinary barriers to become a trailblazer in American medicine. She was the only woman to graduate from Meharry Medical College’s School of Medicine in 1900, following in the footsteps of Georgia Easter Lee Patton Washington, Meharry’s first female graduate in 1893.
Dr. Miller made history as the first Black woman licensed to practice medicine by the Mississippi State Board of Health. In 1919, she and her husband, Dr. Samuel A. Miller, founded the L.F. Miller Hospital and Nurse Training School in Jackson, Mississippi, a vital institution located in the Central Black Business District. They practiced as physicians and surgeons there for 19 years before relocating to Chicago, where they continued their work for another 12 years.
In the final chapter of her career, Dr. Miller practiced in Orange, New Jersey, where she served on the staff of Community Hospital of Newark and as an officer of the Essex County Tuberculosis League. Her groundbreaking career culminated in her election as the first woman to serve on the Board of Trustees of the American Medical Association — a historic milestone in a profession long dominated by men.
Dr. Miller’s legacy extended through her family as well. Both of her sons became doctors: Dr. William Edward Miller began teaching at Meharry in 1932, and Dr. Johnston Albert Miller earned his dental degree from Meharry in 1923.
Dr. Lucille F. Weathers Miller passed away on September 9, 1947, leaving behind a legacy of resilience, leadership, and service that helped reshape the future of medicine for women and African Americans.
