Strong-Minded Woman: The Story of Lavinia Goodell, Wisconsin's First Female Lawyer

She took the law into her own hands

Written for younger readers, Strong-Minded Woman provides an engaging look at the life of Lavinia Goodell, Wisconsin's first female lawyer. Telling Goodell's story from 1858, when she first decided to become a lawyer, to her place as an actual attorney in the courtroom, Mary Lahr Schier recounts Goodell's hard work and determination as she taught herself the law.
Born in 1839 to abolitionist and transcendentalist parents, Lavinia Goodell grew up determined to change the world. As she met the runaway slaves that stayed at her childhood home and listened to the preaching of her church, Lavinia began to form her own ideas about the world. She decided to be a lawyer, even though her sister told her to stop "trying to be a man."

Distributed for the Midwest History Press.


About the Author
Mary Lahr Schier is a freelance journalist with an interest in women's history. She lives in Northfield, Minnesota, with her husband and two strong-minded daughters.