This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Kentucky. It includes the year in which the women were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are women who achieved other distinctions such becoming the first in their state to graduate from law school or become a political figure.
The Carmel Indians are a group of Melungeons who lived in Magoffin County, Kentucky and moved to Highland County, Ohio. Dr. Edward Price observed that the most common surnames among the families were Gibson, Nichols and Perkins. His research found that the ancestors of the group were listed as free people of color on census records. Paternal line descendants of Bryson Gibson and Valentine Collins who participated in the Melungeon DNA Project belong to Haplogroup E-M2. The group were listed as free Black and Mulatto in Kentucky prior to the American Civil War.
Gerald Anthony Neal is an American politician and attorney. He is a Democratic Party member of the Kentucky Senate, representing District 33 since January 1989.
Darryl T. Owens was an American politician who was a Democratic Party member of the Kentucky House of Representatives, representing District 43 from 2005 to 2019. Owens retired from the House in 2018. He died on January 4, 2022, at the age of 84.
NAACP in Kentucky is very active with branches all over the state, largest being in Louisville and Lexington. The Kentucky State Conference of NAACP continues today to fight against injustices and for the equality of all people.
David Jason Hale is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky and former United States attorney for the Western District of Kentucky.
Sallie J. Seals White was Kentucky’s first African American female lawyer.
Charles W. Anderson Jr. was a lawyer, state legislator and civil rights leader in Kentucky. He served in the Kentucky House of Representatives from 1935 until 1946.