(Left) Dr. Lynette Long, President of Equal Visibility Everywhere, speaking before the unveiling. (Center) Commissioner Daniella Levine Cava with the Commission for Women and (Right) Michael and Diane Rosenberg with Kampong Director Craig Morell; Photos by Armando Raul Rodriguez/Miami-Dade County
The Miami-Dade County Commission for Women and The Kampong of the National Tropical Botanical Garden unveiled the State of Florida Historical Marker for the Office of Eleanor Galt Simmons, Miami’s first female physician, on Dec. 5 at 3 p.m. at The Kampong of the National Tropical Botanical Garden, 4013 Douglas Road, Coconut Grove, FL 33133.
Dr. Galt Simmons, who lived from 1854-1909, graduated from the Women’s Medical College of Philadelphia in 1880. She moved to Coconut Grove in 1892 with her husband. As a frontier physician, she made her rounds by horse and a two-wheeled cart or by boat, treating white and black settlers, as well as members of the Miccosukee tribe. She became renowned for her ability to treat difficult cases. She also ministered to the 7,500 troops stationed in Miami during the Spanish-American War who suffered from dysentery, typhus, or measles. The building which housed her office still stands on the grounds of The Kampong and is the oldest building in Miami-Dade County still on its original foundation.
For more information, contact the Commission for Women at (305) 375-4967 or at CFW@Miamidade.gov.
