Background
Martha A. Angle was born 2 April 1851 in Randolph, Cattaraugus County, New York, the daughter of Nicholas Angle and Mary Ewing.
Martha A. Angle was born 2 April 1851 in Randolph, Cattaraugus County, New York, the daughter of Nicholas Angle and Mary Ewing.
She attended local schools. She attended and graduated from the Iowa College of Law, now Drake University Law School, in 1876. They had met at the Iowa College of Law, where both graduated.
She had taken his name and applied as Martha Dorsett for admission to the State Bar of Minnesota in 1876, the first woman ever to do so, after passing the exam with high scores. Her application was denied on the grounds that state law only permitted males to practice law. In the words of Judge Young, the one who denied her application, "The lady passed the best examination of any applicant for admission that has been presented for a long time." On 27 February 1877, by a vote of 63 to 30, the House approved.
Martha Dorsett was admitted to the bar in 1878.
She later served as Treasurer and member of the Board of Directors of Maternity Hospital, located at 2529 4th Avenue South, Minneapolis, which opened on 30 November 1886.
