Young Dr. Alice Hamilton (1869-1970) heard Jane Addams speak and joined the staff at Hull House, beginning her lifelong effort to improve conditions for the working class in America. In 1910 she was appointed by the Governor of Illinois to investigate industrial diseases, such as lead and carbon monoxide poisoning, becoming a pioneer in industrial medicine. Her discoveries led to worker’s compensation laws, safer working conditions, and the abolishment of child labor. She became the first female faculty member of Harvard Medical School in 1919. Alice continued to work for the United States and the League of Nations conducting industrial studies on pollution. Alice once said “I wouldn’t change my life a bit...For me the satisfaction is that things are better now, and I had some part in it.”
