The Namesake: An Enduring Legacy of Antoinette Brown

Born in 1825 in Henrietta, NY, Antoinette Brown graduated from the Ladies Course at Oberlin College and then continued her studies in the theology department. In 1853, she realized her childhood calling and was ordained by the Congregational Church in South Butler, NY, becoming the first woman ordained as a minister in the U.S. She was a well-versed public speaker and writer on the social reform issues of her time. In addition to advocating for temperance and the abolition of slavery, she used her religious faith to expand women’s rights – particularly women’s property rights – and women’s leadership in church and society.