Dr. Susan Anderson (1870-1960) During the nineteenth century most women found little acceptance or opportunity in the medical profession. Susan Anderson, known as 'Doc Susie,' is one of many women with medical training who evaded the restrictions of male-only medical schools and practices to become invaluable frontier doctors. Born in Indiana in 1870, Anderson attended the University of Michigan Medical College and graduated at a time when only five percent of all doctors were women. She followed her family to Cripple Creek where she tended to miners seeking their fortunes in gold. Her father felt the mining town was "no place for a lady" and encouraged her to uproot to Denver. In Denver and later Greeley, Anderson was unable to overcome community prejudice against female doctors. She resorted to being a nurse until she contracted tuberculosis and moved to the mountain town of Fraser to cure her condition. In that remote region, the need for medical care outweighed prejudice against women doctors, and Anderson was able to renew her medical practice. Anderson traveled long distances over rugged terrain to make housecalls for patients in need. Anderson's successes led to her selection as a railroad doctor, county coroner, and sheriff's deputy. Along with a growing segment of women, Anderson broke with convention by pursuing a profession dominated by men and requiring higher education. These women faced many obstacles in overcoming the bias against female professionals and supposed female inferiority. Women like Susan Anderson helped to eliminate barriers for women entering professions and to increase opportunities for them to contribute to the medical field outside of the home.