The first Black American woman certified as an attorney in North Carolina was honored with a highway historical marker.

Born in 1901, Ruth Whitehead Whaley was the daughter of highly respected teachers who worked in Goldsboro. After graduating from Dillard High School, Whaley attended Livingstone College in Salisbury, graduating in 1919. A year later, she wed Herman Whaley who encouraged her to enroll in law school, according to the Goldsboro Daily News.

Whaley became the first Black woman admitted to Fordham University in New York, graduating with a law degree at the top of her class in 1924 and passing the bar exam in 1925. 

She became an expert in civil service law in the Big Apple and would go on to enter the political arena. Whaley ultimately served as secretary of the New York City Board of Estimate, became the first president of the New York City National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women, and was also president of the National Council for Negro Women.

She returned to Goldsboro in 1933 to be sworn into the North Carolina state bar, becoming the first African American woman licensed in the state. However, she was unable to practice law due to Jim Crow-era racism.

“She couldn’t easily practice law here so she had to move to New York. But she still came back and went through the process and got her license here. I think that’s a real interesting side of the story,” said Ansley Wegner of North Carolina’s highway historical marker program, WFAE 970 reports.

Whaley died in 1977. She is reportedly buried in Mount Hope cemetery in Yonkers, New York.

“This is an opportunity that a local hero can be recognized,” Archbishop Anthony Slater, who spoke at the new marker’s dedication ceremony, told WRAL News.

The North Carolina Highway Historical Marker dedicated to Whaley’s life and legacy is located on the corner of Ash and John Streets in Goldsboro, near First Citizens Bank, not far from where she grew up.

“Ruth Whaley,” the marker reads. “Pioneer female African-American lawyer, first to be licensed in N.C.”

“There’s not a playing field that’s fair, we’ve got to come to grips with that. But we have a capability now that we can make some changes,” Slater said. 

Slater hopes the new marker serves as a reminder to rise above all forms of intolerance. 

“Here’s a woman who came against all odds, and was successful, is successful,” Slater said. “It is a platform for those who are coming behind that can do the same thing, if not greater.”

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