The Mothers of Modern Gynecology

For most of human history, childbirth belonged to women. Midwives guided mothers through labor, cared for newborns, and held generations of medical knowledge within their communities. But over time, birth moved from homes to hospitals, and from the hands of women to the authority of male physicians.

In this episode, we explore the hidden history of childbirth, the rise of modern gynecology, and the women whose bodies shaped the field but whose names were nearly erased from it.

At the center of this story are three enslaved women in the 1840s American South: Anarcha, Betsey, and Lucy. Suffering from a devastating childbirth injury, they were subjected to years of experimental surgeries by physician J. Marion Sims, procedures performed without anesthesia or the ability to consent. Sims would later be celebrated as the “father of modern gynecology,” but the medical advancements credited to him were built on the pain, endurance, and forced labor of these women.

We also trace the overlooked legacy of Black midwives, who for generations were the backbone of maternal healthcare in the United States. Once trusted community leaders and healers, they were gradually pushed out of medicine as childbirth became increasingly medicalized and controlled by white male physicians.

Trigger Warning: This section of the episode addresses scientific experimentation on enslaved women and violation of their bodies.

Created and produced by Tess Bellomo and Claire Donald

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