How it all beganLearn about the evolution of dentistry and the American Dental Association.Visit the following links to delve deeper into a variety of themes and time periods that draw on the archives’ rich and varied collections. If you can't find what you're looking for, please reach out to us.Contact Us FAQs on the History of Dentistry Who was the first African American to receive a dental degree? The first African-American to receive a dental degree is Dr. Robert Tanner Freeman. He was in the firstclass to graduate from the Harvard Dental School in 1869. Dr. Ida Gray Nelson Rollins (born Ida Gray) was the first black woman to receive a dental degree. Shegraduated from the University of Michigan Dental School in 1890. Who was the first women dentist in America? This distinction is often given to Emeline Roberts Jones who is known to have assisted in her husband’sdental practice in Connecticut as early as 1844. She became his partner in 1859 and took over the practiceupon his death....
