Dr. Esther Park Memorial

About Dr. Esther Park

Dr. Esther Park (née Kim Jeom-dong, 1876-1910) was Korea's first female physician. Born in Jeongdong, Seoul, she entered Ewha Haktang at age 10 and served as interpreter for medical missionary Rosetta Sherwood Hall, which inspired her dream of becoming a doctor. In 1896, she enrolled at the Woman's Medical College of Baltimore, earning her medical degree in 1900 — becoming the first Korean woman to study abroad in the U.S. and the first female Korean physician. Her husband Park Yu-san worked on farms in America to support her studies, but tragically died of tuberculosis in Baltimore just three weeks before her graduation.

Service After Return

Returning to Korea in November 1900 under the Women's Foreign Missionary Society, Dr. Park opened a new era of "Korean women treating Korean women" at Boguyeogwan (forerunner of Ewha Womans University Hospital). She later served at Hall Memorial Hospital in Pyongyang, traveling through Hwanghae and Pyeongan provinces to treat over 3,000 female and child patients annually. She also helped establish nursing schools and promoted women's medical education. In April 1910, she passed away from tuberculosis at the young age of 35.

Memorial Activities

• Annual visit to husband Park Yu-san's grave at Lorraine Park Cemetery, Baltimore (memorial unveiled 2018)
• Historical tour program highlighting Dr. Park's life and achievements
• Women in medicine scholarships and memorial academic programs