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Sean D. Reyes
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Utah AG Conference Room Dedicated to Utah’s First Female Attorney

October 2, 2019

Today, the Utah Attorney General’s Office, in partnership with Better Days 2020 and Women Lawyers in Utah, dedicated the meeting room in the AG’s office as the “Snow Carleton Conference Room” after Cora Georgiana Snow Carleton, Utah’s first female attorney.

Listen to the dedication audio here:

Cora Georgiana Snow Carleton (1844–1915) and Phoebe Wilson Couzins (1839–1913) were the first two women admitted to the Utah Bar in 1872; and they were admitted on the same day.

Carleton studied law for three years with her father, Zerubbabel Snow, who was then the Attorney General of the Utah Territory and later a territorial Utah Supreme Court Judge. A committee appointed by Chief Justice McKean of the territorial Utah Supreme Court examined and approved Carleton’s application for admission. Carleton served as territorial librarian and later moved to Wyoming and entered politics. She served as an alternative delegate to the 1892 presidential convention. Carleton later moved to San Diego, where she was a member of the Board of Education. She died in 1915.

Utah was one of the first states or territories to welcome a woman into legal practice. However, it would be another two decades before another woman was admitted to the Utah bar.

Cora Georgiana Snow Carleton showed immense determination as she made inroads for women to enter the professional workforce. Without a doubt, Cora knew that standing side by side with her male counterparts would pave the way for women to enter the law. She would be proud to know that we are honoring her memory in this way. Her legacy will continue to champion women of all ages to become attorneys at law.

The Utah Attorney General’s Office is proud to honor Carleton by dedicating the Snow Carleton Conference to forever remember the sacrifices she made on behalf of the State of Utah. We as men and women are better 147 years later, because of her courageous and steadfast actions.

“These pioneering women may not have had long resumes of accomplishments, but what they were able to do and the impact and influence that they have resonates for generations and we can still feel it now,” said Attorney General Sean Reyes. “That’s why we do this, is to continue that legacy going forward and learn from the strength of women in our history to perpetuate that power forward into future generations.”


Watch the live stream of the dedication below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W98ROTzoAKs