MEMBERS OF THE NH Women's Bar Association are playing detective, poring over dusty old books in the archives in search of a group of trailblazing women attorneys.

A group of about 15 NHWBA members has been searching the archives of the NH Supreme Court, the state and the NH Bar Association to identify and find biographical information about the first 100 women admitted to practice law in New Hampshire. Those women will be honored at a tribute dinner on May 2, 2002, at the Courtyard by Marriott, Concord. The event is being sponsored by the Women's Bar, Franklin Pierce Law Center and a number of NH law firms.

The researchers have spent the better part of the past year searching for information to complete the list and compile a short booklet with biographies of the First 100 Women, to be handed out at the tribute dinner.

In 1890, Marilla M. Ricker won the landmark NH Supreme Court case allowing women to petition to practice law in this state, although she never so petitioned herself and thus was never admitted here. Using that as a starting point, researchers from the Women's Bar began in the Supreme Court archives, examining court dockets from the late 1800s on for motions filed to practice law in NH. They identified names that were obviously female or that they were unsure of and delved deeper into the records to verify who was actually female, and to obtain further biographical information. In addition to Supreme Court records, they also looked at photographic records, court records stored in the state archives and Bar Association records from the 1960s on, when the bar became unified.

Nearly 30 years after the Ricker decision, the first female attorney successfully petitioned to practice law in NH: Agnes Winifred McLaughlin did so and passed the bar exam in 1917. McLaughlin, who died in 1964 at the age of 81, spent the majority of her legal career working in the Estate Planning Division of the Equitable Life Assurance Society in New York City, retiring from there after 25 years - and from the practice of law - in 1945.

From there, the list spans 60 years - all the way up to 1977 - to reach 100 NH women lawyers, a fact that surprised many involved in the project. "We were all very surprised at that," said Joni N. Esperian, chair of the First 100 Women Committee, who has been involved in the research. Jennifer L. Parent, chair of the fundraising effort of the committee, added that some of the women on the list were also surprised that they were included among the first 100 women attorneys in the state, believing that milestone had been reached before their time. Parent pointed out that Wisconsin, for example, had its first 150 female attorneys by 1943. In New Hampshire, only 24 women had entered law practice by that time.

There were only about 16 female attorneys admitted to the NH bar in the 1930s, then very few through the '40s, '50s and '60s. The majority of the first 100 women - from about number 40 to 100 - were admitted during the '70s, according to Parent. In the middle of the list, at number 50, is NH Supreme Court Associate Justice Linda S. Dalianis, who was admitted to the NH Bar in 1974.

According to Esperian, Justice Dalianis often tells a story about the influence one of her fellow first 100 women had on her decision to become a lawyer. As a young girl, Dalianis saw a fancily dressed woman, attired in a stylish hat and fur coat, step out of a fine sedan in the Keene area. When she asked who the woman was, the response was that it was Catharine Sage, an attorney. Sage was the 31^st woman on the list, admitted in 1958. After she saw Sage, Dalianis says, she decided she, too, wanted to be a lawyer.

The oldest surviving woman on the list is 83-year-old Leila Lister Maynard, who was admitted in1944 as the 25^th woman in the state to practice law. Maynard is expected to attend and make remarks at the First 100 Women event in May. Her daughter, Martha M. Jacques, is a new attorney in NH, admitted to the NH Bar in 2001.

In addition to biographical information, the Women's Bar is looking for photographs of any of the first 100 women. They have been searching for photos in various courthouses across the state in which the attorneys practiced. They have also been asking fellow Bar members to share any information or photographs they may have of the women lawyers. In particular, they are in need of information about 13 "missing" women attorneys of whom they don't know the whereabouts (see sidebar).

Esperian and Parent said that the research involved in the First 100 Women project has proven difficult, but worth it. Esperian credits attorney Kristin D. Thompson, a former clerk at the Supreme Court, with "getting the research off to a huge start."

"She worked tirelessly from the beginning," said Esperian.

Esperian said that the research has been "fascinating," especially for those who are history buffs. "It's been very interesting and a lot of fun, turning out these interesting stories," she said.

"Those who came in the early '20s, they were clearly doing something difficult and worthy. I can't imagine what it must have been like for them," Esperian added.

Parent believes that this project gives NH a chance to honor the state's first 100 female attorneys, who led the way for the women lawyers of today. "It's a great opportunity to recognize and celebrate the initiative and accomplishments of these women lawyers in NH," she said.

Researchers for the First 100 Women Committee are having trouble finding the whereabouts of a few of the attorneys on the list. If you know any of the following women or have any knowledge of their whereabouts, please contact attorney Kathleen A. Sternenberg's office at 603/641-1048 or Theresa Gerrior by e-mail at tcgerrior@netscape.net.

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