I had the great pleasure to know Dr. Olmsted. She once told me that when she started out as the first female Ophthalmology resident at the University of Rochester, the male residents refused to sit at the lunch table with her. Eventually, she won them over. She was truly a pioneer in the field.March 5, 1915 — Sept. 6, 2007
Dr. Elizabeth Pierce Olmsted, a pioneer for women in medicine, died Thursday in Millard Fillmore Hospital. She was 92.
She graduated from the University of Buffalo School of Medicine in 1939, becoming Western New York’s first female ophthalmologist.
Throughout her career, she also worked as a military consultant investigating the effects of radar exposure on the eye, invented the diffraction lens used in the treatment of crossed and lazy eyes, authored numerous articles and served as president and chairwoman of local and state professional societies.
Dr. Olmsted was one of the area’s first female pilots, serving as a lieutenant in the Civil Air Patrol in the early 1940s. She was a member of the Ninety- Nines, the international organization of female pilots.
Her husband, Ira G. Ross, died in 1991.
A lifelong Buffalo resident and civic leader, she volunteered for several local organizations. Of all her accomplishments, she is perhaps best known for philanthropy.
Throughout the 1990s, Dr. Olmsted contributed millions of dollars to the UB School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences to establish a faculty chair in medical information services and to establish the Ira G. Ross Eye Institute. She also donated to the Blind Association of Western New York, renamed in her honor the Elizabeth Pierce Olmsted, M.D. Center for the Visually Impaired, to update its facility to state-of-the-art.
In recognition of her generosity, Dr. Olmsted in 2004 received the Outstanding Philanthropist Award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
She also received the National Conference for Community and Justice of Western New York Lifetime Achievement Award, the Athena Award, UB’s Distinguished Medical Alumna Award and many other honors. In 2003, she received an honorary doctorate in science from the State University of New York.
