Marie Louise Bottineau Baldwin

Who was Marie Louise Bottineau Baldwin?

Marie Louise Bottineau Baldwin, was a Métis Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians Attorney. In 1914 Baldwin was the first Native American student to graduate from the Washington College of Law. She worked in the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs, and was an officer in the Society of American Indians. "Her appointment [to the Bureau] ... was approved by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904. She was an accountant in the Education Division of the Bureau."

Her grandparents were Pierre Bottineau and Genevieve "Jennie" LaRence, b. 1818; her father was John Bottineau.

"Marie Louise was admitted to the bar in 1914, having completed the three years of courses during two years of attending evening classes. She also graduated with highest distinction. The Quarterly Journal of American Indians noted that “Mrs. Baldwin, who is Treasurer of the Society of American Indians, has offered herself to the War Department for services overseas. She speaks French as fluently as English, and her skill as an accountant will make her valuable to the accounting staff.”