Barbara Ann Wilcox

Barbara Ann Wilcox (April 1, 1912 – September 9, 1962), born Edward Price Richards and known for a time as Barbara Ann Richards, was an American transgender woman who is known for her successful 1941 petition to change her legal name to her chosen name, which attracted widespread media attention as one of the earliest cases on the legal status of transgender people.

Early life and education Richards was born on April 1, 1912, to an affluent family in Salem, Massachusetts. When she was five, she was hospitalized for several months with spinal meningitis, which physically weakened her. In October, she went to register for the Selective Service System, but was classified as unfit for military service and denied .

In 1941, she filed a legal petition with the Los Angeles County Superior Court to change her name to Barbara, effectively recognizing her as female. She minimized the fact that she was going through feminizing hormone therapy, instead portraying her transition as a mysterious natural occurrence. Her case generated widespread interest from national media outlets, which viewed it largely as a peculiar curiosity and emphasized its shock value. which she did after she won.