Allen, Florence Ellinwood (1884–1966)

US judge and women's suffrage activist. After spending 25 years as an appeal court judge, Allen became the first woman named to a federal appellate chief judgeship in 1958. Despite strong support from women's groups, she never received a nomination to the US Supreme Court.

Allen was the daughter of the first woman admitted to Smith College. She was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1914, and went on to serve as legal counsel for the suffragist movement. She became assistant prosecutor for Cuyahoga County in 1919and was elected a common pleas court judge in 1920. In 1922 she won election to the Ohio Supreme Court.