At the beginning of the 19th century, the settlement of the Middle West of the United States was taking place and soon thereafter dental schools were being founded. With the establishment of dental schools, dentistry slowly evolved from a craft transmitted by a preceptor to a profession taught within established schools. Starting with Lucy Beaman Hobbs Taylor, a number of women from the Middle West entered dental schools when they were opened to them. Many active women of the Middle West became dentists and provided impetus for the profession as well as founding of the American Association of Women Dentists.