Spring 1991 Vol 3 No 2
ISSN 1049-2259
FALL SEMINAR NEW WORK IN THE HISTORY OF WOMEN AND NURSING On November 26, 1990. members and friends of the Center previewed new work in the history of women and nursing by the first Lillian Sholtis Brunner Summer FeUows, Janet Golden and Myrtle Matejski, a1 our annual fall reception. Professor Matejski. chair of the Department of Advanced Nursing Science, CoUege of Nursing, University of Delaware. presented Nurses in 1M Civil War: Benevolence and Care. This talk formed part of Professor Matejski's cootinuing study of nurses in the Civil War. Professor Golden, Visiting Assistant Professor of History. Temple University, Philadel phia. Pennsylvania, highlighled ber historical analysis of photographs depicting women's lives in ber lalk. Women's History and Images of Women: Some Specukuions. Nurses in the Civil War Professor Matejsk:i outlined the military I life of soldiers from the poorly prepared HON northern and southern states. The wretched conditions created by TN disease and war injuries prompted a TIO 'AL I TIO response from ARMY individual women and PUB le"'~Q "y 001Jl> cay O F ... organizations such as CITIZENS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE the Sanitary Commis OF sion created in 1861. ATLANTIC CITY · • • NEW JERSEY Dr. Matejski described the nurses' daily. demanding work and Publication honoring 1M Civil War heallle care efforl of army nJlTSU ollllined in their important,life"Nurses ill lhe Civil War." saving ability to organize supportive care for large numbecs of sick or injured troops under primitive conditions. Employing their highly developed domestic skills, these women crealed hospitals in spite of the fact that none had any special preparation for the work. Rarely acknowledged Civil War nurses sucb as Cornelia Hancock, Miss Harris, and Mary Morris Husband, as well as the more famous Louisa May Alcott and Margaret (Mother) Breckimidge, participated in the Civil War health care effort. Through the responsiveness and convincing demonstrations of these Civil War nurses, Dr. Matejski argued. the public's perception of women nurses changed. From a limited. domestic, and usually unpaid expectation of every woman, nursing began to be seen as acceptable work and a respected source of livelihood. Women's History and Images of Women UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANTA Janet Golden followed with a discussion of la1e 19th century health care using SQ-fOOL OF NURSING surviving photographs of the era as her vehicle. Her work demonstrates that. while women in nursing fit into ordained gender roles, they were, III the same time, in the process of changing their social position. Showing the audience samples of the Philadelphia General Hospital nursing photographs, Dr. Golden highlighted many scenes clearly intended to verify the respectability of nurses and muses on the job.
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