Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 18, 2004)
February 18, 2004 _____ W B lack H istory M onth W s p e c ia l Page A5 coverage . African-American Women War Heroes Many earned status as nurses and help deliver it to the Union there were not enough qualified Army. male nurses to handle the injuries The espionage was often sent from the war. inside o f eggshells or sewn in The first class o f 32 black nurs Editor's note: The following is side of fabric material for women ’ s ing school graduates were re part o f a continuing Black His clothing. Bowser never tipped cruited and trained at Freedm an’s tory Month series on African her hand. She bravely kept her H ospital in W ashington, D.C. Americans serving in the U.S. secret throughout her time with Their service in the war and other military. Davis, who along with his friends. parts o f the country were so im by R on W eber pressive that bills were sent T he P ortland O bserver to C ongress, allow ing for a W h ile m an y A fric a n - perm anent nursing corps in American women filled sup the army. port roles vital to the U.S. As world unrest signaled m ilitary in tim es o f war, oth the upcom ing W orld W ar I, ers wanted to fight on the The Red Cross began a full front lines. drive for women nurses. In For example, brave women 1909, The National A sso such as H arriet T ubm an ciation o f Colored Graduate served as a nurse, scout and Nurses was founded. spy for the Union Army dur But when A m erica de ing the Civil War. clared war against Germany Tubm an’s incredible jo u r in 1917, the Red Cross and Harriet Tubman d e m o n stra te d bravery ney up the Com bahee River A rm y re je c te d A fric a n - a s a Union Army nurse, sc o u t and sp y in South Carolina, saw her as A m erica w om en nurses. during th e Civil War. the first woman o f any race Shocked and disappointed, to lead U.S. m ilitary troops on a thought o f her only as a harm less thousands o f w ould-be-nurses mission. Tubman guided soldiers mentally ill woman. were left on the sidelines. up the river where they destroyed Like H arriet Tubm an and oth In D ecem ber 1918, the Army Confederate w arehouses full of ers, black women took positions Nurse Corps, upon accepting a am m unitionandothervital South as nurses or com m on m ilitary la mere 18 black women nurses, sent ern m ilitary supplies. borers in the Civil War. Although them throughout the country to On the way backdown the river, Tubman is certainly the most fa battle an international epidem ic sh e c a lle d to sla v e s on the mous black nurse during that era. of influenza. The ‘‘experiment with riverbanks, freeing them from black nurses,” as it was called, their plantations and cruel m as was a huge success. The women ters. When the boats became too were noted as highly com petent Mary Eliza full, hundreds more grabbed hold professionals. M ahoney o f the sides. W itnesses said the W orld W ar II would see a ma w as the people, all hanging on to each jo r shift in the role o f African- first black other in the water, looked like a American women. wom an necklace o f people. President R oosevelt signed trained a s One o f the bravest stories of Public Law #554 which allowed a n u rse in an A frican-A m erican women in the creation o f the W om en’s th e U.S. the Civil W ar was that o f Mary Army A uxiliary Corps o f which Army. Elizabeth Bowser. 10 percent w ould be A frican Bowser was able to obtain a American. The Navy did not al position as a maid in a C onfeder low any black women into the ate home and play up her lack of the first black woman to actually W AVES until 1945, near the end education, appearing somewhat go through formal training to be o f the war. retard ed . W ith the ab ility to come a nurse was Miss Mary Eliza A very interesting fact involv memorize large amounts o f infor M ahoney. ing black women in the Army mation at one time, Bow ser lis M ahoney graduated from the Corps was their sporadic place tened to high level confederate New England Hospital for Women ment in a few locations through talks and read m ilitary papers on and Children in 1879. out the continental United States Jefferson D avis’s desk. At night At the time, most m ilitary doc where their presence was gener she would repeat the inform ation tors preferred male nurses. H ow ally not accepted. But the dis to a well known Union sym pa ever, during the Spanish-A m eri crim ination w asn’t prevalent in thizer who would write it down can war, it was clearly evident Europe where A frican-A m erican women were requested through out the European Theater o f O p eration. More than 800 o f the women were sent to Europe un der the com m and o f M ajor C har ity Adam s, a highly successful black woman officer. Though isolated in some Euro pean areas and feeling the preju dice o f white m ilitary personnel, the women were well received by black soldiers and Europeans. Under ongoing pressure from continued yf on page A6 African-American n u rse s in th e U.S. Army during World War II were well received in Europe. atch a (¡ame o f high C school hoops o r call the plays yourself at the chess board. Attend a A SS I ST K I) L I V I N G will) the ro 0 acmi ton nearby concert o r make your own music on our piano. A t Irvington Village our sensitive assistance helps you remain independent. Help with daily activities like inedicaliop management and housekeeping will set you free lo live life in a big way. Enjoy our life enriching programs. Savor new friendships over delicious meals. Relax in the security of our commitment, Come see the studio and one- bedroom apartments we oiler. Call today to schedule a complimentary lunch and lour. (503) 546-9292. % V ^hen pen need a helping IRVINGTONVlLiAGE hand, let that hand be euty. A Covenant Living Community 420 N.E. Mason St. Portland, Oregon 9721 I (503) 546-9292 Developed and managed by Covenant Retirement Communities' Who better to rebuild a community than the people who are part of the community. When Walsh Construction Co./OR began work on the New Columbia housing project, we wanted to hire skilled people who took pride in a job well done. So, naturally, we looked to the neighborhood. As a result, more than 60% of the workforce was women and people of color. Disadvantaged, Minority, Women and Emerging Small Businesses were awarded 30% of subcontracts. How did we do it? Walsh Construction Co./OR and the Housing Authority of Portland helped subcontrac tors hire trades people from the community. Join our team ! Subcontractors and suppliers, call Carolyn Wilson at 503-222-4375 for information on the next phase or visit our website at « M.S1I '- S i, \ \ 'z \ 1-SiI I www.walshconstructionco.com. For on site employment opportunities, call Valencia Edwards at 503-542-8160. W l WALSH Construction Co./OR ? ... V . 11 ib] 1 1 r / » IS
