Here in Allen County, Indiana, Irene Byron remains a name that is familiar to many. While some folks may no longer know exactly who she was, her surname is still attached to a healthcare organization that came to be, in large part, because of her determination to help the ill and dying of Fort Wayne over 100 years ago.
Irene Byron, born October of 1882 per her death certificate, was a nurse who graduated from Hope Hospital’s nursing program. After she graduated, she found employment as a visiting (community) nurse for the Fort Wayne Anti Tuberculosis League. By 1914, she was the executive secretary of the FWATL (Fort Wayne Anti Tuberculosis League) and began campaigning for an outdoor hospital to treat patients diagnosed with TB.
In the early part of the century, tuberculosis, known in the common vernacular as the White Plague, was relentless killer. Estimates from the 1910’s suggest that somewhere around 600 people were afflicted with TB in Fort Wayne alone, 200 of whom were probably terminally ill. Even back in the early 1900’s, healthcare professionals knew that they stood a chance at stopping the progression of the disease in those diagnosed early-on, thus reducing the death rate if they could get those patients into a strict routine of basic, restorative care: fresh air, a healthy, nourishing diet, and lots of rest.
In spring of 1915, thanks in large part to Miss Byron’s efforts, Fort Recovery opened just north of where the old Byron Health Center stood until late last week. With a maximum capacity of 20, this tent hospital eight miles north of Fort Wayne saw patients of all ages, from the very young to the old. Miss Byron was responsible for tending to the patients at Fort Recovery, though even with this new responsibility, Miss Byron continued to care for community-based TB patients in their homes at great risk to her own health. Not surprisingly, the workload soon proved too much for her health, and she took a leave of absence to California to recuperate in the home of her sister and brother-in-law.
When Miss Byron returned to Fort Wayne, she signed up in short order as an Army nurse at the dawn of WWI in 1917. She was shipped to Waco, Texas, where she cared for servicemen ill with influenza during the infamous flu pandemic. Tragically, Miss Byron died within 6 months of her arrival, passing away in 1918 while still in her mid-30’s.
But who was Irene Byron? Where did she come from? Who were her parents? What was she like? Miss Byron never married and never had children. Her early death left her without direct descendents to remember her, tell stories about her, and keep her memory alive. So dive with me into the depths of the historic records, and let’s flesh out the details of this truly outstanding woman who gave her own life to help those who needed her the most.
Starting at the End
One of the first things I came across in my research was Miss Byron’s death certificate (find it at Ancestry.com here). It tells of her end in frank medical detail, but it also provides vital information that made it possible for me to find her family in the census records and beyond.
There is information contained in most death certificates that is often extremely helpful–if not essential–in researching a person’s history, making the death certificate a fantastic place to start. Most of them (assuming they’re filled out completely and these details are actually known) contain the decedent’s full name, their date of birth and age, their place of birth, their parents’ names and places of birth (hopefully, this includes their mother’s maiden name), the informant, their date of death, the cause of death, and the date and place of burial.
Let’s start at the beginning, perhaps with something that seems as if it shouldn’t require a great deal of our attention: the decedent’s full name. Miss Byron’s death certificate lists her name as Patricia Irene Byron. That’s right — Irene was her middle name, not her first, in spite of the fact that that’s the name that the health facilities dedicated to her bear to this day. It appears that Miss Byron most frequently went by Irene, but her actual first name – Patricia – plays an important role in finding her in the census records down the line.
Her death certificate gives her date of birth – October 19th, 1883 – and then indicates that she was 33 years old at the time of her death on March 28, 1918. Basic mathematics would suggest that she was actually about 34 years old at the time of her death, though the newspapers in Fort Wayne reported that she died at age 36. It is important here to note that the further back in American history one goes, the less precise people were about birth dates, months and years. The exact year of birth often fluctuates by +/- 5 years, at times in either direction, and in some extreme cases, may vary even more than that. Before the era of social security and required official documents such as driver’s licenses, birthdates in their entirety were less a matter of precise day, month and year, and more an approximation, and a ballpark figure, if a birthdate was unknown, would do the job just fine. As a result, while conducting genalogical research, it isn’t uncommon to find the same person 10 years later in a census record whose age doesn’t reflect an exact 10-year advancement.
Just under the block that lists her employment as a Red Cross Nurse, the next box gives her place of birth as Pennsylvania. Below that, her father’s name is listed as James Byron, and he was reportedly born in Ireland. Her mother, Sarah Gardner, was also listed as born in Ireland. For someone who wants to look backwards in time, seeking out a specific family in a specific census, this is pivotal information!
The informant box, which gives the name of the person who provided the information in the boxes above, lists the name “Elyzabeth Beck”. Her address is simply listed as Fullerton, California. It is highly likely that Miss Byron and Mrs. Beck were family members, and in light of the fact that Miss Byron went to her sister’s home in California to recover when her heatlh took a downward turn in 1915, it is likely that this is the same sister.
The next block describes the date of death, the time the physician attended the patient prior to death, and the cause. In Miss Byron’s case, this is a notable section. It is reasonable (if not crazy not to) assume that Miss Byron contracted influenza and died in the course of caring for soldiers afflicted with this highly contagious disease. That, however, will prove not to be the case.
Miss Byron died March 28, 1918, but her death certificate reports that she was attended by a physician starting on February 16, 1918 up until her death, suggesting that the course of this illess was much longer than a typical course of the Spanish flu. Indeed, the cause of death is listed as follows: “adhesions postoperative following appendectomy & Ventral suspension 1910-1917. Peritonitis general.” The duration of this condition is listed as 1 month, 12 days. It isn’t entirely clear when Miss Byron had her appendectomy performed (the 1910-1917 date range isn’t exactly precise), but it is reasonable to assume that Miss Byron likely had surgery of some sort (perhaps to correct the adhesions from her prior surgery) in Feburary of 1918, and that the complications of said surgery left her with peritonitis. Abdominal adhesions are when scar tissues forms between two organs or an organ and the abdominal wall. When the bowel is involved, this scar tissue may restrict movement of stomach contents through the intestines, resulting in an obstruction that could end in death. Peritonitis occurs when the lining of the abdominal wall which covers and supports the abdominal organs becomes infected — also, likely a result of her later surgery.
Finally, Miss Byron’s death certificate lists her location of burial as Fullerton, California, the same place that Elyzabeth Beck gave as her address. This further reinforced my suspicion of a familial tie between Elyzabeth and Irene.
The Census Records
Armed with information from Miss Byron’s death certificate, I started searching the census records to see if I could find anyone who fit the bill. While Irene’s death certificate indicated that she was born in 1883, the inexact nature of birth years led me to search the 1880 census for her parents first, hoping I might be able to see her presumed sister, Elyzabeth, also living in the home. Did I get a surprise!
1880
1880, Concord, Butler Co., PA: (ancestry.com link)
James Byrne, 44 born in Ireland; both parents born in Ireland; occupation oil pumper
Sarah Byrne, 32 born in Ohio; both parents born in Ohio; keeps house
James Byrne, 12 Born PA
John Byrne, 10 Born PA
Mary Ann Byrne, 8 Born PA
Elizabeth Byrne, 6 Born PA
Margaret Byrne, 4 Born PA
Patricia Byrne, 2 Born PA
First, don’t be thrown off by the different spelling of the surname in this record. Surname spelling, much like birthdates, could vary based on the census-taker back in those days, especially before the vast majority of the population had attained a baseline level of literacy. Byrne is a known variation of the surname Byron (for more, see here).
What’s important in this census is the presence of people whose names and ages approximately match those known to be associated with Miss Byron, but also Miss Byron herself under her given name, Patricia. While mother Sarah’s place of birth (Ohio) differs from what was listed on Miss Byron’s death cert, it is still extremely likely that this isn’t just Miss Byron’s family in 1880; it’s two-year-old Miss Byron herself.
With this record in our back pocket, let’s jump to 1900!
(NOTE: The 1890 federal census burned and no longer exists, leaving a 20-year gap between 1880 and 1900).
1900
1900, South Fayette, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania: (ancestry.com link)
James Byrne, 60 born in Ireland, Sep 1839; both parents born in Ireland; occupation oil pumper. Immigrated 1850; married 1860; married for 40 years
Sarah Byrne, 59, born in PA, Aug 1840; mother born Ireland, father born Scotland. Borne 12 children; 8 living.
Mike Byrne, 19, born in PA, June 1880; mother born PA, father born Ireland
Sadie Byrne, 16, born in PA, Feb 1884; mother born PA, father born Ireland
Notice the similiarities between this census and the 1880 census. While the only children remaining at home in 1900 are those born after the 1880 census was taken, James and Sarah’s names and James’s occupation remains the same. This is almost certainly the same family.
With the addition of two younger siblings after 1880, this makes Miss Byron the sixth born in a family of eight children total. She had four known sisters and three known brothers.
But where is Miss Byron in 1900? To find her, we needn’t look too far.
Braddock Ward 4, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania: (ancestry.com link)
James P. Clark, 38
Cora L. Clark, 29
Anna B. Clark, 17
James E. Clark, 16
Lulu J. Clark, 7
Irene Byron, 20 Boarder born PA, October 1879; father born Ireland; mother born PA; occupation electric worker
It seems we found Miss Byron, her surname spelling changed from Byrne to Byron, living outside her parents’ home as expected, employed as an electric worker in her pre-nursing days. Her month of birth matches the same month given in her death certificate and her parents’ places of birth align with what both of them stated in the 1900 census as well. It is reasonable to assume that her date of birth in this record — 1879 — is probably the more accurate one of all those given, considering she couldn’t have been born after 1880 as she indeed appears in that census.
1910
The next time the census rolls around, Miss Byron is exactly where we’d expect her to be.
*121 Washington Street, Fort Wayne Ward 2, Allen Co., Indiana: (ancestry.com link)
Irene Byron, 28, born PA, father born Ireland, mother born PA. Occupation: trained nurse, private residence.
*Sadly, this home no longer exists.
Miss Byron died in 1918, two years before the next census record would come out. For more information about who she was, we need to turn to the newspapers of Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Newspaper Records
Newspapers of the days gone-by are a far cry fom what most are today. Covering the full range of international news to local gossip and everything inbetween, they can be a treasure trove of personal information, most of which would be otherwise lost to time. So let’s look at Miss Byron in the papers and see what there is to discover.
The earliest record I found gave me a date I’d yet to see specified: when exactly she graduated from nursing school!
Tuesday, October 16, 1906: The Fort Wayne Evening Sentinel (Newspapers.com Copy here)
“NURSES WILL GRADUATE — Class of Ten Will Receive Diplomas Friday Evening, Oct. 26 — Invitations were issued today for the commencement exercises of the Hope hospital training school for nurses, which will be held in the First Methodist church on the evening of Friday, October 26, at 8 o’clock. A class of ten will receive diplomas and an elaborate program is being prepared for the event, which will be announced later.
The members of the class are as follows: Miss Annabel McCallum, St. Thomas, Ont.; Miss Mabel P. Sanders, Sarnia, Ont.; Miss Helen Palmer, Wallaceburg, Ont.; Miss Irene Byron, Pittsburg, Pa.; …”
In 1909, the Fort Wayne Daily News published the following:
January 20, 1909, The Fort Wayne Daily News, page 2 (Newspapers.com copy here)
“Miss Irene Byron, who has been visiting in Huntington for the past two weeks, has retruned to her home in this city.”
A 1909 snippet further confirms that Miss Byron hailed from Pennsylvania and still had family living there.
September 29, 1909, morning edition: The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette (Newspapers.com copy here)
“Miss Irene Byron has gone to Pittsburg* to visit relatives. She has been spending the past few weeks with Ohio relatives and friends.”
*NOTE: Braddock, PA, which is where Miss Byron was censused in 1900, is about 8.8 miles from Pittsburg.
A 1912 snippet shows us that Miss Byron apparently traveled quite a bit before she became integrally involved with the FWATL:
Thursday, August 1, 1912: The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette (Newspapers.com copy here)
“Miss Irene Byron left yesterday for Schenedctady, Wis. After a visit there she will take an extended trip of about a month through the great lakes.”
An interesting snippet in 1915 gives insight into Miss Byron’s character and the care she seemed to have for all of her patients.
December 24, 1915: The Fort Wayne News, page 10 (Newspapers.com copy here)
“TO REMEMBER PATIENTS
MISS IRENE BYRON TO PLAY SANTA CLAUS TOMORROW
Each Individual at Anti-Tuberculosis Camp Will Be Provided With a Gift.
Miss Irene Byron is going to play Santa Claus tomorrow. She is executive secretary of the Anti-Tubercuolosis League, but her official position will not interfere a whit with her transformation into “some Santa Claus”. She says so herself.
Each and every patient at the anti-tuberculosis camp will be remembered. Through the efforts of Miss Byron and the assistance of her friends, each individual at the camp will be provided with a gift. There are six children at the camp, and for these, games, dolls, candy, toys of various kinds and Christmas sweets and delicacies have been obtained.
There will also be a Christmas tree. The whole schedule of tomorrow’s festivities promises to be a complete surprise to the camp. Miss Byron sent out Christmas cards to each one the other day, thus leading the patients to think that their Christmas greetings from this source were over.”
To be sure, her 1916 leave of absence was not overlooked by the local paper, and it is herein that we get an idea of why she went to California for her R&R.
January 15, 1916: The Fort Wayne News, page 10 (Newspapers.com copy here)
“Miss Byron Leaves
Miss Irene Byron, executive secretary to the anti-Tubercuolosis league and the one who has been primarily responsible for the great strides that the movement has taken here in the last two years and a half, left on Monday for southern California, where she will spend the next three months taking a rest, long-earned and truly deserved. That Miss Byron is in an attitude to capitalize all that the southern clime has in the way of recuperative value is evident from her statement, “I am going where people live like God intended them to live — to the land where the sky is blue and the sun shines and the flowers bloom.”
Miss Byron was again re-elected executive secretary of the league and at the present time is giving up her duties only as visiting nurse. She intends to return in three months and again resume her work here.
Miss Byron came here as head of the league on Aug. 1, 1913, and since that time has worked with telling results for the scucess of the fight against consumption. Through her efforts the hospital camp at Fort Recovery for the treatment of curable cases of tuberculosis was established. It was a long, hard struggle, but that the victory was worth the fight is already evident. The hospital is located at the new county farm, north of the city; and though established only since last May, has already given satisfactory results. At present there are eighteen patients at the camp, all responding nicely to the fresh air treatment and to the conditions of living laid down at the hospital. One patient has been discharged as well.
In addition to taking care of the patients at Fort Recovery, Miss Byron, as visiting nurse, has had charge of scores of tubercular patients in their homes throughout the city. During the winter there were 400 patients to look after, including both those in the hospitals and those who had to be visited in their homes. Through the efforts of Miss Byron an anti-tuberculosis society was recently organized at Marion, Ind.
Through her educational campaign Miss Byron has done untold good since her advent to this city in the war on tuberculosis, teaching the public the vital import of the systematic crushing of the disease and training the patients in the nature of and the prevention of its spread. In her work the whole county has benefited, but the greatest fruits of her efforts remain yet to be gathered.”
If the media didn’t miss Miss Byron’s absence due to R&R, you can bet they didn’t miss the chance to cover her departure for Army training after she signed on as a nurse.
September 29, 1917: Fort Wayne Weekly Sentinel, page 2. (Newspapers.com link here)
“FOUR NURSES GO TO TEXAS
Expect early call for Service in France from There
MISS IRENE BYRON IS IN THE LIST
Young Ladies Go to Camp McArthur — Others Expect Call at Any Time
Four well-known young women left at noon Saturday for Camp McArthur, Waco, Texas, preparatory to departing for France, where they will serve as nurses with the American forces on the western front. One of the young women, who has espoused the cause of the country, is a graduate of Hope hospital, and the other three are graduate nurses of Lutheran hospital. They are Miss Irene Byron, of the Anti-Tuberculosis League; …
Miss Irene Byron is secretary of the Fort Wayne Anti-Tuberculosis League. She has been regarded as a hard and faithful worker in the prevention of tuberculosis and she was the foremost in the establishment of an open air school.”
Death
One thing isn’t a matter of debate — that Miss Byron was loved deeply by the residents of Allen County, Indiana. In the years she had served them, the young nurse had made an indelible impression on the public who depended on her efforts to treat, heal and tend the ill and dying who found themselves in the dark grip of tuberculosis. She was so mourned by the citizens of Fort Wayne that a great number of them attempted to persuade the authorities at Camp McArthur to send her remains to Fort Wayne before her burial in California, so that the city could properly honor their courageous nurse. While this was not to be, a movement soon rose among those in Allen County to name the tuberculosis sanatorium, slated to be built just north of Miss Byron’s Fort Recovery, after the deceased nurse.
Miss Byron was interred in Fullerton, California near her sister and father. Her FindaGrave memorial is available here.
March 29, 1918: The Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, page 18 (Newspapers.com link here)
“FORT WAYNE’S FIRST WAR NURSE IS DEAD
Miss Irene Byron Succumbs to Illness in Hospital at Camp McArthur
The sad news was received here yesterday that Miss Irene Byron, army nurse, and the first Fort Wayne woman to give her life in the great war, has succumbed to illness, dying after a struggle of several days at the military base hospital at Camp McArthur, Waco, Texas. Miss Byron was a graduate of the Hope hospital training school for nurses and had steadily risen in her profession, being accounted one of the most efficient of all those who answered the call of their country for field service when hostilities broke out with Germany. In responding to that call, Miss Byron relinquished her duties as executive secretary of the Fort Wayne Anti-Tuberculosis league. Her services as an army nurse were accepted and she left Fort Wayne on September 29 for Camp McArthur. Stationed there on active duty in the military base hospital, she was taken ill several weeks ago, and her condition becoming gradually worse, she submitted to an operation. All hope of her recovery was practically abandoned two days ago, and the end came Friday morning at 2 o’clock.
Her death occasioned deep sorrow and regret in this city, where she had gained the friendship of a wide circle, especially in professional circles, for her work in the anti-tuberculosis league stood out among all her other achievements. In the Red Cross, which she loved, her loss brought grief to many.
From word received yesterday from the hospital, it was understood that the body of Miss Byron would not be brought back to Fort Wayne, but would be shipped direct to California, where the only relatives of the dead nurse reside. Learning this, telegrams were sent by the nurses and friends of Fort Wayne, asking that the plan be reconsidered and that this city would be given an opportunity to pay tribute to its heroic nurse through the return of the body to Fort Wayne. It could not be learned last night what decision had been reached by the authorities at the Camp McArthur hospital.”
March 30, 1918: The Fort Wayne Sentinel, page 9. (Newspapers.com link here) This article is too long to publish in its entirety, so I will provide the highlights that best demonstrate the feelings of the residents of Allen County toward the nurse who served them.
“AS TRIBUTE TO MEMORY OF MISS BYRON
The plan to pay tribute to the memory of Miss Irene Byron by naming the new county tuberculosis hospital for her and by making the corner stone laying ceremony a memorial service, is meeting with cordial support and sympathy among men and women who knew of the sacrifices this noble woman made in her work as executive secretary of the Fort Wayne Anti-Tuberculosis league. Miss Byron died in army service and Fort Wayne is denied the opportunity of paying a tribute over her body for the obsequies and interment are to be in California.
It was suggested last night at the News that it would be fitting to give concrete form to the gratitude of Fort Wayne and Allen county to Miss Byron by naming the county hospital, in the creation of which she was largely instrumental. As executive secretary of the Anti-Tuberculosis league she labored night and day for the establishment of a hospital that would be properly equipped and ample in size to treat the curable cases of tuberculosis…” [**This part of the article is incomplete with out-of-order lines of text. I have reassembled it into logical order as best I can, but part of it remains unintelligible and has been omitted for the sake of clarity] “…institution Miss Byron lavished a devotion that undermined her own health. When the call to arms sounded throughout the nation she was one of the first to offer her services as a nurse of splendid skill….Public spirited men generally today are voicing their approval of the plan for a community recognition of Miss Byron’s work. Among some of the endorsements are the following:
Judge Carl Yaple — “Naming the tuberculosis hospital after Irene Byron would be a well deserved tribute. If ever a woman earned something of that nature Miss Byron did.”
Commissioner W. C. Schwier — “By all means call it the Irene Byron hospital. She was the chief promoter of the hospital and certainly deserved some such recognition. The county commisioners are more than willing to have the name on the cornerstone a recognition of her worth.”
Sheriff G. W. Gillie — “By all means name the hospital after Miss Byron. If my support will give the plan any help, I certainly will give it.”
L. A. Centlivre, of county council — “I am heartily in favor of the idea. Miss Byron deserved it if anyone ever did.”
D. N. Foster — “I am heartily in favor of it. If it is possible I should like to see the county commissioners go still further and as a lasting memorial to Miss Byron erect a bronze figure of her on the hospital grounds. She was a wonderful woman and Allen county owes her much for the progress made by the hospital.”…
[no less than 8 more endorsements of public support for naming the hospital after Miss Byron, each of which is flush with praise for the young nurse, follow in the article, the full version of which can be found here].
April 3, 1918: The Fort Wayne Sentinel, page 2 (Newspapers.com link here)
“Memorial to Miss Byron Favored
The Fortnightly club at its meeting held this week went on record as favoring the naming of the new county anti-tuberculosis farm the Irene Byron hospital, in memory of Miss Irene Byron, who gave her life in the service of her country. It was Miss Byron who fought so valiantly this dread disease for the cause of humanity and it was through her efforts that the farm which has proved so beneficial to many was established.”
April 6, 1918: The Fort Wayne Sentinel, page 2 (Newspapers.com link here)
“Resolutions Adopted by Council on Defense on Death of Irene Byron
The following resolutions on the death of Miss Irene Byron have been adopted by the Allen County Council of Defense:
Resolved, That in the death of the army nurse, Irene Byron, we, the members of the council of defense, believe we are expressing the unified, sincere sense of the people of Allen county in deploring her loss and extolling her virtues. She was a young woman of rare beauty of person, mind and character–whose heart was moved to irresistable action in relief whenever she heard of suffering and distress. She was happiest when serving and solving the troubles of sickness wherever found. She ministered with a consecrated patritioism and in her death the sick and wounded soldier has lost a devoted, able and sympathetic nurse. She loved life for its opportunities to serve and struggled hard to live — but in vain. Her mortal remains have been laid away, but the memories of her loving ministrations in many specific instances, especially before leaving for camp, among sick children, and of her indomitable courage, perseverence and executive capacity in the large constructive labors of her office, will never die. To that end that there may be a perpetual tribute to her memory, this council joins most heartily in approval of the movement to give the new anti-tuberculosis hospital which the county is building at Fort Recovery, eight miles northwest of this city, the name of Irene Byron — making it known to all future generations as the Irene Byron Hospital.
ALLEN COUNTY COUNCIL OF DEFENSE
W. H. SCHEIMAN, Chairman.”
The Irene Byron Sanatorium and Irene Byron Hospital
Popular sentiment stoked by the recent passing of the young nurse did indeed prevail, and on July 7, 1918, the Irene Byron Sanatorium was dedicated in her honor in a formal ceremony [Newspapers.com links here and here]. The dedication garnered an audience of 3,000, who enjoyed the patriotic banners that decorated the existing buildings, several speeches by notable locals, a musical repertoire featuring an octet, and the unveiling of the cornerstone, dedicated to Miss Byron.
A little over a year later in 1919, the Irene Byron Sanatorium (also known interchangeably as the Irene Byron Tuberculosis Hospital) was completed and opened. [Newspapers.com links here and here]. (Please stay tuned for an in-depth look at the surviving photographs and known history of the Sanatorium and Hospital!)
Perhaps her legacy is best described by Reverend Folsom, who delivered a moving eulogy at the sanatorium’s dedication: “But one day her house trembled, though her faith wavered not; her eye grew dim, though her vision failed not; her heart became silent, though her spirit ceased not; and in response to that call of God which always takes precedence of every call, she turned her face homeward, and her last moments were the sweetest of all. Without sorrow, without reluctance, without murmur or regret she bade farewell to all her earthly ties and went away home…And now, my friends, as we dedicate this home to the grand works of healing and restoration, and as we lay here the cornerstone of remembrance, may we not forget that it will be the symbol of that life which ever radiated the joys of the good works of faith, hope and charity. So may the righteous and unselfish soul of our beloved Miss Byron continue in everlasting remembrance, and may her name ever remain sacred to our hearts.”
Conclusion
While Miss Byron’s life was not particularly lengthy, it was inarguably one of great fervor, passion, and service to her fellow man and her country. It is the hope of this author that the razing of the remaining buildings that once bore her name, dedicated to her exceptional life by the grateful citizens of Allen County, Indiana, will not spell the end of her memory here.
May you rest well where the sky is blue, Miss Byron.
With deep respect from a fellow Army nurse,
The Wayward Wanderlust
References
Please note: all census and newspaper references are linked above at the location of citation.
Foreign and Forlorn 