Namahyoke Sockum Curtis (1861 – November 25, 1935) was an American nurse. She recruited 32 African-American nurses to serve with the US Army in the Spanish American War. The nurses were supposed to be immune to diseases common in Cuba, specifically yellow fever.[1] Her husband was the superintendent of the Freedmen's Hospital.[2] After the 1900 Galveston hurricane, she volunteered her services as a nurse.[3] After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, Curtis served as a nurse on a commission from William Howard Taft.[3]
Biography
editBorn in 1861 to Acoma Pueblo Hamilton Sockum and Arena Jackson.[4] Educated at San Francisco schools, graduated from Snell Seminary (Oakland, California) 1888. On May 5 of the same year, married Dr. Austin Maurice Curtis, and moved to Chicago. Played a large role in fundraising for and creating Provident Hospital. In 1898, they moved to Washington, D.C. During the Spanish American War, she was hired to recruit nurses, specifically immune to typhoid fever. Curtis succeeded in recruiting 32 such nurses, of whom at least two would later die due to typhoid fever. From that, she earned a pension, and government commendation. During both the Galveston hurricane and subsequent flood, and the later San Francisco earthquake, Curtis would play a role in helping nurse the wounded. Namah was recognized for her service with a high commendation, a lifelong government pension, and burial in Arlington National Cemetery.[5][6][7]
References
edit- ^ Gessner, Ingrid (2015-03-26). "Heroines of Health: Examining the Other Side of the "Splendid Little War"". European Journal of American Studies (in French). 10 (1). doi:10.4000/ejas.10784. ISSN 1991-9336.
- ^ Lanning, Michael Lee (2004). The African-American Soldier: From Crispus Attucks to Colin Powell. Citadel Press. ISBN 978-0806526294.
- ^ a b Barbra Mann Wall; Arlene W. Keeling (2010). Nurses on the Front Line: When Disaster Strikes, 1878–2010. Springer Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0826105202.
- ^ Year: 1850; Census Place: Indian River Hundred, Sussex, Delaware; Roll: 55; Page: 178a
- ^ Burial Detail: Curtis, Namah (Section 21, Grave 15999-A-1) – ANC Explorer
- ^ Frank, Lisa Tendrich (2013). An Encyclopedia of American Women at War: From the Home Front to the Battlefields [2 volumes]. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1598844443.
- ^ "Galter Health Sciences Library & Learning Center | News Black History Month: Austin M. Curtis, MD". galter.northwestern.edu. Retrieved 2022-09-07.