Surgeons, Nurses, Soldiers & Hospital Research
As genealogists we are always looking for more information
on our ancestors and our veterans in order to ferret out our family history - our story!
So when we are introduced to one more repository, especially one that has an
online presence of information and photos, we, at a3Genealogy, want to
share. Have you perused the National Museum of Civil War Medicine
website?
The National Museum of Civil War Medicine “focuses on the many aspects of Civil War
medicine, including surgeons, nurses, patients, medicines, diseases, and
hospitals.” We know Union surgeons treated more than 400,000 wounded
men; about 245,000 of them for gunshot or artillery wounds, and performed at
least 40,000 operations. At the beginning of the war there were 113
surgeons in the US Army, but by the war’s end, there were more than twelve
thousand surgeons in the Union and 3200 in the Confederate.
1-2-3 Where To Begin Research
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| Confederate VA Soldier, Arm Amputated Noted |
In each of the content areas mentioned - Surgeons, Nurses and Women, Soldiers -
research begins with the National Archives of Records Administration, D. C. (NARA
- Archives I) collections. Be sure to check the online digitized resources of
ancestry.com, fold3.com and
other free and subscription databases.
Step 1 Veteran
Pension Files and NARA Records
For Surgeons
- Service and Pension Records for Union Army
- Personal Papers of Medical Officers and Physicians - Union, RG 94, Entry 561
- Compiled Service Records of Confederate General and Staff Officers and Non-regimental Enlisted Men
For Nurses and Women
At the beginning of the war there were approximately 600
women serving as nurses in 12 hospitals. By the end of the war, over 2000
nurses had served. The actual number is not known.
- Review the pension records for Union nurses.
- “Women of the War; Their Heroism and Self-Sacrifice” written by Frank Moore (1866).
- “Woman’s Work in the Civil War: A Record of Heroism, Patriotism and Patience, written by l. P. Brockett (1867)
- Service and Pension Records for Union
- Carded Medical Records for Union, RG 94
- Service Records of Confederate Soldiers
This name-based search may yield photos or other artifacts of an ancestor.
Step 3 The Bettie
Delaplaine Research Center Library
This Research Center Library associated with the National Museum
of Civil War Medicine is open to the public. Of genealogical interest is the possibility
of uncovering more information on the following “contents” as listed on the National Museum of Civil War Medicine website:
This Research Center has an impressive collection of books,
and artifacts.. These books may assist the researcher in understanding the
referenced wounds and disease mentioned in medical / pension files.
Noted African
American Contributors
It is well known (see video) that there were at least 12 African
American surgeons or assistant surgeons serving in the Union Army. Most were
educated overseas or in Canada. These
records are best found in service and pension records. Using the key word “colored”
four “Person Records” accompanied with photos popped up.
- Joel Morse, born in OH in 1823, his spouse Lucy Maria Sprague and children were named. Joel, a surgeon for the 117th Regiment of the USTC was murdered in Texas in 1866.
- Martha Canfield established the Colored Orphan Asylum in Memphis after the Civil War
- Nelly Chase, born in 1838 in New Hampshire, the wife of Capt. George W. Ernest, of the 13th USCT
Other Places to
Research
Be sure to also review U. S. Army Heritage and
Education Center, at Carlisle Barracks. The Civil
War Photographs Database is populated with just shy of 27,000
photographs.
U. S. National Library of Medicine offers Maimed
Men as an informative resource.
Kathleen Brandt
a3Genealogy.com
Accurate, accessible answers
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