Forsyth County

County History:

Forsyth

Region:

Piedmont

Quick Facts

People and Biographies

Notable individuals from nursing history.

Zeta H. Beeson (1911-1970): Nurse anesthetist who was Captain in the Army Nurse Corps during World War II and the Korean War.
Margaret Fuller (1910s): First public health nurse in Forsyth County. Some newspaper clippings about her life and career can be found in the Resources section below.
Ruth Crew Grimes (1892-1921): Red Cross and Spanish Flu nurse in Winston-Salem.
Edna Heinzerling (1888-1977): Director of NC Baptist Hospital School of Nursing and historian of nursing history.
Pernelle Shaw (1920- ): African American nurse anesthetist. (An article about Shaw's experiences becoming a nurse, written by Mark Wineka, was published in the Salisbury Post on February 25, 2015.)
Doxie Whitfield (1942- ): Nursing educator and humanitarian who served Forsyth County. She was honored in 2008 for her exemplary service and accomplishments in the field.

Special Topics

Special topics and events from the county's nursing history.

Nursing in the Moravian Settlements
- Moore, M.L. (1969, August). Bright spot in teh 18th century. American Journal of Nursing, 69(8), pp.1705-1709.
- State's first organized nursing started in 1772 by the Moravians of Wachovia. (1948, November 21). Durham Morning Herald. Durham, North Carolina.
- Wyche, M.L. (1938). The history of nursing in North Carolina. University of North Carolina Press: Chapel Hill, NC.

Resources

Additional resources for further research.

Health Care Institutions

Articles and Publications

Braddy, M. (1964, March 5). Nurses recall school days. Twin City Sentinel. Article about the City Memorial Hospital School of Nursing.
Grimes, W. T. (1972). The History of Kate Bitting Reynolds Memorial Hospital. Journal of the National Medical Association, 64(4), pp.376-381.
Ouellete, S. & Owens, S. ed. (2002). A History of the Nurse Anesthesia Program: Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. University of North Carolina at Greensboro Press; Greensboro, NC.
Prichard, R. W. (1976). Winston-Salem's Black Hospitals Prior to 1930. Journal of the National Medical Association, 68(3), pp.246-249.
Spaulding, M. (1948, February). The history of the bedside nursing program in Winston-Salem, Forsyth County. The Health Bulletin, p.13.

Archives

Digital Forsyth photographs related to nursing
Edna Heinzerling received honorary recognition from NCSNA [photograph] from Tar Heel Nurse (1965, November).
North Carolina Baptist Hospital School of Nursing Capping Ceremony [photograph] (n.d.). Available through Digital Forsyth.
Nursing Program at Winston-Salem State on Digital Forsyth. Archival article about the history of Winston-Salem State's nursing programs.
Slater Hospital Board of Managers Reports, 1899-1919 are available in the North Carolina State Archives.
Winston-Salem's Early Hospitals, 1887-1938. Archival artical on Digital Forsyth, includes photographs.

Newspaper Clippings

1910, Dec 08. Medical Dispensary Is To Be Opened Here By Middle Of The Month: Room is being fitted up on the third floor of the Municipal Building for this purpose - First visiting nurse [Margaret Fuller] will be here soon. The Twin-City Daily Sentinel, p.1. Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
1915, Mar 02. Died in Georgia - Miss Margaret Fuller...The Western Sentinel, p.1. Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
1919, Sep 25. Mother's Club Has Been Formed At Mt. Tabor. The Twin-City Daily Sentinel, p.5. Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
1920, Sep 03. First Clinic in New Quarters Monday, Health Department Ready to Receive Tubercular Patients At That Time. The Twin-City Daily Sentinel, p.8. Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
1964, May 16. Tenth Capping [photograph]. The Pittsburgh Courier, p.6. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Image of Mrs. Gwendolyn Andrews, dean of the school of nursing at Winston-Salem State College, placing a cap on student Sandra Thomas.
1965, Oct 30. 1st Male Student Enters N.C. School of Nursing. The Pittsburgh Courier, p.9. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
1967, Oct 07. BU Grad [Shirley Ann Carson] Wins Her Master's. The Pittsburgh Courier, p.14. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Videos

Present Absence | Visibly Speaking: NC's Inclusive Public Art Project | PBS North Carolina

Attachment	Size
Forsyth County Early Public Health Nursing Timeline	35.86 KB
Community Nursing Service Report [copy] of Forsyth County, 1955	45.47 KB

Compiled by:

Phoebe Pollitt

North Carolina Nursing History