North Carolina Nursing History

Digital Collections

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Images are a rich source for historical context, adding a depth to understanding the social forces of each era in North Carolina. Digitization of these visual resources makes them more accessible to researchers of nursing history. Following are several collections available through North Carolina libraries, archives and educational institutions.

Photograph Collections

  • North Carolina Nursing History Photostream - Collection of general images from throughout North Carolina's history of nursing. Topic-specific albums include: Emergency Polio Hospital, Military Nurses, and NC Nurse Pioneers.
  • North Carolina Nursing Pioneers - Appalachian State University Photo Collections - This exhibit highlights many significant nurses in North Carolina from the founding of the profession through today.  From tumble down cabins to chrome plated surgical suites, African American, Native American and White nurses have provided care under extreme circumnstances from the bombing of Pearl Harbor to the terrorist attacks of September 11th.  Nurses work often goes unnoticed, despite the education, knowledge and skills nurses use every day to save lives and improve the quality of life for all. This exhibit honors the work and lives of women and men who have spent their careers making the world a better place. Creating using Omeka.

University and Collegiate Collections

Public Library, Archive, and Historical Society Collections

State Archives of North Carolina

Digital North Carolina

Yearbooks

  • Cap and Pin Yearbook Collection - Cabarrus College of Health Sciences - Digitized copies of the Cap and Pin yearbook from 1948 to 1992. Available through DigitalNC.
  • Epitome Yearbook Collection - James Walker Memorial Hospital School of Nursing - The James Walker Hospital School of Nursing was once one of the largest schools of nursing in the state. Founded in 1901, the James Walker Nursing School preceded the nursing degree program at UNCW. Faculty and students from James Walker came to Wilmington College (now UNCW) when the James Walker Hospital closed in 1966 and New Hanover Hospital opened. Yearbooks span from 1939 to 1966. Digitized by UNC Wilmington's Randall Library and available through the Internet Archive.
  • The Lamp Yearbook Collection - Carolinas College of Health Sciences - Digitized copies of The Lamp yearbook from 1946 to 1967. Available through DigitalNC.
  • The Mercilite Yearbook Collection - Mercy School of Nursing - Digitized copies of fifty years of The Mercilite yearbook, from 1948 to 1998. Available through DigitalNC.
  • The White Echo, 1960 - Southeastern General Hospital School of Nursing - Digitized copy of the 1960 annual. Available through DigitalNC.

Video Collections

  • Nursing Amid Racism: Theresa Elder and Lillian Herron - Series about nursing in the 1960s, digitized in five parts by the Tuesday Morning Breakfast Forum Charlotte. Available on on YouTube.
  • The Resurfacing Debate: Historial Perspectives of Multiple Entry-Levels to RN Practice - April D. Matthias, MSN, RN, CNE, PhD Candidate at the College of Nursing at East Carolina University. Part of the Medical History Interest Group Lecture Series sponsored by Laupus Library History Collections & the Department of Bioethics & Interdisciplinary Studies at East Carolina University. Available on YouTube (56:13 minutes).
  • Meet the Author: Dr Evelyn Wicker, author of Voices - Book reading and discussion by Dr. Evelyn Wicker of her book, Voices: Lincoln Hospital School of Nursing, Durham North Carolina, 1903. When Lincoln Hospital was charted in 1901 it contained the right to establish a school for nurses, which became reality in 1903. Wicker narrates this history of the school from its days in the early twentieth century segregated South to its closing in 1977. The book contains stories of many of the women who graduated from Lincoln and became outstanding nurses in Durham, the nation and the world. Program made available through Durham County Public Library. Video available on YouTube (41:33 minutes).
  • Vernice Ferguson Interview, 2004 - Vernice Ferguson, RN, MA, FAAN, FRCN (1928-2012) was the Head of the Veterans Affairs and National Institutes of Health Nursing Departments. In this interview, she discusses the challenges, successes, obstacles, and triumphs of her career in nursing. Recorded at the "Summit of Sages," St. Paul, MN, October 10-12, 2004. Available from the Katherine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership and published on YouTube (18:42 minutes).

Presentations

Presentations and lectures by Dr. Phoebe A. Pollitt.