A mother's work Mary Bickerdyke, Civil War-era nurse / Megan VanGorder.
| Author/creator | VanGorder, Megan |
| Format | Electronic |
| Publication Info | Chapel Hill : The University of North Carolina Press, 2026. |
| Description | pages cm |
| Supplemental Content | Full text available from JSTOR University of North Carolina Press Publisher Collection (2026) |
| Subjects |
| Contents | Mother, before the war -- Becoming mother: the Civil War and the development of Bickerdyke's public motherhood (1861-1863) -- She ranks me: asserting motherhood in the Civil War (1863-1865) -- Mother-guardian: negotiating institutional care after the Civil War -- Mother-nurse: care-switching between private and public motherhood -- Special acts of justice: Mary Bickerdyke and pension claims -- The passing of the mother: Mary Bickerdyke and constructed remembrance -- What did mother mean? |
| Abstract | "Mary Anne Bickerdyke led a remarkable life. A widowed mother from Illinois, she became an influential traveling nurse and Sanitary Commission agent during the American Civil War. She followed the Union Army through four years and nineteen battles, established hundreds of hospitals, assisted surgeons with amputations, treated fevers, and fed the soldiers in her care. Known affectionately as 'Mother' to thousands of soldiers, Bickerdyke's work bridged the private world of home caregiving and the public demands of wartime and institutional medicine. Drawing on a rich archive of personal letters, military records, and newspapers, Megan VanGorder explores how Bickerdyke used her maternal identity to challenge norms, advocate for soldiers, and pioneer compassionate care practices before, during, and after the Civil War. A Mother's Work uses key episodes from Bickerdyke's life to reveal broader truths about motherhood, medicine, and women's roles in the nineteenth century, and offers an intimate and historically grounded portrait of one woman's evolving identity and the use of the moniker that made her famous. In reassessing her work and legacy, this book also serves as a new perspective on how white working-class women contributed to the transitional period of the Civil War era to reshape public health, social care, and national memory"-- Provided by publisher. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Access restriction | Available only to authorized users. |
| Technical details | Mode of access: World Wide Web |
| Genre/form | Electronic books. |
| LCCN | 2025045118 |
| ISBN | 9781469692319 cloth |
| ISBN | 9781469692326 paperback |
| ISBN | epub |
| ISBN |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic Resources | Access Content Online | ✔ Available |