LibGuides: Women in Science and Medicine at the Rubenstein Library: Nursing

Searching the Catalog

These links are sample searches in the Duke Libraries catalog based on library subject headings related to the history of nursing and women's experiences as nurses. You can limit by location to "Rubenstein Library" to focus on historical sources.

Print Material

Examples of books (and other published sources) that you can find using the library catalog.

Susie King Taylor. Reminiscences of My Life in Camp with the 33d United States Colored Troops : Late 1st S.C. Volunteers. (1902)
Memoir of an African American nurse who treated patients during the Civil War. Includes information on her life before, during, and after the war.
Florence Nightingale. Notes on Nursing: What It Is, and What It Is Not. (1860)
Florence Nightingale's first book on the subject of nursing.and an important work in the history of nursing.
Watts Hospital School of Nursing. Procedure Book. 1936
Procedure book for nurses published by the Watts School of Nursing, the oldest nursing school in N.C., established in Durham in 1895.

Manuscript Collections

Selected manuscript collections from the Rubenstein Library with a focus on nursing and nurses. This is just sampling - there are many more relevant manuscript sources to explore. Try searching the catalog with suggested subject terms (links in left sidebar) or consult with our librarians.

Amy Morris Bradley Papers, 1806-1921
Amy Morris Bradley was a nurse and agent of the U.S. Sanitary Commission during the Civil War. Collection documents Bradley's family life and teaching in Maine as well as her duties as a nurse at several U.S. Sanitary Commission convalescent camps during the Civil War and her post-war work in Wilmington, N.C., where she founded free schools for white children in 1866 and 1872 under the auspices of the Soldiers' Memorial Society.
Mary Norton Papers, 1852-1895
Collection contains letters from Clara Barton, nurse and founder of the American Red Cross, to Mary Norton who was a close friend. Letters document the administration and operation of the Red Cross. Other items represent Barton's work during the Civil War including instructions for sending relief supplies and detailed observations which illustrate Barton's life in the trenches with the soldiers.
Ann Henshaw Gardiner Papers, 1753-1970
Ann Henshaw Gardiner was a historian, scientist, and teacher who founded nursing education at the Duke University Hospital in 1930. Collection contains information on the early years of the Duke University School of Nursing and also documents Gardiner's service as a nurse in France during World War I.
Army Nurse's Photograph Albums, 1917-1919
The collection comprises two photograph albums holding black-and-white images that document the lives of United States Army nurses at Camp Jackson, near Columbia, S.C., at the end of and following World War I. Most of the photos show camp scenes, nurses, soldiers, and patients, including African American soldiers and patients.
Nina Cornelia Mitchell Papers, 1854-1958
Collection, mainly family correspondence, relating to Nina Cornelia Mitchell's relief work in Europe during and after World War I. Topics include U. S. Army camps, British Expeditionary Forces hospitals and nurses in France, refugees in Italy, various organizations for wounded soldiers and the role women played in relief work.
William J. and Leslie Sands Williams Papers, 1930s-1990s
Irene Leslie Sands Williams, a nurse, and her husband, Dr. William Sands, were Southern Baptist medical missionaries stationed at Ogbomosho Baptist Hospital, Nigeria from 1944 through 1984 where Leslie led the student nursing program. Collection contains diaries kept by Leslie Sands as well as correspondence and other materials related to nursing education.

Selected manuscript collections from Duke's Medical Center Archives. The Medical Center Archives is separate from the Rubenstein Library and collects the official records of DUMC and DUHS departments and divisions. Visit their website to locate additional materials and find details on accessing to their collections.

School of Nursing Records, 1930-2017
Contains the administrative records of the Duke University School of Nursing, School of Nursing Alumni Association, and other nursing student associations Types of materials include correspondence, minutes, newsletters, budgets, evaluations, reports, class records, proceedings, publications, awards, photographs, ephemera, scrapbooks, printed materials, and clippings.
Donna Allen Harris Interview, 2008
Donna Allen Harris was the first African-American to graduate from the Duke University School of Nursing. Major subjects in this interview include Harris's experiences integrating the school system in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, and her time at the Duke University School of Nursing.
Kathryn Ann Decker Nursing Memorabilia, 1941-1947
Kathryn Ann Decker graduated from the Duke University School of Nursing in 1943 and was a member of the Duke Student Reserve for the American Red Cross. This collection contains news clippings, newsletters, Duke bulletins, and an alumni register collected by Kathryn Ann Decker during her time as a student, as well as after her graduation. A major subject of the materials is Duke student and alumni service in the United States Armed Forces.
Watts School of Nursing Records, 1975-2013
Watts School of Nursing, formerly Watts Hospital Training School for Nurses, is North Carolina's oldest nursing school, established by George W. Watts in 1895. Types of materials include nursing student composites from 1975 to 2013, photographs of Watts Hospital, and a certificate.

Digitized Content

Pictures of Nursing
An online exhibit from the National Library featuring over 500 digitized images showing how nurses and the nursing profession were portrayed during the 20th century.
The Florence Nightingale Digitization Project
A collaborative effort to create a collection of digitized correspondence written by Florence Nightingale. The collection currently contains over 2,300 scanned letters which are accessible to the public through this portal hosted by Boston University.
Digital Collections from the Barbara Bates Center for the Study of the History of Nursing
This site provides access to a number of digital collections from the University of Pennsylvania related to nursing history. Includes diaries, photographs, and several collections from the 1918 influenza pandemic.
North Carolina Nursing History
A project from Appalachian State University that links to nursing publications, photographs, and, most notably, oral histories with North Carolina nurses.