Mary Jane Seacole (1805–1881)

Mary Jane Seacole, also known as “Mother Seacole” (1805–1881), is widely regarded as one of the most celebrated free Black nurses of the nineteenth century. Although she played a crucial role as a healer in Kingston, Jamaica, and as an army nurse during the Crimean War, her significant contributions to modern nursing might have remained overlooked if not for her autobiography.

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“Unless I am allowed to tell the story of my life in my own way, I cannot tell it at all.”
-Mary Jane Seacole (1857)

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Though she is most notable for her work as a wartime nurse-heroine during the Crimean War, she also treated patients in many other areas of the world; Cuba, Haiti, Bahama and London, just to name a few. Mother Seacole offered basic treatments for common illnesses and provided free healthcare to impoverished migrants and local workers. She cared for everyone but only accepted payment from those who were able to afford it.

Black healers, nurses, and midwives were rendered invisible by white American writers who either failed to identify them as sources or referred to them in vague, anonymous terms. Despite the crucial role these Black practitioners played in caring for the sick across racial and social lines, little is known about them, including their names.

Mother Seacole practiced at the exact same time as the white nurse we have all been told is the Mother of Nursing, Florence Nightingale.

It is time for Black nurses’ stories to be told. At the Power of You, we will be celebrating Black Nurses past, present and future. Check out the blog monthly for out “Nursing Spotlight” with more inspiring stories.

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Reference:

Baptiste, D. L., Turner, S., Josiah, N., Arscott, J., Alvarez, C., Turkson-Ocran, R. A., Rodney, T., Commodore-Mensah, Y., Francis, L., Wilson, P. R., Starks, S., Alexander, K., Taylor, J. L., Ogungbe, O., Byiringiro, S., Fisher, M. C., Charlemagne-Badal, S. J., Marseille, B., Delva, S., … Hamilton, J. (2021). Hidden figures of nursing: The historical contributions of Black nurses and a narrative for those who are unnamed, undocumented and underrepresented. Journal of advanced nursing, 77(4), 1627–1632. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.14791