Page 11 - Hall of Hero Catalog Proof
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MARY JANE SEACOLE
British, (1805-1881)
Heroine of the Crimean War
“....and the grateful words and smile which rewarded me for binding up a wound or giving a cooling drink was a pleasure worth risking life for at any time.”
Mary Seacole was a Jamaican nurse who became well-known for her nursing efforts during the Crimean War. At the start of this war in 1853, she went to London to
offer her services. Her application, however, to join Florence Nightingale’s nursing team was refused. Instead of giving up, Mary sailed to Crimea—a land mass on the northern coast of the Black Sea, south of Ukraine—at her own expense. She took mules laden with food, wine, and medicines across country to the battle eld front lines. She obtained special passes, which allowed her to look after the wounded and dying on both sides.
A portrait of Seacole, c. 1869, by Albert Charles Challen.
