Eliza Cook (physician)

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Eliza Cook
Photo of Dr. Eliza Cook.jpg
Born(1856-02-05)February 5, 1856
Salt Lake City, Utah
DiedOctober 2, 1947(1947-10-02) (aged 91)
Nevada
NationalityAmerican
EducationCooper Medical College
OccupationPhysician, Activist for women's suffrage
Known forNevada's first licensed woman doctor

Dr. Eliza Cook (February 5, 1856 – October 2, 1947) was an American physician and Nevada's first state-licensed woman doctor.[1] She also worked as a pharmacist and wrote articles about health issues for magazines and medical journals.

Biography[]

Cook was born on February 5, 1856, in Salt Lake City, Utah to John and Margaretta Gratrix Cook. Her mother, Margaretta, left her father due to his stinginess and his belief in polygamy. In 1870, Eliza, her mother, and Eliza’s sister Rebecca moved to Sheridan, Nevada. Without a school to attend, Eliza was educated by her mother and whatever books she could find. One book, the title of which is unknown, was about home remedies and got her interested in medicine.[1]

A doctor, H. W. Smith, hired Cook to help nurse his wife when she had puerperal fever. Cook’s skills impressed him so much that he hired her as his assistant. This gave her access to his medical library, where she read everything she could read.[1]

Cook received her Medical Degree in 1884 from Cooper Medical College (Stanford University Medical Department) in San Francisco. In 1891 she attended the Women's Medical College of Philadelphia and the following summer tool a post graduate course at the Medical College in New York City.[2] She was granted her Nevada medical license in April 1899, the first year that they were issued by the state.

As a doctor, she performed surgeries, set broken limbs, and delivered many babies. She also worked as a pharmacist and wrote articles about health issues for magazines and medical journals.[3]

Cook was a member of the American Woman Suffrage Association and the Women's Christian Temperance Union.[4] In October of 1895, she was a founding member of the Nevada Women’s Equal Suffrage League and elected the inaugural vice president of the organization.[5] After her term was over, she became president of the Douglas County Equal Suffrage League, and continued to serve both organizations by circulating petitions, writing to legislators, and publishing letters in the newspapers. She served as Vice President of the Nevada Equal Suffrage Association.[6]

Never married, she resided in Mottsville, Carson Valley, and Douglas County. Cook died on October 2, 1947.[4] Cook is buried Mottsville Cemetery in Douglas, Nevada.[7]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c Cleere, Jan (2015). Nevada's Remarkable Women: Daughters, Wives, Sisters, and Mothers Who Shaped History. TwoDot. pp. 84–92. ISBN 9781493015849.
  2. ^ Douglas, Mrs. Thurlow (March 21, 1941). "Nevada's First Woman Physician was Dr. Cook". The Record Courier, Gardnerville, Nevada. Retrieved March 29, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ Enss, Chris (2006). The Doctor Wore Petticoats: Women Physicians of the Old West. TwoDot. pp. xiii. ISBN 9780762751877.
  4. ^ a b Jones, Cherry; Janet E. White. "Dr. Eliza Cook". Nevada Women's History Project. University of Nevada, Reno.
  5. ^ "Nevada Women's History Project". Retrieved March 29, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. ^ Watson, Anita Ernst; Nevada Humanities Committee (June 2000). Into their own: Nevada women emerging into public life. University of Nevada Press. pp. 151–. ISBN 978-1-890591-06-9. OCLC 44879162.
  7. ^ "Dr. Eliza Cook". Retrieved March 29, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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