MARY SEACOLE
INTERNATIONAL NURSE ENTREPRENEUR
A Woman of determination, discipline, character, courage and caring.
Mary Seacole was born in East St, Kingston, Jamaica, in 1805, the site is now the National Library of Jamaica. A woman of determination, discipline, character, courage and caring. Some of the attributes that gained for Mary Seacole, respect, recognition and honour from Queen Victoria, British Army, the press and people of Britain as one of the great heroes of the 19 th Century with 80,000 people attending the first concert in her honour over 4 days at Surrey Gardens Music Hall, South Bank in July 1857.
Mary’s mother was doctress, specialising in Creole medical art based on traditional African remedies. Mary watched and learned well with a yearning for medical knowledge. On many occasions she would accompany her mother as she tended British Soldiers and their wives who were based at UP Park Camp, Kingston, Jamaica at the time home of the British Army.
Caring, entrepreneurship and adventure was in her blood. In 1850, at 45 years old, Mary, travelled to a gold prospecting town in Panama to visit her brother and cared single-handedly with a cholera epidemic when the American doctor fled from the scene. In 1853, she returned to Jamaica to care for victims of a yellow fever epidemic and was invited to supervise nursing services at Up-Park Camp, in Kingston. Also In 1853 war broke out in the Crimea. She knew many of the soldiers who had been posted to the Crimea and felt that she had obligation to go and provide care.
Mary, arrived in England in October 1854 and repeatedly offered her services to those responsible for recruiting nurses to join Florence Nightingale who was based in Scutari. Although rejected on several occasions. It had been widely reported that the soldiers whom she knew so well, were living and dying in harsh conditions. Mary was determined to make her contribution.
In spite of such discrimination and prejudice, in 1855, she raised the funds to pay her passage to the Crimea and set up the British Hotel. This provided soldiers with accommodation, food, provisions and most importantly, nursing care on the frontline of the battlefield, the first woman to enter sebastopol. The next year, the war ended suddenly, leaving Mary and her partners was unsold stock and near ruin. The Times newspaper published several letters from well wishers and explained her plight to the British people.
The first Gala was held in her honour, between 27 and 30th July 1857 at the Royal Surrey Gardens, on the banks of the River Thames in London. Over 80,000 people attend. Mary was swindled by the owners and receive very little of the funds, however, she never lost her dignity and that year published her celebrated autobiography ” Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands”.
Mary Seacole died in London on the 14th May 1881, after a short illness and was buried in St Mary’s Catholic cemetery, Harrow Road, Kensal Green, London NW10. Mary Seacole had received ‘English, French, Russian and Turkish decorations’.
Since the foundation of the NHS in July 1948, the Caribbean Diaspora have continued to make their contribution to the health and well being of this nation, with similar individual attributes of determination, discipline, character, courage, caring and cultural understanding.
The Mary Seacole Memorial Association (MSMA) established, by Connie Mark MBE, BEM, Shirley Graham-Paul and Vie Lawrence (known as the three pioneers), have since 1981 commemorated Mary Seacole’s life and legacy with an annual wreath-laying memorial service, luncheon and lecture on the second Saturday of May.
In 2005 MSMA participated, in the widely-acclaimed Mary Seacole Bicentenary London celebrations organised by Guys’ & St Thomas NHS Trust in association with South Bank University and Florence Nightingale Museum and community partners. Earlier, this year MSMA recognised these three pioneers and Hammersmith Hospital hosted the wreath-laying luncheon.
During 2007, the Mary Seacole celebrations focussed on the 150th anniversary since the publication of “Wonderful Adventures of Mary Seacole in Many lands. Inspired by Gail Mathurin, High Commissioner of Jamaica, RAFFA, in association with Shirley Graham-Paul, Co-founder, MSMA organised a heritage tour to visit the Blundell Hall; home of Mary Seacole, UP Park Camp, Jamaican Military Museum and “Knowledge Sharing Symposium” on HIV/AIDS hosted by The Mayor of Spanish Town and attended by the Minister of Health. Gail Mathurin said “I wish to congratulate those individuals and organizations from London, Birmingham and Reading who have collaborated with their counterparts in Jamaica to make this inspiring endeavour a reality”.
