Mary Eliza Mahoney, daughter of Charles and Mary Jane Sterwart Mahoney, was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1945. Her exact birthday is unknown, but historians believe it to be April 16. Mary grew up in Boston with her parents, one sister, and one brother.
Mary expressed an interest in nursing from the time she was a teenager. Because of this interest, she decided to work at the New England Hospital for Women and Children in Roxbury, Massachusetts. She worked as a cook, janitor, washerwoman, and an unofficial nurse's aid for the next fifteen years of her life. In March 1878, at the age of thirty-three, she was admitted to the nursing program at the New England Hospital for Women and Children. The course was sixteen months long and included hours of lectures and hands-on patient care. Of the forty-two students admitted to the program, only four made it to graduation. Mary Mahoney was one of those four, receiving her nursing certification on August 1,1879, making her the first African-American in history to earn a professional nursing license.
While she did many important things throughout her career, Mary is most noted for her efforts to improve the status of African-American nurses and promote the furthering of intercultural relations. Mary was the cofounder of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses in 1908. For over forty years, Mary served as a skilled caring practitioner and a model citizen. She helped build a foundation for the future of nursing and opened the doors of opportunity for African-American nurses. Despite all this, Mary did not receive any award or special recognition while she was still alive.
After a three year battle with breast cancer, Mary died on January 4, 1926, at the age of eighty. She was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in Everett Massachusetts. Since her death, many awards have been given to Mary. The Mary Mahoney Award was established in 1936 by the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses. This award is presented to a black nurse who has shown outstanding contributions in the area of intergroup relations and efforts toward improving the status of African-American nurses.
For her accomplishments, many nurses wanted to show their appreciation by giving something back to Mary Mahoney. A national African-American sorority, Chi Eta Phi, restored Mary's gravesite in 1973, erecting a monument bearing a sculpture of her head. Many nurses traveled to her gravesite for an honorary ceremony and remembrance of Mary Mahoney.
Mary Mahoney has received many honors since her death. A center in Oklahoma was established in her name. This center provides health care services to specific isolated communities. Another great honor for Mary was her induction into the American Nurses Association's Hall of Fame in 1976, fifty years after her death.
Mary Mahoney will always be remembered and play an important part of history. She is revered in the nursing profession not just for being the first African-American nurse to graduate, but for helping to establish high standards of practice and character for nurses in years to come.
Mary expressed an interest in nursing from the time she was a teenager. Because of this interest, she decided to work at the New England Hospital for Women and Children in Roxbury, Massachusetts. She worked as a cook, janitor, washerwoman, and an unofficial nurse's aid for the next fifteen years of her life. In March 1878, at the age of thirty-three, she was admitted to the nursing program at the New England Hospital for Women and Children. The course was sixteen months long and included hours of lectures and hands-on patient care. Of the forty-two students admitted to the program, only four made it to graduation. Mary Mahoney was one of those four, receiving her nursing certification on August 1,1879, making her the first African-American in history to earn a professional nursing license.
While she did many important things throughout her career, Mary is most noted for her efforts to improve the status of African-American nurses and promote the furthering of intercultural relations. Mary was the cofounder of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses in 1908. For over forty years, Mary served as a skilled caring practitioner and a model citizen. She helped build a foundation for the future of nursing and opened the doors of opportunity for African-American nurses. Despite all this, Mary did not receive any award or special recognition while she was still alive.
After a three year battle with breast cancer, Mary died on January 4, 1926, at the age of eighty. She was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in Everett Massachusetts. Since her death, many awards have been given to Mary. The Mary Mahoney Award was established in 1936 by the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses. This award is presented to a black nurse who has shown outstanding contributions in the area of intergroup relations and efforts toward improving the status of African-American nurses.
For her accomplishments, many nurses wanted to show their appreciation by giving something back to Mary Mahoney. A national African-American sorority, Chi Eta Phi, restored Mary's gravesite in 1973, erecting a monument bearing a sculpture of her head. Many nurses traveled to her gravesite for an honorary ceremony and remembrance of Mary Mahoney.
Mary Mahoney has received many honors since her death. A center in Oklahoma was established in her name. This center provides health care services to specific isolated communities. Another great honor for Mary was her induction into the American Nurses Association's Hall of Fame in 1976, fifty years after her death.
Mary Mahoney will always be remembered and play an important part of history. She is revered in the nursing profession not just for being the first African-American nurse to graduate, but for helping to establish high standards of practice and character for nurses in years to come.
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