HJ0020 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HJ0020 LRB098 09279 MST 39419 r

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Mary Ann Bickerdyke also known as Mother Bickerdyke was born July 19, 1817, in Knox County, Ohio; she attended Oberlin College and later received training as a nurse in a Cincinnati hospital where she worked for several years; and

WHEREAS, In 1847, she married Robert Bickerdyke and 9 years later, with their 2 small sons, the couple moved to Galesburg, Illinois; Robert Bickerdyke died shortly afterward; and

WHEREAS, During the Civil War, Mother Bickerdyke volunteered her considerable medical skills to help the hundreds of men who were dying, not from battle, but from typhoid, dysentery, and other diseases; she helped establish the hospital in Cairo, Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Throughout the war she continued to perform valuable service for the Union Army; traveling with the Army of Tennessee, she was present at 19 battles, including Shiloh and Sherman's March to the Sea; during this time, she worked not only as a nurse, but she also set up dietary kitchens and established laundry services, all the while she continued her fight to improve Army life for the enlisted men; and

WHEREAS, Mother Bickerdyke once argued with General William T. Sherman, refusing to leave the battlefield until he turned to another officer and exclaimed "She outranks me. I can't do a thing in the world.", and by the end of the war she had helped provide 300 hospitals for the wounded and sick; and

WHEREAS, Mother Bickerdyke was so greatly admired by General William Sherman, that he asked her to ride beside him as soldiers marched through Washington, D.C. after the war had ended; and

WHEREAS, After the war, she worked for the Salvation Army in San Francisco; she became an attorney dedicated to helping Civil War veterans with legal issues; she died peacefully on November 8, 1901; and

WHEREAS, A statue of her was erected in Galesburg and a hospital boat and a liberty ship, the SS Mary Bickerdyke, were named in her honor; and

WHEREAS, Mother Mary Ann Bickerdyke represents the sacrifices and contributions made by military and civilian nurses throughout the United States; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that the Wednesday in May during Illinois Nurses week be designated as Mother Mary Ann Bickerdyke Day to honor the contributions of Mother Bickerdyke, military nurses, and all nurses in the State of Illinois; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge the citizens of this State to take cognizance of this event and to participate fittingly in its observance; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the Illinois Nurses Association as an expression of our esteem and respect.