Nursing and Nurses

Formal medically trained nurses and midwives emerged first in the 1860s and coincidentally, the concept of a district nurse looking after residents in a designated geographic area was established at the same time. The specific experience in Steeple Morden is described below. There was a fundamental change with the structure and provision of medical care with the introduction of the Welfare State in 1948.

Guilden and Steeple Morden Nursing Association

The Association was formed in 1903 to employ a nurse to offer care to the residents of the two parishes. How it came into being is not known, although the list of subscribers includes the great and the good. The income from subscriptions alone was not enough to cover the running costs the Association, and the Committee ran fund raising events. It was also necessary to charge fees to those who used the services of the Nurse. Over the first year she dealt with 79 cases requiring 642 visits, which activity generated fees of £4 17s 6d. This total equates, in round figures to either 15 pence per case or 2 pence per visit.

Nurse Walrath was appointed 11 June 1903 and seems to have come from a distance as her travel costs to take up her new job were 10s 4d. Nothing is known about her. She was paid £50 a year.

The first annual report of the Association, reproduced below, sets out the use made of the services of the Nurse in some detail.  Interestingly, there was far greater demand in Guilden than Steeple. One can only ponder the reason(s) for this variation. Guilden with a population of 646 had 58 cases (9% of population) , necessitating 510 visits and Steeple with 713 residents generated 21 cases (3% of population) requiring 132 visits. The finances are also fully reported, with a “healthy” balance of £18 3s 11p in hand at the year end. In reality, there would have been no balance without the proceeds from Mrs Sandeman’s two concerts!

The report for the second year 1904-5 was published in the Royston Crow, although part was cut off in the printing. It was recorded that Nurse Pulley had replaced Nurse Walrath. There were only 33 weeks, when a nurse was employed and 4 of those weeks were holiday for Nurse Walrath. The outcome was that only 20 cases had been helped, requiring 291 visits and fees had amounted to only £2. Again Guilden was a greater user of the Nurse.

The Committee decided that with the financial structure as it was the Association could not continue and it was duly wound up. The balance in hand, amount not stated, was resolved to be held in the hope that the Association might be revived at some point in the future.

Mordens, Litlington and District Nursing Association

The first mention of this new association, covering a rather wider geographic area, is found in a newspaper report in 1921. There is mention of holding the balance of the Mordens Association, which implies it was seen as successor to the earlier Association, which still claimed ownership of the previous funds.

Business was now brisker. For thee Morden district 74 cases and 1,737 visits were reported and in the Litlington district also had 74 cases needing 1725 cases, excluding midwifery and maternity cases. The report implies there were two nurses, both named Walker or a single nurse of that name who made 9.5 visits per day every day of the year, which would have been an impossible workload?

A fete held in 1935 is reported as being in support of the Mordens, Litlington and Abington Pigotts Nursing Association and Nurse Dowe ( shortly to become Nurse Moss) held baby Gerald Dale as she presented a bouquet of roses to Mrs Moyniham, who opened the fete. Her husband had taken over the Ashwell Doctor’s Practice in 1933 and she was also a qualified doctor and worked in the practice, although in the report she is simply “Mrs”. The newspaper report is lengthy and details a clearly extensive event. In passing the number of members or subscribers were given as Guilden 64, Steeple 111, Odsey 6, Litlington 41 and Abington 9.

A report for year ending in 1937 also appeared in the press and over 8,000 visits had been made over the twelve months. Funds raised were Guilden £24 11s 4d, Steeple £45 7s 3d, Odsey £4 2s 6d, Litlington £17 14s 8d and Abington £4 13s 6d. There was a healthy balance at the year end.

Did the Association continue until the Welfare State took over in 1948. Certainly Nurse Dowe, who is better remembered as Nurse Moss remained as village nurse for many years.

Nurses

This list is work in progress.

Nurse Walrath employed by the Association 1903-1905

Nurse Pulley employed by the Association 1905

Nurse Moss came to Steeple as Nurse Dowe. She was born Norah Elsie Dowe on 8 February 1907 at Linton in south-east Cambridgeshire and her family moved to Chesterton, Cambridge shortly after. She came to Steeple in July 1929 living initially at Alford Cottage on The Green (lodging with the Jarmans?). She married in her “home” parish of St Andrew the Less in Cambridge on 28 December 1935 to Walter Charles Moss of Steeple. The newly married couple set up home at Brook End and between 1939 and 1945 moved to Cheyney Street at the junction with Church Street. In the late 1950s the Cambridgeshire County Council were keen to house District Nurses in purpose built housing with consulting facilities. Eventually, the District Council made available a plot in what was to become Russell Close and in 1966 Nurse Moss and husband took up residence in a brand new nurse’s home at 2 Russell Close, the first residents in the new Close. Nurse Moss had retired once, prior to 1957, but returned to work subsequently. She died 26 October 1971 age 64 and her husband Wally died in February. He had been born 25 June 1906, so was 81.

Nurse Jarman was born Margaret Mary Exton on 20 July 1900 in Billington, Lancashire. She enrolled on the Midwives Roll on 23 February 1931 and by 1936 was in Steeple Morden, living on The Green. In 1938 she married local man Reginald W Jarman, who being born 19 July 1910 was ten years her junior. In the 1939 Register she is described as late District Nurse, although still on Midwives Roll in 1938 and Nursing Register in 1949. She died in 1986.

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