Virginia Margaret (Alexander) Childs (1900 - 1949)

Born 4 Feb 1900 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Died 24 Jul 1949 at age 49 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

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Biography

Virginia (Alexander) Childs is Notable.

Virginia was a Friend (Quaker)

Virginia M Alexander was one of the first African-American female doctors to practice in Philadelphia. She was passionate about public health and founded the Aspiranto Health Home which provided free or low-cost medical services in North Philadelphia. She was one of the first people to acquire a Masters Degree in Public Health (Yale 1937). Besides her medical practice, her career included teaching and service with the U.S. Public Health Service.^[1]

Virginia was born in 1900. She was the daughter of Hilliard Alexander and Virginia Pace. Her mother passed away when she was only 4 years old. Although her father also lost his livery business not long after losing his wife, he insisted that Virginia pursue an education.

She grew up attending Zion Baptist Church in North Philadelphia, but began attending Quaker meetings at Race Street during her first year at UPenn. She later attended Arch Street and Germantown monthly meetings. Read more on her complex relationship with the Society of Friends here. ^[2]

Virginia lived with her father in North Philadelphia for most of her life. For some years she was at Howard University Hospital in DC, and during the Second World War she went to Alabama. ^[3]

In 1945 she married William H Childs in Jefferson, Alabama. ^[4]

She passed away in 1949 in Philadelphia. ^[5] She was buried in Mount Lawn Cemetery in Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania. ^[6]

Research Notes

Wikipedia as of March 2023 states that she never married, and her death certificate in 1949 lists her as single (informant was her brother). ^[5] However there appears to be a marriage license for her in Alabama in 1945 to a William Childs that gives her correct parents names and birth date. ^[4] Also, a Quaker record shows her with the last name of "Childs", and she was a known Quaker. Her obituary does not mention Mr. Childs. ^[7]

Sources

1. ↑ Wikipedia: Virginia M. Alexander
2. ↑ A Story Incomplete: Virginia Alexander's Life among Friends (Feb 2015) from Gamble, Vanessa Northington. “Medicine, Religion, and Social Activism: The Life of Dr. Virginia M. Alexander, A Forgotten Black Quaker.” Presented at the Conference of Quaker Historians and Archivists, June 16 2014. Westtown School, West Chester, PA.
3. ↑ Changing the Face of Medicine, National Libraries of Medicine, National Institutes of Health
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Marriage: "Alabama, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1805-1967"
   Marriage Records. Alabama Marriages. County courthouses, Alabama
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 61365 #900334831 (accessed 2 March 2023)
   Virginia Margaret Alexander (45) marriage to William H Childs on 6 Jun 1945 in Jefferson, Alabama, USA.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Death: "Pennsylvania, U.S., Death Certificates, 1906-1969"
   Pennsylvania Historic and Museum Commission; Harrisburg, Pa; Pennsylvania (State). Death Certificates, 1906-1968; Certificate Number Range: 062401-064950
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 5164 #6574091 (accessed 2 March 2023)
   Virginia M Alexander death 24 Jul 1949 (born 4 Feb 1900), daughter of Hilliard Alexander & Virginia Pace, in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
6. ↑ Memorial: Find a Grave (has image)
   Find A Grave: Memorial #139840801 (accessed 2 March 2023)
   Memorial page for Dr Virginia Margaret Alexander (4 Feb 1900-24 Jul 1949), citing Mount Lawn Cemetery, Sharon Hill, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, USA; Maintained by LostGeneration (contributor 47096186).
7. ↑ Obituary for Dr. Virginia Alexander, Free View of Clipping The Philadelphia Inquirer, 25 Jul 1949 Mon, p.8

• 1900 Census: "1900 United States Federal Census"
  Year: 1900; Census Place: Philadelphia Ward 30, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Roll: 1472; Page: 7; Enumeration District: 0764; FHL microfilm: 1241472
  Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7602 #58725660 (accessed 2 March 2023)
  Margaret Alexander (1), single daughter, in household of Hillard Alexander (42) in Philadelphia Ward 30, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Born in Pennsylvania, USA.
• Obituary for Dr. Virginia Alexander, Free View of Clipping The Philadelphia Inquirer, 25 Jul 1949 Mon, p.8