Katharine Prescott Wormeley (1830 - 1908)

Born 14 Jan 1830 in Ipswich, Suffolk, England

Ancestors

Died 4 Aug 1908 at age 78 in Jackson, Carroll, New Hampshire, United States

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Biography

Katharine Wormeley was born in Suffolk, England.

Katharine started grassroots women's aid organizations throughout the Civil War; served on hospital transport ships; "Lady Superintendent" at Lovell General Hospital in Rhode Island; authored "The United States Sanitary Commission: A Sketch of its Purposes and its Work". Honored for eternity:
In Memoriam

Katharine Wormeley was interred in Rhode Island.

Katharine (sometimes spelled Catherine) was born 14 Jan 1830 in Ipswich, Suffolk, England to a very prominent and wealthy family. She was christened on 19 May 1830 in St. Clements. Her parents were British naval officer Admiral Ralph Randolph Wormeley, born in Virginia and Caroline Preble Wormeley born in Boston, Massachusetts. She was the third of four children.^[1] Her father passed away in 1852.

Katharine immigrated to Boston, Massachusetts from England on 28 May 1848 and became a naturalized citizen in October 1860 at the age of 30. She was living in Newport, Rhode Island at the time of her naturalization. ^[2]

In 1860, Katharine was living with her mother, Caroline Wormeley, and others in Newport, Newport, Rhode Island. (The Census had Katharine as "Kate" and Wormeley as "Womley).

As soon as the Civil War broke out in 1861, Katharine and her mother dedicated themselves and their financial resources to supporting the Union Army. She became supervisor of the Ladies' Union Aid Society and started other grassroots women's aid organizations. By the winter of 1861, she was running a government-funded military clothing supply organization staffed by wives and families of soldiers – she was supporting the soldiers on the battlefield as well many struggling at home. Approximately 50,000 articles of clothing were made and distributed.

She ran the clothing business for approximately one year, and then joined the United States Sanitary Commission's Hospital Transport Services. Her first transport ship was the Daniel Webster, which, like many of the ships, had inadequate medical supplies and provisions to serve the hundreds of sick and wounded soldiers they housed.

Surgeon General William A. Hammond contacted Katharine requesting her to accept the position of "Lady Superintendent" at Lovell General Hospital in Portsmouth Grove, Rhode Island. In September 1862, she began her commission, bringing with her numerous nurses to head sections of the hospital. Among these nurses were sisters Georgeanna and Jane Woolsey, and their cousin Sarah C Woolsey.

The nurses arrived at the hospital, the site of a former summer hotel, lacking in organization and supplies, and having no residence for the nurses. Not afraid to tackle a challenge, Katharine and her team wasted little time in setting up a nursing system devoted to individual ward-based care. Soon there was a residence building for the nurses, appropriate meals for patients, clean laundry, and improved individual patient records. She immediately earned the respect of Army officers and the affection of the soldiers. Ill health forced her to resign her position in September 1863 and return to Newport, Rhode Island, but her influence and impact on the hospital remained throughout its existence.

Katharine continued her service in support of the Union Army and veterans. From the fall of 1863 thru the end of the war, Katharine collected over $17,000, (comparable to $330,000.00 in 2023), food, and supplies for the Sanitary Commission's hospitals and transports. She authored a book on the history and operation of the United States Sanitary Commission in 1863 (The United States Sanitary Commission: A Sketch of its Purposes and its Work), proceeds from which went directly to the Commission. Katharine was Rhode Island's associate manager for the New England Women's Auxiliary in 1864, supervised the Newport Aid Society and in 1879 founded the Newport Charity Organization Society.

In 1885, Katharine was living in Newport Ward 4, Newport, Rhode Island. ^[3]

Katharine was a well known translator, having translated the complete works of Balzac (1883-1897), as well as works by others including Moliere (1892) and Alexandre Dumas (1895).

She traveled to Europe and was a passenger on the ship "Romanic" arriving in Boston from Naples on 23 Apr 1906. ^[4]

Katharine contracted pneumonia after breaking her hip from falling on the steps of her house and passed away on 4 Aug 1908 at her summer home in Jackson, New Hampshire. She never married and had no children. Her cremated remains were buried beside her father's grave in Island Cemetery in Newport, Newport, Rhode Island. ^[5][6][7]

Sources

1. ↑ Christening "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", FamilySearch Record: J3F6-LB6 (accessed 1 March 2023), Catherine Prescott Wormeley baptism on 19 May 1830, daughter of Ralph Randolph Wormeley & Caroline Wormeley, in Ipswich St Clement, Ipswich, Suffolk, England, United Kingdom.
2. ↑ Immigration "United States, New England Petitions for Naturalization Index, 1791-1906", citing Rhode Island, NARA microfilm publication M1299 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 46; FHL microfilm 1,429,716, FamilySearch Record: VX5B-PJX (accessed 1 March 2023) FamilySearch Image: 939N-Z47S-6K, Name: Katharine Prescott Wormely; Naturalization Date: 1860; Naturalization Place: Rhode Island; Birth Place: Ipswich, Suffolk County, England; Event State Country: Rhode Island; Event Type: Naturalization.
3. ↑ 1885 Census "Rhode Island State Census, 1885", citing 1, State Archives, Providence; FHL microfilm 953,921, FamilySearch Record: M5F7-HF9 (accessed 1 March 2023) FamilySearch Image: 939Z-YP9S-JP, Katherine P Wonneley head of household in Newport Ward 04, Newport, Rhode Island.
4. ↑ 1906 Foreign Travel "Massachusetts, Boston Passenger Lists, 1891-1943", citing Immigration, Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States, NARA microfilm publication T843 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 1,715,588, FamilySearch Record: 23FD-BB8 (accessed 1 March 2023) FamilySearch Image: 33SQ-GYW4-97NZ, Name: Katharine P Wormeley; Immigration Date: 1906; Immigration Place: Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States; Birth Date: 1830; Age: 76; Event Type: Immigration; Misc Ship Name: Romanic.
5. ↑ Death "New Hampshire Death Records, 1654-1947", citing Jackson, New Hampshire, Bureau Vital Records and Health Statistics, Concord; FHL microfilm 2,131,878, FamilySearch Record: FSVV-8LW (accessed 1 March 2023) FamilySearch Image: S3HY-6QDQ-PDG, Katharine Prescott Wormeley death 4 Aug 1908 (age 79y7m20d), daughter of Ralph R. Wormeley & Caroline Preble, in Jackson, , New Hampshire.
6. ↑ Encyclopedia.com Wormeley, Katharine Prescott
7. ↑ Memorial Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6699119/katherine_prescott-wormeley: accessed 30 June 2023), memorial page for Katherine Prescott Wormeley (14 Jan 1830–4 Aug 1908), Find A Grave: Memorial #6699119 (accessed 1 March 2023), citing Island Cemetery, Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island, USA; Maintained by Kris 'Peterborough K' Peterson (contributor 46537737).

See Also:

• "Katharine Prescott Wormeley", Elizabeth Lindqwister, Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress Research Guides (accessed March 1, 2023).
• "Katharine Prescott Wormeley,", Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, (accessed March 1, 2023).
• "Katharine Prescott Wormeley - Civil War Nurse", "History of American Women, Colonial Women 18th-19th Century Women, Civil War Women" (accessed March 1, 2023).
• "Woman's Work in the Civil War: a record of heroism, patriotism and patience", L. P. Brockett, Mary C Vaughan and Henry Whitney, (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Zeigler, McCurdy & Co., 1867), Archive.org (Internet Archive), Katherine Prescott Wormeley, pages 31, 318-323.
• "Women at the Front: Hospital Workers in Civil War America", Jane E. Schultz, (Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina Press, 2004), Archive.org (Internet Archive), Katherine Prescott Wormeley, Pages 184, 189, 218.
• "A Civil War Angel of Mercy – Katherine Prescott Wormeley", "Varnum Continentals" (accessed March 1, 2023).
• "The Other Side of War", Katharine Prescott Wormeley, (Boston, Ticknor, 1889).
• "The United States Sanitary Commission: a sketch of its purposes and its work", Katherine Prescott Wormeley, (Boston, Little Brown, 1863).

• FamilySearch Profile for Catharine Prescott Wormeley