Unanswered Letters: A Civil War Nurse’s Love Story

by Mary F. Belmont


Formats

Audio
$9.99
Softcover
$13.99
E-Book
$3.99
Audio
$9.99

Book Details

Language : English
Publication Date : 5/11/2023

Format : Audio
Dimensions : N/A
Page Count : N/A
ISBN : 9781665745383
Format : Softcover
Dimensions : 5.5x8.5
Page Count : 76
ISBN : 9781665742573
Format : E-Book
Dimensions : N/A
Page Count : 76
ISBN : 9781665742580

About the Book

Reconstructed from actual letters and diaries, this is the story of four young people living in Philadelphia whose lives become intertwined when the American Civil War begins in 1861. Jan is a German immigrant who begins his studies at the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg. Emma is a Quaker who has learned survival skills growing up in a thick forest. Gabrielle, is a Southerner, was raised by her governess and wealthy Virginian father. Maura travels alone to America from Ireland to escape the potato famine and eventually enters the convent as a Sister of Mercy. Each girl grows up separated from her mother either through a natural or man-made disaster, and each is destined to choose nursing as a career. Many women served as trained nurses in both the Union and Confederate Armies caring for wounded soldiers without preference for which side they fought. It is a little known fact that many of the nurses working to save lives following the Battle of Gettysburg were Catholic nuns from the orders of Sisters of Mercy and Daughters of Charity. This is not a book about war: it is a story about love of God, love of family and friends, and love of country.


About the Author

Mary F. Belmont, a graduate of Cornell University New York Hospital School of Nursing, is a third-generation nurse midwife. She earned both a masters and doctoral degree from Columbia University, Teachers College before serving in the US Army Nurse Corps. Mary was raised along the Wissahickon Creek where this story originates. Currently, she holds the title of Distinguished Lecturer at Hunter College Bellevue School of Nursing and is a volunteer at Mary Manning Walsh Home in New York City.