Janet Jennings (1842 - December 31, 1917) was an American

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

and reporter, most notable for her work on the ''Seneca'': a ship used to travel back from

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

during the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

. While on the ''Seneca'', Jennings took care of hundreds of wounded and ill patients despite an almost complete lack of medical resources. __TOC__

Background and early life

Janet Jennings was born in 1842 in

Green County, Wisconsin Green County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 37,093. Its county seat is Monroe, Wisconsin, Monroe. Green County is included in the M ...

, where she grew up in a family of twelve children. Jennings started her career as a teacher in

Monroe, Wisconsin Monroe, known as "the Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA", is a city in and the county seat of Green County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 10,661 at the 2020 census. The city is bordered by the Town of Monroe to the north and the T ...

, but she later left for

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

to join the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desi ...

and help care for one of her brothers, who was wounded in the war. As a member of the Red Cross, Jennings was an associate of

Clara Barton Clarissa Harlowe Barton (December 25, 1821 – April 12, 1912) was an American nurse who founded the American Red Cross. She was a hospital nurse in the American Civil War, a teacher, and a patent clerk. Since nursing education was not then very ...

, and aided other wounded soldiers in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. Jennings stayed in Washington D.C. after the end of the Civil War to work as a reporter at the

United States Department of the Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States, where it serves as an executive department. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and t ...

, later reporting for various newspapers.

Nursing in the Spanish American War

After the outbreak of the Spanish–American War, Jennings searched for ways she could support the war effort as a nurse. She left for Cuba as part of the Red Cross in June 1898. After fighting in Santiago, the medical ship ''Relief'' was supposed to leave to bring wounded to the U.S., but with more fighting expected, the ship was told to stay in Santiago. Instead of the ''Relief'' with its updated and adequate medical supplies, the ''Seneca'' was chosen to transport the injured troops back to the United States. On July 13, Jennings volunteered to help on the ''Seneca'' and tend to the wounded as they were brought back to the U.S. The ship was over capacity with injured soldiers, understaffed with doctors and nurses, and without adequate medical equipment. Due to the lack of doctors and nurses on board, Jennings worked around the clock in an attempt to help as many patients as possible. After six nights at sea, the ship finally made port near

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Forty of the soldiers on the ship wrote her a letter, thanking her for the heroism she showed in the dire situation. Newspapers across the country heralded her as the “Angel of Seneca” for saving numerous lives during her week aboard the Seneca.

Journalism

After leaving the Treasury Department, Jennings began working as a reporter. Jennings was a journalist for several newspapers including the ''

New-York Tribune The ''New-York Tribune'' was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s through the 1860s it was the domi ...

'', the ''Independent'' (New York City), and the ''Chicago Herald - Tribune''. When Jennings volunteered to go with the Red Cross to Cuba, her intention was to travel to Cuba as a reporter for the Red Cross’s work, despite the restrictions on female reporters at the time. After returning from Cuba on the ''Seneca'', Jennings wrote a statement about the injustice of sending wounded soldiers back on ships with insufficient medical and other resources. In addition to her work writing for newspapers, Jennings wrote two books, ''Abraham Lincoln, the Greatest American'' and ''The Blue and the Gray''.

Death

Jennings died in 1917 of a stroke. She is buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Green County, Wisconsin next to her parents and siblings.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jennings, Janet 1842 births 1917 deaths People from Monroe, Wisconsin