Lillie Rosa Minoka Hill
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Lillie Rosa Minoka-Hill (1876–1952) was a Native American
physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
of
Mohawk Mohawk may refer to: Related to Native Americans *Mohawk people, an indigenous people of North America (Canada and New York) *Mohawk language, the language spoken by the Mohawk people *Mohawk hairstyle, from a hairstyle once thought to have been t ...
descent. Minnetoga, was her birth given last name according to an early record of her birth. Although, throughout her life, her name was changed three times; once at her birth, once when the Allen family forcefully adopted her, and a final time when she was given an Oneida name after working in the community for many years. Her favorite name to go by, was her third name, because it represented a high amount of honor that she had earned while treating the people, both white and non-white in Oneida. After her mother died, she was adopted by Joshua Allen, a
Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...
in
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
. She later graduated from the
Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
, becoming the second Native American female doctor in the
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, after
Susan La Flesche Picotte Susan La Flesche Picotte (June 17, 1865 – September 18, 1915, Omaha) was a Native American doctor and reformer in the late 19th century. She is widely acknowledged as one of the first Indigenous peoples, and the first Indigenous woman, to ea ...
(
Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...
). Her life is remarkable because of the time period she was born into. She was born just after the battle of Little Big Horn and died while relocation of Native Americans was still happening. She lived in a time of discrimination against women, and people of color, especially in the medical field. She married an Oneida man, Charles Hill, in 1905 and returned with him to his reservation in Wisconsin. For decades she operated a "kitchen clinic" at her house, providing care for Oneida on the reservation. She gained her state medical license in Wisconsin in 1934 and, in her later years, was honored for her contributions to rural medical care. In 1946, a heart attack prevented her from making house calls, however, the kitchen-clinic remained open. In 1947 she was adopted by the
Oneida Nation of Wisconsin The Oneida Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people in Wisconsin. The tribe's Indian reservation, reservation spans parts of two counties west of the Green Bay, Wisconsin, Green Bay metropolitan area. The reservation was establishe ...
, the only person so honored in the 20th century. They gave her the name ''Yo-da-gent'', meaning “she who saves” or “she who carries help”. Minoka-Hill lived through many hardships and yet continued her practice.


Early life

Lillie Minoka was born 30 August 1875 into the
Mohawk Nation The Mohawk people ( moh, Kanienʼkehá꞉ka) are the most easterly section of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy. They are an Iroquoian-speaking Indigenous people of North America, with communities in southeastern Canada and northern Ne ...
on the St. Regis Mohawk Indian Reservation (also known as ''
Akwesasne The Mohawk Nation at Akwesasne ( ; french: Nation Mohawk à Akwesasne; moh, Ahkwesáhsne) is a Mohawk Nation (''Kanienʼkehá:ka'') territory that straddles the intersection of international (United States and Canada) borders and provincial (Ont ...
'') in northern
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. This birth information is according to a family story, and not based on an actual birth document, which would not be uncommon for Native Americans at the time. The information about her place of birth and name come from her adoptive father. Her mother died soon after giving birth, and Lillie was raised by her mother's Mohawk family, but Minoka-Hill was denied the knowledge of her Mohawk mother. Because of historical conflicts between American Indian and European-American cultures, Dr. Minoka-Hill's life contains both mysteries and tensions. During the time of her upbringing, it was common for Native American children and families to be relocated and forced to assimilate. Then they were forced into boarding schools, which was a huge source of trauma for many people during the time, including Lillie. While it appears that when Lillie was about five, her family allowed her to be adopted by Joshua Allen and his wife, Lillie's family did not consent to the removal from the family. She was forcibly taken and adopted by Joshua Allen and his wife, who then brought her to Philadelphia in 1881. This removal and separation of her and her family is a very significant and dramatic start to her life. He was a
Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...
doctor in
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, and they promised to educate the girl. He named her Rosa because to him, "she looked more like a little rose than a lily.” As soon as she was able to attend school, she did in Philadelphia. However, she felt out of place with her new family and described her new life as "little wooden Indian who hardly dared look right or left." She attended the Grahame Institute, a Quaker boarding school for girls in Philadelphia that was owned and operated by Allen's sister. In 1895 Minoka graduated. She went for further study to a
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
convent in
Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, Canada, where she learned French. She remained in Quebec for one year. She then decided to become a nurse after graduating from high school, but soon after setting up a private practice she decided to attend medical school. Minoka attended the
Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
(now part of
Drexel University Drexel University is a private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a financier and philanthropist. Founded as Drexel Institute of Art, S ...
), where she earned her degree in 1899. She struggled with assimilating into an entirely different and new culture with her husband. She was the second Native American woman in the United States to obtain a medical degree, after
Susan La Flesche Picotte Susan La Flesche Picotte (June 17, 1865 – September 18, 1915, Omaha) was a Native American doctor and reformer in the late 19th century. She is widely acknowledged as one of the first Indigenous peoples, and the first Indigenous woman, to ea ...
(
Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...
).


Spirituality

Despite the fact that Minoka-Hill was raised to be Catholic, she still practiced traditional Native American spirituality. Her Native American spirituality likely arose when she began her practice at Oneida. The people there mostly practiced religion this way, as well as speaking the language, and using their herbal remedies. In this way, she was able to learn about a culture she could identify with, despite being a Mohawk.


Early career

In 1900, while working at th
Lincoln Institute
in Philadelphia (a
charity school Charity schools, sometimes called blue coat schools, or simply the Blue School, were significant in the history of education in England. They were built and maintained in various parishes by the voluntary contributions of the inhabitants to ...
for Indian girls that had originally been established for orphaned children of soldiers in 1866 in her home on Chestnut Street by Miss Mary McHenry; not to be confused with the historically black Lincoln University in Chester County), Minoka met Anna Hill, an
Oneida Oneida may refer to: Native American/First Nations * Oneida people, a Native American/First Nations people and one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy * Oneida language * Oneida Indian Nation, based in New York * Oneida Na ...
student from Wisconsin. Anna introduced Minoka to her brother Charles Abram Hill. They married in 1905. For five years after her graduation, Minoka continued her work at the Lincoln Institute. She also cared for women and children as an intern at the Women's Hospital in Philadelphia. After her internship, she set up a private practice with a friend, Francis Tyson, at the Lincoln Institute. Because she was practicing during the tim of the first world war, her services were greatly needed and used on her reservation.


Marriage and family

In 1905 Charles Hill proposed to her, asking her to join him in
Oneida, Wisconsin Oneida is an unincorporated community and former census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Oneida, Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,070 at the 2000 census. At the census, part of the CDP lay within the Town ...
on his tribal reservation. She knew that life would be difficult in the rural area, but she agreed. Charles wanted a farmer's wife, though she wanted to stay active in her medical practice. They compromised and she became the sole physician in Oneida while also maintaining the house and children. They had six children together, three boys and three girls. According to her children, much of her early life was not disclosed to them. Josephine Hill Cote was one of her youngest daughters, who was also a twin. In 1916, Charles died of a sudden attack of
appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical symptoms. Severe complications of a rup ...
; their twins were only five months old. The farm and livestock were mortgaged, and Minoka-Hill had to manage the debt. When Charles Hill died in 1916, Minoka-Hill had six children, ranging in age from 5 months to 9 years, and a mortgaged farm with no running water or electricity. Although she could have returned to Philadelphia and received financial assistance from her family, she remained in Wisconsin as she saw helping Indians as her calling. In 1918, their children contracted
influenza Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptoms ...
during the international epidemic, but all survived. In 1922 their daughter Rosa Melissa Hill died from
typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
. She saw the majority of her patients after her husband passed away.


Medical practice

On the reservation, Minoka-Hill ran a “kitchen clinic” for 40 years from her house. A wood-burning stove, water carried in from a hand-pump down the road, and, after 1946, an electric refrigerator for medicines: with this minimal equipment in her "kitchen clinic". She incorporated herbal remedies learned from Oneida medicine men and women. She made many house calls, teaching the people about
nutrition Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient n ...
,
sanitation Sanitation refers to public health conditions related to clean drinking water and treatment and disposal of human excreta and sewage. Preventing human contact with feces is part of sanitation, as is hand washing with soap. Sanitation systems ...
, and
preventive medicine Preventive healthcare, or prophylaxis, consists of measures taken for the purposes of disease prevention.Hugh R. Leavell and E. Gurney Clark as "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting physical and mental hea ...
. If she needed to make a house call, she was able to get rides from her family members or community members, because she did not have a car. If getting a ride from her sons was not an option, she walked to the houses. Because cash was scarce in the rural economy, she accepted food, such as chickens, as payment for her services. She adjusted her fees according to what the patient could pay: she sometimes charged $15 for the delivery of a baby, or two chickens, or $9, depending on the family's situation. Popular among white and Oneida patients alike, Minoka-Hill earned the trust of local Oneidas who did not feel comfortable with the white doctors of Brown County. The local physicians were supportive of her work. She worked alongside a midwife named Priscilla Manders up until the 1940s, when her practice became illegal, most likely due to the absence of her medical license. Priscilla lived in the Oneida village, worked at a nearby museum, and spoke the language. She was no doubt an important character in the story of Minoka-Hill and her transition into Oneida and its medical practices. During
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, in 1916 the only official federal doctor on the
Oneida reservation The Oneida Indian Nation (OIN) or Oneida Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people in the United States. The tribe is headquartered in Verona, New York, where the tribe originated and held its historic territory long before European ...
was called away to serve the military. After that, Minoka-Hill's services were even more critical; she tended to nearly all the tribe's local medical needs. She often spent entire nights at bedsides. She carried her heavy
medical bag A medical bag (doctor's bag, physician's bag) is a portable bag used by a physician or other medical professional to transport medical supplies and medicine. Traditionally, the medical bag was made of leather, opened on the top with a split-hand ...
and walked to most of her patients over miles of dirt and gravel roads; in winter she used
snowshoe Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footwe ...
s. Minoka-Hill practiced medicine on a poor midwestern reservation, despite the high rates of influenza, pneumonia, and tuberculosis, which took the lives of many during this time. In 1929, her
trust fund A trust is a legal relationship in which the holder of a right gives it to another person or entity who must keep and use it solely for another's benefit. In the Anglo-American common law, the party who entrusts the right is known as the "settl ...
, established by her father Joshua Allen, collapsed in the
Stock Market Crash A stock market crash is a sudden dramatic decline of stock In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided.Longman Business English Dictionary: "stock - ''especia ...
that began the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
. Even though the federal government established a Relief Office in Oneida, they could neither send patients to Minoka-Hill, nor reimburse her for services rendered because she had never taken the time to obtain a Wisconsin medical license. Despite this, Minoka-Hill kept running her “kitchen clinic” through all of it, and continued for the rest of her life. In 1934, local physicians loaned her the $100 needed to pay for the application fee to gain her medical license. Being licensed allowed her to admit patients to the hospital. After taking the necessary tests, she received the credential. She continued to practice for a humble price in order to continue to treat the low-income people on her reservation. She also thought that charging lower prices would help her get into heaven. At the age of 58, 35 years after medical school graduation, she received her Wisconsin license and continued her practice in Oneida In 1939, under programs of the
New Deal The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...
of the President
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
administration to improve conditions for Native Americans, a public health nurse and a government doctor were assigned to the reservation. That year, the federal government also started providing food supplements to combat malnutrition. A heart attack in 1946 forced Minoka-Hill into semi-retirement, though she continued her “kitchen clinic”. She also set up a boarding school to help poor Native American children. In her later years, she was recognized by the University of Wisconsin College of Agriculture, the State Medical Society of Wisconsin, the American Medical Association, the Indian Council Fire of Chicago, and the Oneida Nation for her contributions to the health of the people in Oneida. She was able to attend the American Medical Convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey for her recognition. She continued to practice medical services as best as she could, with her health in consideration, until her death in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin on March 18, 1952.


Legacy and honors

*1947, she received the Indian Achievement Award from the Indian Fire Council of Chicago, for personal achievement and humanitarian service to her people. *1947, Thanksgiving Day, she was adopted by the
Oneida Nation of Wisconsin The Oneida Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people in Wisconsin. The tribe's Indian reservation, reservation spans parts of two counties west of the Green Bay, Wisconsin, Green Bay metropolitan area. The reservation was establishe ...
; the only person in the 20th century to be officially adopted by them. They gave her the name ''Yo-da-gent'', meaning “she who saves” or “she who carries help”. At the tribal adoption ceremony, Minoka-Hill said: *: “It was 42 years last June since I came here to live. I was the bride of one of your tribe. I found I was to have good friends and kind neighbors. It has been a privilege to be helpful to those in need of help and to do it cheerfully and as promptly as I could. Because I felt it was the Master’s work assigned to me I must therefore be a willing worker ---though sometimes a very weary worker. Today you have honored me in a special way by taking me for your ‘almost sister’, now I can say to many of you ‘daughter’, ‘son’, ‘grandchild’. And you can say to me ''Hocsote''. Let me express my hearty thanks for your recognition and adoption." *1948, a monument was erected in
Oneida, Wisconsin Oneida is an unincorporated community and former census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Oneida, Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,070 at the 2000 census. At the census, part of the CDP lay within the Town ...
in her honor. *1948, the
University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
College of Agriculture recognized her for service to rural people. *1949, she was the honoree of the
American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016. The AMA's state ...
at its annual conference, held that year in
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. *1949, the Wisconsin Medical Association voted to award her a lifetime honorary membership. When she received the announcement letter, she said, “As much as I appreciate kind thoughts, I do not relish too much publicity!” *1952, a granite monument was erected near Oneida in her honor. The inscription reads: “
Physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
,
Good Samaritan In most contexts, the concept of good denotes the conduct that should be preferred when posed with a choice between possible actions. Good is generally considered to be the opposite of evil and is of interest in the study of ethics, morality, ph ...
, and friend of People of all religions in this community, erected to her memory by the Indians and white people.” It includes: “I was sick and you visited me.” *1959, Haskell Indian College named a new girl's dormitory as “Minoka Hall” in her honor. *1975, her son Norbert Hill established the Dr. Rosa Minoka Hill Fund, which grants college scholarships to Native Americans. A granddaughter, now known as
Roberta Hill Whiteman Roberta Hill Whiteman (born 1947) is an Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, Oneida poet from Wisconsin. She is known for the collections ''Star Quilt'' (1984) and ''Philadelphia Flowers'' (1996). She received the 1991 ''Wisconsin Idea Foundation's Excell ...
, became a poet and professor.


References


Further reading

*Scharf, John Thomas, ''History of Philadelphia, 1609-1884'', Thompson Westcott - Philadelphia (Pa.) - 1884, page 1698. * * *“Changing the Face of Medicine , Lillie Rosa Minoka-Hill.” U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, 3 June 2015, cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_226.html. *Greta Anderson, ''More Than Petticoats, Remarkable Wisconsin Women,'' TwoDot, 2004 * Roberta Jean Hill, ''Dr. Lillie Rosa Minoka-Hill: Mohawk Woman Physician'', University of Minnesota, 1998


External links


"Lillie Rosa Minoka-Hill"
''Women and Public Health,'' American Public Health Association
Lillie Rosa Minoka-Hill"
''Women Physicians'', Drexel University College of Medicine, photographs of Minoka-Hill in 1946 at her practice {{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Lillie Rosa Monoka 1876 births 1952 deaths 20th-century Native Americans 20th-century American physicians 20th-century American women physicians American Mohawk people Drexel University alumni Native American physicians Oneida people People from Franklin County, New York People from Oneida, Wisconsin Physicians from Wisconsin 20th-century Native American women Native American people from Wisconsin Native American people from New York (state)