Mary May Roberts (1877–1959) was an American nurse and long-time editor of the ''American Journal of Nursing''. She was a chief nurse and director at the

Army School of Nursing The Army School of Nursing was a nursing school created by the Federal government of the United States, United States government on May 25, 1918, during the height of World War I. The School was authorized by the United States Secretary of War, Secr ...

, Camp Sherman, during World War I and was inducted into the

American Nurses Association Hall of Fame The American Nurses Association Hall of Fame or the ANA Hall of Fame is an award which recognizes the historical contributions to nursing in the United States. History In 1974, in preparation for the United States Bicentennial, the American Nurse ...

in 1984.

Life and work

Roberts was born on January 31, 1877, in Cheboygan, Michigan, to Henry West Roberts and Elizabeth Scott Elliot.

Nurse

She acquired the title Registered Nurse, at the Jewish Hospital School of Nursing in Cincinnati, 1899. She went on to earn her Bachelor of Science, at Columbia University's Teacher College, in New York City, 1921. She was superintendent of nurses at the Savannah (Georgia) Hospital (now Warren A. Chandler Hospital in Atlanta), 1900-1902 and became assistant superintendent of the Jewish Hospital, Cincinnati, 1902–1904. She was superintendent at C. R. Holmes Hospital in Cincinnati, 1908–1917. During World War I, she was director of nursing service, Lake Division, for 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 ...

, Cleveland, 1917–1918, and then was chief nurse and director of

, Camp Sherman, in Ohio, 1918–1919.

Editor

For 28 years, Roberts was editor of the '' American Journal of Nursing'' founded by

Mary E. P. Davis Mary E. P. Davis (1840–1924) was a Canadian-born American nursing instructor and a founder of the ''American Journal of Nursing'' (''AJN''). Biography Davis, along with Sophia French Palmer, created the ''AJN'' in 1899, with the first issue g ...

. When she was named co-editor in 1921 with

Katharine DeWitt Katharine DeWitt (1867–1963) was an American nurse, writer and co-editor of the ''American Journal of Nursing''. Life and work DeWitt was born June 11, 1867, as one of five children, in Troy, New York, to Mary Hastings and Abner DeWitt. She ...

, Roberts already had 22 years of nursing experience. In 1923, she assumed the role of sole editor, and she held that post for more than a quarter century and later made additional contributions as editor

emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

. According to the American Nurses Association, "During her editorship, the circulation increased from 20,000 to more than 100,000." Roberts was inducted into the American Nurses Association Hall of Fame in 1984.

Personal life

Roberts died January 11, 1959, at 81, while writing an editorial in the New York City offices of the ''Journal''. She was buried in Section P of Pine Hill Cemetery, Cheboygan, Michigan.

Memberships

* American Nurses Association * National League for Nursing

Distinctions

* Bronze medal of Ministry of Social Welfare of France, July 1933 * Certificate of Appreciation from U.S. Department of Army * Florence Nightingale Medal (1949)Douzième attribution de la médaille Florence Nightingale, 1949.https://library.icrc.org/library/docs/DOC/CIRC_1942_1952.pdf

Selected publications

* Roberts, M. M. (1954). ''American nursing: history and interpretation''. Macmillan Company. * Roberts, M. M. (1955). ''The army nurse corps yesterday and today''. United States Army Nurse Corps.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Mary May 1877 births 1959 deaths World War I nurses Teachers College, Columbia University alumni People from Cheboygan, Michigan Florence Nightingale Medal recipients American nurses