Saidie Orr Dunbar (June 23, 1880 – May 13, 1960) was a leading figure in the improvement of public health in Oregon in the early twentieth century. She was very active in social service work and is considered the "founder of public nursing in Oregon".

Early life

Saidie Orr was born in

Granger, Missouri Granger is a village in Scotland County, Missouri, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 22. History The town was laid out and surveyed by Henry Hill in September, 1874. Its name pays homage to the Grange Movement, popular i ...

, on June 23, 1880, the daughter of Robert Perry Orr and Catherine Lindsay.

Career

Saidie Orr Dunbar started her career with the Oregon Tuberculosis Association when she took over the position as executive secretary in 1913. She came back to this position later in her life and continued to tour Oregon regularly, promoted the setting up of county health departments, and setting up local groups to aid in the fight against

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

before retiring in 1951. She was very actively involved in social service work; she served two terms as secretary of the National Conference of the Tuberculosis Secretaries; she was vice-president of the Portland Americanization Council; she was vice-president of the Council of Social Agencies. From 1923 to 1926 she was the head of the Federation of Women's Clubs in Oregon, and was a member of the national federation. She eventually became the president of the national federation in 1938 and maintained that position until 1941. She instituted a two-year course of study on Latin America that culminated with a Good Neighbor Tour to South America in 1940. With the support of the Oregon federation, the state legislature of Oregon passed a law in 1941 that provides measures such as blood testing to help to control or prevent

syphilis Syphilis () is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium ''Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The signs and symptoms of syphilis vary depending in which of the four stages it presents (primary, secondary, latent, an ...

from women expecting children. She was involved in the

American way The American way of life or the American way refers to the American nationalist ethos that adheres to the principle of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. At the center of the American way is the belief in an American Dream that is clai ...

movements, which became popular during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. She believed that members of women's clubs "should make some contribution toward the safety, the permanence and the enrichment of our American way of life, which will carry us through the dark days ahead and add to the solidarity of our national life". She was a member of the

Daughters of the American Revolution The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence. A non-profit group, they promote ...

, the Parent-Teacher Association, the P.E.O. Sisterhood, the Portland Woman's Club, and the Tuesday Afternoon Club.

Personal life

Dunbar moved to Oregon in 1889 and settled in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

. She married Jesse Austin Dunbar and had two children: Kathryn and Allen. She died on May 13, 1960, in Portland, Oregon.

Legacy

In 1956, a scholarship was created by associations affiliated with Dunbar, and the scholarship was named after her. The scholarship is awarded to students in Oregon that are enrolled in medicine or nursing studies, and it is granted based on the promise that the students will work in Oregon after their graduation. The Saidie Orr Dunbar diaries, 1923–1958, are preserved in the Special Collections and University Archives of the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunbar, Saidie Orr 1880 births 1960 deaths American social workers Activists from Portland, Oregon People from Scotland County, Missouri