Millie Essie Gibson Hale
A Black woman with jaw-length dark hair and glasses, wearing a dark scoop-neck dress and a strand of pearls
Millie E. Hale, from a 1923 publication
Born(1881-02-27)February 27, 1881
Nashville, Tennessee
DiedJune 6, 1930(1930-06-06) (aged 49)
Nashville, Tennessee
Resting placeGreenwood Cemetery (Nashville, Tennessee)
MonumentsMillie E. Hale Hospital
EducationFisk University; Graduate School for Nurses, New York City
Occupation(s)Hospital administrator, community leader
SpouseJohn Henry Hale

Millie Essie Gibson Hale (27 February 1881–6 June 1930)[1] was an American nurse, hospital founder, social activist, and civic worker.[2]

In 1916 she founded Millie E. Hale Hospital with her husband, John Henry Hale, M.D., in Nashville, Tennessee, the first year-round hospital for African Americans in the city.[2]

Early life and education

Millie Essie Gibson was born on 27 February 1881 in Nashville, Tennessee, one of five children[3] born to Henry and Nannie Gibson.[2] Her father was a blacksmith.[2] In 1901, she graduated from Fisk University's Normal School, subsequently studying at New York City's Graduate School for Nurses.[2][4] In 1927, she earned her bachelor's degree from Fisk.[5]

In December 1905,[6] Millie E. Gibson married John Henry Hale[5] in Davidson County, Tennessee.[6] John Henry Hale was a prominent surgeon and educator,[7] and the couple went on to have two daughters together: Mildred and Essie.[5]

Career

Millie E. Hale Hospital, 1917

In 1916 she and her husband founded a hospital which was the first in Nashville to treat African-American patients year round.[8] At the time, African-Americans were denied care at other hospitals due to financial and racial discrimination.[9] Hale served as the hospital's head nurse and administrator.[10] In addition to these responsibilities, she created a monthly newspaper educating people on health issues, set up programs for prenatal care and nurse training,[11] bought land for playgrounds, and eventually transformed the Hale home into a community center.[9][12] The hospital was open for over two decades and closed eight years after her death in 1930.[9][13] It started with only a 12-bed hospital and it grew to 75 beds and thousands of patients were treated there from all over the South.[4]

Death and legacy

Millie E. Hale died in 1930, aged 49 years, in Nashville.[14] The Hales were inducted into the Tennessee Health Care Hall of Fame at Belmont University on October 16, 2018.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Willis, Laticia Ann Marie (2013). "Hale, Millie E." Oxford African American Studies Center. doi:10.1093/acref/9780195301731.013.36987. ISBN 978-0-19-530173-1. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Smith, Jessie Carney (1992). Notable Black American women. Internet Archive. Deroit : Gale Research. ISBN 978-0-8103-4749-6.
  3. ↑ Hine, Darlene Clark; Thompson, Kathleen; Facts on File, Inc (1996). Facts on File encyclopedia of Black women in America. Internet Archive. New York : Facts on File. ISBN 978-0-8160-3424-6. {{cite book}}: |first3= has generic name (help)
  4. 1 2 3 Sandra Long Weaver (2018-10-25). "African American Health Care Providers Inducted". The Tennessee Tribune. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  5. 1 2 3 Smith, Jessie Carney (1992). Notable Black American women. Internet Archive. Deroit : Gale Research. ISBN 978-0-8103-4749-6.
  6. 1 2 "United States Marriages". FindMyPast. 19 December 1905.
  7. ↑ Friedman, Emily (1994). An unfinished revolution : women and health care in America. Internet Archive. New York : United Hospital Fund of New York. ISBN 978-1-881277-17-0.
  8. ↑ "A Hospital for Negroes with a Social Service Program" Opportunity (December 1923): 370. via Internet Archive.
  9. 1 2 3 Zepp, George (2003-05-21). "Hale Hospital Nurtured Thousands of City's Blacks". The Tennessean. p. 22. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  10. ↑ Biddle-Douglass, Teresa (October 8, 2017). "Millie E. Hale". Tennessee Encyclopedia. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
  11. ↑ "Nashville Race Hospital Looks After its Own". Kansas City Advocate. 1922-01-06. p. 1. Retrieved 2022-02-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Nashville Couple Who Turned Their Home Into A Hospital For Blacks Honored Posthumously". Meharry Medical College. 2018-10-18. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  13. ↑ "Millie E. Hale Called by Death". Nashville Banner. 1930-06-07. p. 1. Retrieved 2022-02-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Death Notices: Hale". Nashville Banner. 1930-06-08. p. 11. Retrieved 2022-02-07 – via Newspapers.com.
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