Indiana Civil War Doctors
Indiana Civil War doctors:
- Served under Governor Oliver P. Morton
- One surgeon and two assistant surgeons served each regiment of 1,000 men
- Diseases (typhoid and dysentery) caused more deaths than battle wounds
"Almira Fifield, M.D., who was one of the first female physicians in the United States. She was born in 1833 and settled in Porter County, Indiana, with her family when she was about eight years old. She became a teacher in Valparaiso, but later decided to become a doctor, graduating from the New England Female Medical College.
Originally intending to return to Valparaiso following her graduation, Dr. Fifield instead requested the opportunity to use her degree treating Union soldiers in the Civil War, which was then being fought. Female doctors were rare in the 1860s, and those who served in the war were often told to downplay their medical degrees. Dr. Fifield was initially a nurse in Paducah, Kentucky, but was soon put in charge of the surgical ward at the Union Hospital there. While many deaths in the Civil War were the result of actual battle injuries, many also died of infectious diseases such as typhoid or dysentery."
All information and photos from The Society of Indiana Pioneers
Dr. Almira Fifield Day honored a pioneering female doctor who served in the Civil War
The following is a searchable database of the Doctors from Indiana who served in the Civil War.
Source: Indiana War Memorial Library