Canadian Nurse in AEF

[Guest rjk]

A few years ago I was doing research on the First World War for a play I was writing. At the city's cenotaph, there was only one woman's name inscribed. I found this as curious and filed it away as something to follow up on. Which is what I've been doing

now for the last six months. On the cenotaph her name is inscribed as Overend, Marion, Nursing Sister. I searched Canadian databases, Commonwealth databases, nurse sites, you name it but nothing came up. I finally got in touch with a local retired nurse who, by chance, knows the history of nursing and nurses in Peterborough. She found a notice in our local paper from 1918 stating that Marion was killed in an "aeroplane accident."

Marion Overend was 23 when she and her older sister May Overend 31,

volunteered for the American Nursing Corps of the AEF. They left New

York in February of 1918. Marion served at No.3 Base Hospital and died

on June 16, 1918 in an airplane accident. She was originally buried in

in US Army Cemetery #32, AEF, 3rd Aviation Instruction Center, Grave

#36. At the end of the war she was transferred (June 17, 1922) to St.

Mihiel Plot A, Row 6, Grave 14 (this is confirmed).

I just received some documents from the US regarding her death, but

nothing other than "airplane accident" is stated as the cause of

death.

What I am trying to find out is why would a nurse be in an airplane accident? How did it happen? If anyone can help me out, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks

[Terry]

Apparently a large number of Canadian nurses served with the US forces. In the publication "Native Soldiers, Foreign Battlefields", there is an article on Edith Anderson, from the Six Nations Reserve. She was working as a nurse in the US, and in 1917 joined the U.S.Medical Corps. Of the twenty nurses who joined in that batch, fifteen were Canadian.

Anderson served in France, and returned to Canada after the war. She married; had four children, and continued nursing until 1955. She died on the reserve in 1996 at the age of 105!

[Neil Burns]

If you can place what Aero Squadron was near Base Hosp. 3 you can try to track down their unit history.

The ABMC has her listed as from New York so you can try the New York State Archives

NY Archives

This will give you her home address and service summary, although it will most likely be scarce on details regarding the accident. It cost $1.

If you would like me to post the request, I will be happy to do so for you.

I have had a pretty good rate of success for these summary cards but occasional the archives have no information.

Take care,

Neil