Emily Patterson : the heroic life of a milltown nurse

When Emily Patterson arrives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and children in 1862, she finds herself worlds away from Bath, Maine, the staunchly pious township of her birth. Up the remote reaches of Vancouver Island's Alberni Canal, Emily learns much about self-reliance in a fledgling milltown where pioneer loggers and the native Tseshaht community share an often tempestuous co-existence. In search of their ideal homestead, the Pattersons next travel to Oregon's fertile Willamette and Columbia River regions, confronting both joy and tragedy along the way. After many years, their quest finally leads them to Burrard Inlet, where the sawmilling communities of Hastings Mill and Moodyville duel for lumber supremacy. Emily gains wide recognition amidst the hardliving mill workers for her extraordinary nursing skills, self-taught from sheer necessity over the course of her nomadic life. In a time when the nearest doctor is several hours of travel away, Emily is called upon day or night to deal with any medical situation, be it removing a splinter, treating a cough or preparing a body for burial. Literary Nonfiction. When Emily Patterson arrives in the Pacific Northwest with her family in 1862, she finds herself worlds away from Bath, Maine, the staunchly pious township of her birth. Up the remote reaches of Vancouver Island's Alberni Inlet, Emily learns that the nearest doctor is at least a day's travel away, and her extraordinary nursing skillsself-taught from sheer necessityearn her wide recognition among the pioneer loggers and the native Tseshaht community. In search of their ideal homestead, the Pattersons settle in Oregon's fertile Willamette and Columbia River regions before moving to Burrard Inlet, where the sawmilling communities of Hastings Mill and Moodyville duel for lumber supremacy. Over the course of her nomadic life, Emily is called on day and night for her medical expertise, whether to deliver a newborn, suture an open wound, or prepare a body for burial. Through vivid prose and 70 photos, Lisa Anne Smith brings to life this fascinating era of Pacific Northwest history through the eyes of an intrepid pioneer nurse. A Biography Of Emily Patterson And Her Life From The Time When She Emigrated With Her Family From Bath, Maine, Usa, In The 1860s First To The Alberni Canal On Vancouver Island, Then To The Willamette Valley And Finally To Hastings Mill And Moodyville (now In Metro Vancouver). Much Good Material About Emily's Life As A Self-taught Nurse, And Good Information About The Native Peoples On The Alberni Canal, As Well As The Life In Sawmill Towns. Also Good Information About Early Vancouver.-- Lisa Anne Smith. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "A biography of Emily Patterson and her life from the time when she emigrated with her family from Bath, Maine, USA, in the 1860s first to the Alberni Canal on Vancouver Island, then to the Willamette Valley and finally to Hastings Mill and Moodyville (now in Metro Vancouver). Much good material about Emily's life as a self-taught nurse, and good information about the native peoples on the Alberni Canal, as well as the life in sawmill towns. Also good information about early Vancouver."-- Provided by publisher