Pioneer Doctor: The Story of a Woman's Work [Paperback]

Mari Grana (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2005

When Mollie Babcock stepped off the train in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1890, she knew she had to start a new life. She'd left her husband and their medical practice in Iowa, and with only a few hundred dollars in her pocket and a great deal of pride, she set out to find a new position as a physician. She was offered a job as doctor to the miners at Bannack, Montana, and thus began her epic adventures in the Rocky Mountain West.

The true story of a medicine woman who found opportunity in the wide-open spaces of America's frontier west, Pioneer Doctor: The Story of a Woman's Work, is not just a beautifully written and thoroughly researched story of a fascinating woman's life. It is also the story of an era when daring women ventured forth and changed history for the rest of us.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

When Mollie stepped off the train in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1890, she knew she had to start a new life. She'd left her husband and his medical practice behind in Iowa, and with only a few hundred dollars in her pocket and a great deal of pride, she set out to find a new position as a physician. She was offered a job as a doctor to the miners in Bannack, Montana, and thus began her epic adventures as a pioneer doctor, a suffragette, and a crusader for public health reform in the Rocky Mountain West.
Pioneer Doctor: The Story of a Woman's Work is the true story of Dr. Mary (Mollie) Babcock Atwater, a medicine woman who found freedom and opportunity in the wide-open spaces of America's frontier west. This remarkable tale has been creatively retold here by her granddaughter, award-winning author Mari Grana. Blending information from historical records as well as interviews with family and friends, the author has reconstructed Mollie's steps into a dramatic narrative that brings to life the doctor's struggles, her accomplishments, and the times in which she lived.
Beautifully written and thoroughly researched, this is not just the biography of a fascinating woman. It is also the story of an era when daring women ventured forth and changed history for the rest of us.

About the Author

In 1988 Mari Grana left a career as an urban planner in California and retreated to New Mexico to write. Her recent book of New Mexico regional history, Begoso Cabin, won the 2000 Willa Cather award from Women Writing the West. She works as a freelance editor in Santa Fe.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 360 pages
• Publisher: TwoDot; 1st edition (January 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762736542
• ISBN-13: 978-0762736546
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #225,321 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #51 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Antiques & Collectibles > Americana

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pioneer Doctor Needs more on being a Pioneer Doctor, May 4, 2007

By 

Sharon K. Holdcraft "BookRook" (Mid South) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pioneer Doctor: The Story of a Woman's Work (Paperback)

The beginning of this book is simply wonderful. Informative, intriguing, and well written. Sadly, the book then turns into a guide of the suffragette movement. While I believe that women such as Dr. Babcock paved the way for the rewards the women of today (such as myself) have, I didn't want a book on women's lib. I wanted a book on the trials of becoming a doctor, the way medical issues were treated, what medicines were used, all of this in her life time. The first and middle of the book did so and was building up to a superb ending until........
If you are looking for a true medical journal from one of the first female doctors this only partially fills the bill.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This woman was a pioneer in many ways, January 27, 2007

By 

Jeri L. Morgan (Medical Lake WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pioneer Doctor: The Story of a Woman's Work (Paperback)

This is the story of one woman's persistence and success against social norms that limited women's role in society in the western US during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Not only was this woman a doctor when there were very few women doctors, she also participated in the womens' suffrage movement in Montana and lived through many social changes in that state.

As the only doctor in a frontier mining town she saw many hard situations and some of the most poignant stories are about her attempts to help and care for the town prostitutes. When the mining boom died in that area, she moved to Helena to open another medical practice and there she joined the sufferage movement.

The book is written in a very readable narrative style and includes information from her personal records and interviews with personal friends and family.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nice, easy read!, November 9, 2006

By 

Christina Blair (Strafford, NH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pioneer Doctor: The Story of a Woman's Work (Paperback)

I read this book in just a few hours. Makes quick and easy reading. The material is very well written and very interesting. I recommend for anyone interested in "old west" and/or women's studies.