Berenice Elizabeth Newitt (1902-1982) - 2nd Lt. Army Nurse Corps

2nd Lt. Berenice Elizabeth Newitt - Army Nurse Corps; 1924

Here is a post I have wanted to prepare for some time, but I've never been quite sure how to piece it together. After some research and review of a recently obtained complete 201 file (which included the picture shown above - a jewel find for any genealogist), this post will focus on my Grandpa Dodge's half-cousin, Berenice Elizabeth Newitt, and her service in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps.

Berenice Elizabeth Newitt was born February 24, 1902, in Leadville, Colorado, the daughter of James Newitt (1869-1952) and Maggie Meteer (1867-1904). Her mother, Maggie, passed away February 25, 1904, in Leadville, after being ill with typhoid fever for nearly the previous two months. In August of 1906, James Newitt remarried and was wedded to Rachel Elizabeth Dodge (1887-1977). Berenice spent her time growing up in Buena Vista as well as Leadville. Following graduation from Leadville High School, Berenice went to Salida, Colorado, where she worked and was educated as a Nurse at the Red Cross Hospital there. The nurse training she participated in at Salida took three years. Berenice finished training in 1920.

In November of 1921, Berenice applied to become a Nurse with the Army Nurse Corps. The requirements at that time included earning a High School Diploma, being a licensed Registered Nurse, be at least 21 years of age, and unmarried. In her application to become a Nurse with the Army Nurse Corps, Berenice lied about her age and stated that she was born in 1899 (she was actually only 19). Berenice was accepted and commissioned as 2nd Lt. and appointed as a Reserve Nurse. Berenice was assigned to Fitzsimons General Hospital in Denver, Colorado.

In September of 1925, Berenice requested transfer to Letterman General Hospital in San Francisco. Her request was granted and she was transferred to Letterman General Hospital. In the transfer approval, Berenice was described as follows: 'Her services and general conduct have always been "excellent." ' By this time, her brother, Keith Newitt, was living in San Francisco, which may have been one reason for the requested transfer. In March of 1926, Berenice requested appointment as Nurse, which was granted. In completing the application for appointment, Berenice changed the year of her birth from 1899 to 1900 (she still lied about her age, perhaps to avoid the possibility of being kicked out of the Corps for joining while being under the minimum age requirement). This transfer was granted and Berenice was transferred from Reserve Nurse to Nurse.

In November of 1927, Berenice was transferred from Letterman General Hospital in San Francisco to Schofield Barracks in Honolulu, Hawaii. She arrived by Army Transport aboard the vessel St. Mihiel, arriving November 8. In her annual physical examination from 1929, it was noted that Berenice was beginning to suffer from some slight deafness in both ears. She was recommended for medical treatment at that time. Also in 1929, Berenice requested, and received, a continuation of service in the Army Nurse Corps. At this time, Berenice was described as 'conscientious, energetic and a capable nurse.' Berenice continued with her duties at Schofield through the first part of 1930; she is even enumerated there in the 1930 Census.

In early 1930, Berenice was asked by the Surgeon General regarding her preference for her next assignment. Berenice responded that her first preference would be assignment at Walter Reed General Hospital in Washington, D.C. This transfer was granted and Berenice was to be assigned to Walter Reed General Hospital. In making arrangements for travel to Washington, D.C., Berenice was initially supposed to travel by Army Transport from Hawaii to San Francisco, and from San Francisco continue to New York via the Panama Canal. In June of 1930, however, Berenice requested to travel overland from San Francisco. Berenice was also granted a leave of absence upon arriving at San Francisco. These requests were granted. 

Berenice arrived in San Francisco in early July of 1930. During her leave of absence, Berenice arrived at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, in early November. When she arrived at Fort Snelling, her assignment was changed and she was relieved from duty at Walter Reed and reassigned to Fort Snelling. In November of 1931, Berenice requested that her name be considered for service in the Philippine Department. Although this request was granted, Berenice continued her service at Fort Snelling. Another continuation of service was granted in late 1931 and again in early 1935.

By this time, even though her hearing was still slightly defective (there were no noted improvements or deterioration), it was noted that there were 'no defects which have or do interfere with the performance of full military duty.' In 1932, Berenice took another leave of absence. The Star Tribune, from November 6, 1932 (a local newspaper from the Fort Snelling area) reported: 'Miss Bernice Newitt of the army nurse corps, returned to Fort Snelling Wednesday after a month’s leave spent visiting at Denver, El Paso and San Antonio.'

1935 was a notable year for Berenice in her service with the Army Nurse Corps. In February of that year, Berenice contracted German measles. She was hospitalized and received treatment from late February through March (this was in the years before penicillin and vaccinations). In July she requested transfer back to Letterman General Hospital in San Francisco, as well as a 60-day leave of absence. The leave of absence was granted and Berenice took leave to spend time with her father and family in Tacoma, Washington. Upon expiration of leave of absence, Berenice was to report back to Letterman General Hospital.

By 1936, Berenice's hearing problems had grown worse. Even though she was still able to carry on her duties, further examinations were conducted and she was advised accordingly of this medical issue. It is likely that her bout with measles the year before exacerbated her hearing problems. Following her physical examination in early 1937, it was recommended that Berenice be brought before a retirement board to determine whether medical retirement from the Army Nurse Corps was warranted.

In March of 1937, a retirement board was convened for 2nd Lt. Berenice Newitt. Following review of her medical record and testimony from the examining doctors, it was found 'that 2nd Lieut. Berenice E. Newitt, A.N.C., is permanently physically incapacitated for active service because of Defective hearing.' It was found that the incapacity was incident to military service. Upon completion of the retirement board, Berenice was granted her final leave of absence before her retirement, which was effective on July 31, 1937. Berenice made use of her final leave of absence, which was 101 days, by requesting travel to England and France. This request was granted. On the civilian ship manifests (for both the U.S. and England), Berenice lists her correct year of birth, which is 1902. Berenice returned to the United States on July 9, 1937, arriving in New York.

The News Tribune: May 27, 1937 Tacoma, Washington) reported: To Leave for Europe: Mr. and Mrs. James Newitt of the Biltmore apartments have with them both their daughter and son, Miss Bernice Newitt, who leaves Friday for an extensive trip, and Keith Newitt, here from San Francisco until after June 1. Miss Newitt, a nurse in government service for the past 16 years, has planned a vacation that will last until autumn. She sails from New York June 4 on the Laconia, for Europe, and will not return until September (newspaper articles are only as accurate as the reporters who wrote them).

Upon retirement on July 31, 1937, Berenice was granted a retirement pension of $187.50 per month, which pension she received for the remainder of her life. Following retirement, Berenice lived in San Francisco until 1939, when she moved to Glendale, California. She lived in Glendale for the remainder of her life, continuing to work as a Nurse at the Monte Sano Hospital in Los Angeles until she retired in the early 1960's. Berenice passed away September 7, 1982 at the VA Medical Center in Sepulveda, Los Angeles County, California. She is interred at the Riverside National Cemetery in Riverside, California.

A few important things to note took place prior and during Berenice's service as a Nurse in the Army Nurse Corps. In 1920, just one year before Berenice enlisted, Army Nurses were given relative rank from 2nd Lieut. to Major. They were allowed to wear their rank insignia on their uniform. However, their pay was only half of male officers of the same rank and they were to be addressed as 'Nurse' or 'Miss'. In 1926, Nurses were authorized retirement based on their length of service. In 1930, Retirement for disability incurred in the line of duty was authorized for nurses, with no minimum length of time requirement. These changes which were instituted during this time allowed Berenice the opportunity to serve as an officer in the U.S. Army as well as receive the retirement pension which she had earned. (see http://e-anca.org/History/ANC-Eras/1901-1940 and Highlights in the History of the Army Nurse Corps 'U.S. Army Center of Military History. Washington, D.C., 2016.)

Dwight H. Dodge in the 'Visalia Times-Delta' and other recent finds

I recently found the 'Visalia Times-Delta' newspaper online. This is a newspaper that was published in Visalia, California, a town near Woodlake, California, where Dwight lived between the early 1920's and the early 1950's. There is another newspaper, the 'Woodlake Echo', that I would like to peruse someday, but right now, this newspaper is not available online. Both newspapers are held in the local public libraries in Tulare County, California. There are only two newspaper articles from the 'Visalia Times-Delta', and both tell unfortunate chapters that occurred during his life while in California.

Here is the first article from the 'Visalia Times-Delta', dated October 20, 1941: 'Highways made slippery by yesterday's showers boosted the weekend accident toll in Tulare County, according to reports in the California Highway Patrol office here today. Nine persons were injured over the weekend, none critically. Cars driven by Jimmy Green, 19, of Visalia, and Dwight Dodge, 50, of Woodlake, collided near Orosi at 8:30 p.m. Sautrday, Green's car striking a pole after the collision.'

The other article from the 'Visalia Times-Delta', dated July 10, 1950, reads: 'Dwight Dodge, 59, Lemon Cove, is in the Sequoia Hospital in Woodlake with major injuries after an unknown vehicle ran his pickup truck off the road in Lemon Cove early Sunday morning and it hit a culvert. Jimmy Burchett, 15, also of Lemon Cove, received minor injuries.'

The towns of Woodlake and Lemon Cove are just a few miles apart in Tulare County, California; a rural county in central California, between Fresno and Bakersfield. The second newspaper article is very important because it confirms where his residence was when the 1950 Census was taken (three more years before this Census is released). 

Within a couple of years, he was divorced and living in Midland, Oregon. His wife, Ruth Edgington, divorced him in Nevada and was married to a widower named Donald A. Maxon, a life-long resident of Tulare County. They married in Las Vegas, Nevada in September of 1952. According to her marriage license, she divorced Dwight in September of 1951 in Reno, Nevada, on the grounds of desertion. I am in the process of locating their divorce record. 

There is a reason why Ruth filed for divorce in Nevada; at that time, the residency requirement for divorce in Nevada was only six weeks, as opposed to one year nearly everywhere else. Reno in particular was the divorce destination from the 1920's through the 1960's because it was so much easier to obtain a divorce in Nevada then almost anywhere else. I'm hoping that I can locate their divorce record. Once I do so, I will finally be able to locate their marriage record.

1926 Canada Census for Clara Belle (Dodge) Morgan

The 1926 Canadian Census for the Provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta is now released and available for public search. I just finished searching the census database and was only able to find Clara Belle Morgan and her daughter Mary Anne Morgan. Below is the image of the 1926 Canada Census that I found.

The 1926 Census shows where Clara lived after their homestead was foreclosed on in 1922. At that time, they were living near the town of Wilkie, where they had resided since 1911. The exact location of their homestead was the Southwest corner of Section 10, Township 41 North, Range 18 West of the 3rd Meridian.

At the time William John Morgan was served with notice of the foreclosure proceedings in 1922, he was located at Section 34, Township 39 North, Range 16 West of the 3rd Meridian, near the hamlet of Cando, approximately 30 miles southeast of Wilkie. In the 1926 Census, Clara and her daughter Mary were living near the hamlet of Red Pheasant, which is 7 miles north of Cando and 20 miles east of Wilkie.

I was only able to find Clara and her daughter, Mary, in the 1926 Census. Clara and Mary were living with the family of Arthur Amor. The exact location of their residence is Section 22, Township 40 North, Range 16 West of the 3rd Meridian. Clara is listed as a lodger and Mary was working as a Domestic. One discrepancy in this census is that Clara's age was listed as 38 years old (she would have been 42 years old - born in 1884) and Mary was 16. Another discrepancy is their year of immigration to Canada. Clara's year of immigration is listed as 1910 and Mary's year of immigration is listed as 1909 (one year before she was born!). They, along with her son William Hiram, immigrated to Canada in June of 1911. Although certainly still of school age, Mary did not attend school during the previous year.

I was not able to find William John Morgan, Clara's husband, or their son, William Hiram Morgan, in this census.

Below is a map showing the locations of where Clara and her family lived in Saskatchewan during the 1910's & 1920's. This comes from the Cummins Rural Map Directory (my previous post looks at these maps). I have outlined where their homestead was (which was still owned by the mortgage company as of 1930) and where Clara and Mary are found in the 1926 Census. It makes me wonder where they will be found when the next Census (1931 National Census) will be released in five years.

Cummins Rural Directory Maps - Saskatchewan, Canada

Here is an interesting find I came across last night. Rural Directory Maps for the province of Saskatchewan that were published by the Cummins Map Company during the 1910's, 1920's and 1930's. (http://www.saskgenealogy.com/databases/cummins/Cummins_Rural_Director_Map.htm). 

These maps are landowner maps that show who owned which parcel of land. I was able to find the maps for William John Morgan in 1917, 1920 and 1922. He owned a 160-acre homestead in western Saskatchewan, not far from the town of Wilkie. (Section 10, Township 41, Range 18, West of the 3rd Meridian), which he applied for in 1910 and obtained in 1913. He and his family lived on the homestead until 1922, by which time the homestead appears to have been abandoned and was foreclosed on. William John Morgan took out an $800 mortgage on the homestead in 1917 and failed to pay back the mortgage. (I have detailed the homestead application and foreclosure in earlier blogs). I also found a rural directory map for 1930 and found that the foreclosed homestead was still owned by the mortgage company. 

(Just a brief review, William John Morgan came to the United States in the early 1890's and went to Colorado. He married by great-great aunt, Clara Belle Dodge, in 1906 in Buena Vista, Colorado. Following a few years in Silver City, New Mexico, William returned to Canada in 1910. Clara and their children followed in June of 1911).

On a related note, I am anticipating (as are many others) the release of the 1926 Census for the Canadian Prairie Provinces. According to Library and Archives Canada, this census should be available sometime in March (fingers crossed). I am hoping to find William John Morgan and his family in this Census, as I am not sure where they moved to or were living at after their homestead was foreclosed on several years earlier. Perhaps after I find them in the 1926 Census, I will look for them in the later directory maps as well.

Below are the Cummins Rural Directory Maps that I have found. I have outlined their property to make it easier to find. (To get a closer look at each map, click on the map, and then right click and select 'open image in new tab'.)

1917 Cummins Rural Directory Map

1920 Cummins Rural Directory Map

1922 Cummins Rural Directory Map

1930 Cummins Rural Directory Map 

Even after several years, the land was still owned by the mortgage company

Sherman Dodge newspaper articles in Crested Butte, Colorado

It's interesting how pieces of the puzzle continue to fall into place, little by little; or how certain suggestions on what or where to search just pop out at you unexpectedly. This is one of those unexpected searches that yielded some interesting pieces of the puzzle. 

The Crested Butte, Colorado newspaper Elk Mountain Pilot just became available to search on one of the historical newspaper websites that I keep tabs on from time to time. My great-great uncle, Sherman Dodge, was from Crested Butte, Colorado, according to his marriage certificate, in 1900.

I don't know how long he had been there prior to 1900, but it doesn't appear to have been too long. Before living in Crested Butte, Sherman lived in St. Elmo. This is from The Salida Mail: August 18, 1896: St. Elmo Items. Special Correspondence of The Mail. St. Elmo, Aug. 11. Sherman Dodge has been running on the mail route of late in Mr. Fisher’s place.

I went ahead and did a quick search for Sherman Dodge in the Elk Mountain Pilot newspaper and found the following articles for him throughout 1900.

May 29, 1900: Sherman Dodge came up from Jack's Cabin Monday to go to work at the saw mill.

(Side note: his father, Nathaniel T. Dodge, worked at a saw mill in Gardiner, Maine, for a time during the 1870's).

July 31, 1900: Sherman Dodge had the second finger on his right hand badly crushed Wednesday [July 25] by the engine while working at the Stanley mill.

September 25, 1900: The following Crested Butte people attended the dance at Jack's Cabin Friday night [Sept. 21]: Harvey Stanley and wife, Arthur Stanley and wife, Mrs. Harriett Wieland, Miss Brown, Geo. Schaefer, Sherman Dodge, Frank Young, Will Hartman, Geo. Adams, Warren Small, Tom Walters, Colon Moore, Bert Smith, Harry Tingey and Geo. Cook. A number of the Jack's Cabin people were present and an enjoyable time was had by all.

(side note: Miss Brown very well could be his soon to be wife, Mary May Brown.)

December 4, 1900: Sherman Dodge departed Friday for Denver [Nov. 29], at which place he will be married to Miss May Brown. They will reside in Crested Butte.

Following their marriage, they were living in Denver by 1902, when they lost a son in childbirth. They divorced in October of 1903 (their divorce is detailed in the Denver newspapers and covered in my other posts on Sherman Dodge).

Just a little geography: Jack's Cabin is a little rural mountain locale along Colorado State Road 135 and County Road 749 about half way between Gunnison and Crested Butte. There isn't much to note that people live there; just a few homes and barns (according to google maps).