Doctor or Doctress?

Explore American history through the eyes of women physicians

A woman with all her possessions on the island of Macronissi.

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“Millions of refugees, almost totally without men”: The American Women’s Hospitals and the Fire of Smyrna

The years following the end of World War I were a time of great geographical and social change throughout the world, including Eastern Europe and Western Asia. In the war’s aftermath, the Ottoman Empire was dissolved and divided among the Allied Powers. In 1922, amidst this political, religious, and ethnic upheaval, the Turkish port city of Smyrna (now Izmir) was set ablaze, resulting in tens of thousands of people--mostly Greek and Armenian women and children--fleeing the destroyed city and gathering on the docks to board ships bound for Greece. These refugees ended up in living in outdoor camps on the tiny, barren Greek island of Macronissi (now called Makronisos), where there were no existing sources of shelter, food, water, or medical care.  In 1922, the American Women’s Hospitals established services on Macronissi to care for the refugees from Smyrna.

The refugees were badly in need of medical care, food, and shelter.  The women of AWH raised money and volunteered to travel abroad to provide medical services to devastated populations.

Creator: American Women's Hospitals

Language: english

Item Number: a144_186

Pages: 1

Size: 11.43 x 8.89

Physical Collection: Records of American Women`s Hospitals 1917-1982, ACC-144

Finding Aid: http://dla.library.upenn.edu/dla/pacscl/detail.html?id=PACSCL_DUCOM_WMSC144

Cite this source: Title of document, date. The American Women’s Hospitals and the Fire of Smyrna: Millions of refugees, almost totally without men. Doctor or Doctress?: Explore American history through the eyes of women physicians. The Legacy Center, Drexel University College of Medicine Archives & Special Collections. Philadelphia, PA. Date of access. http://lcdc.library.drexel.edu/islandora/object/islandora:1492

American Women's Hospitals

Izmir (Turkey), Nineteen twenties, -- Refugees

Macronissi (Makronisos), Greece