Register of the Ruth A. Parmelee papers
Finding aid prepared by Jessica Lemieux, Joshua Thornton
Hoover Institution Library and Archives
© 2009, 2023
434 Galvez Mall
Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003
hoover-library-archives@stanford.edu
Title: Ruth A. Parmelee papers
Date (bulk): 1922-1953
Collection Number: 74099
Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
9 manuscript boxes, 1 oversize box, 1 envelope
(3.2 Linear Feet)
Abstract: Includes diaries, notes, correspondence, reports, clippings, printed matter, photographs, and awards relating to the life
and work of Dr. Ruth A. Parmelee. Parmelee was born and brought up in Turkey by her missionary parents. After her education
in the United States, she began a long career in establishing reliable medical service in the Near East. Working in Turkey,
Greece, and Palestine, Parmelee specialized in obstetrics, training nurses, caring for war orphans, and in refugee relief
work.
Creator:
Parmelee, Ruth A. (Ruth Azneve), 1885-1973
Physical Location: Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Access
Box 10 may not be used without permission of the Archivist. The remainder of the collection is open for research; materials
must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual or digital media material in the collection,
they must be reformatted before providing access.
Use
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Acquisition Information
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives in 1974.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Ruth A. Parmelee papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Biographical Note
Ruth A. Parmelee was born in Trebizond (now called Trabzon), Turkey on April 3, 1885. She studied with her missionary parents,
Dr. and Mrs. M. P. Parmelee, until the family returned to the United States when she was eleven years old. Parmelee received
her B.A. from Oberlin College in 1907 and her M.D. from the University of Illinois in 1912. She completed her internship at
Philadelphia Women's Hospital.
Dr. Parmelee sailed for Turkey in May 1914 and was the first woman physician to settle in the Euphrates Valley. She set up
a medical practice in Harpoot, specializing in obstetrics, care of war orphans, and training nurses. She continued this work
until 1917, then resumed the same post from 1919 to 1922. In October of 1922, she moved to Thessaloniki, Greece, where she
worked under the American Women's Hospitals (AWH) organization, and with their support opened a hospital and the first school
of nursing in Greece. From 1925 to 1933, Dr. Parmelee was appointed Director of the AWH Grecian Area. During this period,
she directed the hospital in Kokkinia and continued to run the school of nursing, which moved with her from Thessaloniki.
At Kokkinia, Dr. Parmelee was assisted by Emilie Willms, R.N.
After a period of sick leave in the United States, Dr. Parmelee returned to Greece. From 1935 to 1941, she settled in Athens
and worked with several institutions as an advisor, council member, or director, including: Athens Municipal Hospital, Kokkinia
Hospital, Council for a Nursing School for Public Health, Patriotic Foundation of Social Welfare and Prevention (PIKPA) School
of Nursing, Archbishop's Committee for Relief of Bombarded Families, Seventh Military Hospital, AWH Civilian Relief Center,
and the Greek War Relief Committee.
In 1941, Dr. Parmelee left Greece due to the German occupation. She returned to the United States and studied at Harvard University
from 1942 to 1943, where she earned the degree of Master of Public Health. In September of 1943, the Near East Foundation
sent Parmelee with a relief group to the aid of Greek refugees at Camp Nuseirat, near Gaza in Palestine. As Senior Medical
Officer, she was responsible for 8000 escapees from the German occupation. The refugees came from the island of Samos, the
Dodecanese Islands, and mainland Greece. In the autumn of 1945, Dr. Parmelee was appointed to serve as the United Nations
Relief and Rehabilitation Administration's (UNRRA) Regional Medical Officer in the Cyclades Islands. From 1946 to 1947, Parmelee
returned to Athens, where she acted as Medical Advisor and Director of the Near East Foundation's School of Physical Therapy.
After a leave of absence spent in the United States, Dr. Parmelee returned again to Greece in 1948. She served Pierce College
in Elleniko (near Athens) until 1953, teaching hygiene, community health, and medical information for social workers. She
then returned to the United States, and died in 1973.
In recognition of her service, Dr. Parmelee received numerous awards for her work, with one such example being the Cross of
Commander of Our Royal Order of Beneficence by the King of Greece. She was appointed by King Paul of Greece as Commander of
the the Royal Order of Efpiia in 1953, received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Oberlin College in 1943, was awarded
the Silver Cross of the Chevalier of the Order of the Savior by King George II of Greece, and was given a citation for outstanding
and meritorious service in 1945 by General Sir Bernard Paget, British Commander of the Middle East Forces.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Ruth A. Parmelee papers include diaries, notes, correspondence, reports, clippings, printed matter, photographs, and awards
relating to the life and work of Dr. Ruth A. Parmelee. Parmelee was born and brought up in Turkey by her missionary parents.
After her education in the United States, she began a long career in establishing reliable medical service in the Near East.
Working in Turkey, Greece, and Palestine, Parmelee specialized in obstetrics, training nurses, caring for war orphans, and
in refugee relief work.
The collection consists of four series, each of which presents a different aspect of Dr. Parmelee's achievements. The
Correspondence series contains letters with family and friends, and provides a personal narrative account of setting up Parmelee's medical
practice, caring for refugees, and establishing nursing schools and hospitals. Typescripts and handwritten notes in the
Diaries series record Parmelee's daily routine, though the level of detail varies greatly from day to day. The
Work Files series comprises the bulk of the collection and provides an official account of Parmelee's work. Through reports and correspondence,
this series documents Parmelee's role in establishing nursing schools, promoting access to quality medical care among the
poor, and caring for refugees. It also reflects her efforts on behalf of several relief organizations, including the American
Women's Hospital, the Near East Foundation, and the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration. Finally, the
Photographs series illustrates Dr. Parmelee's travels, the cities and landscape where she lived, and her work in the camps, hospitals,
and nursing schools.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
World War, 1914-1918 -- Civilian relief
World War, 1914-1918 -- Medical care
Refugees
International relief
World War, 1939-1945 -- Civilian relief
World War, 1939-1945 -- Medical care
World War, 1914-1918 -- Turkey
World War, 1939-1945 -- Greece
World War, 1939-1945 -- Middle East
Greco-Turkish War, 1921-1922 -- Medical care
Nursing -- Greece
Near East Relief (Organization)
United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions
American Women's Hospitals
Near East Foundation
Correspondence
1895-1969
Scope and Contents note
Correspondence with Parmelee's family and friends, primarily dating from her work in Turkey and Greece from 1919 to 1953,
arranged chronologically. Correspondence directly related to Parmelee's work is found in the Work Files series.
box 1, folder 1
Letters from Julius
1895-1896
box 1, folder 2
Correspondence and selected reports
1919-1922
box 1, folder 3-5
Personal correspondence
1923-1969
box 1, folder 6-8
Letters to family
1943-1954
Scope and Contents note
Includes photographs.
Diaries
1913-1946
Scope and Contents note
Includes diaries describing Dr. Parmelee's daily life and work. Contains accounts of medical treatment, training nurses and
midwives, and soliciting funds for work. Also depicts conditions in Greece during World War II. Arranged chronologically.
box 1, folder 9
Line a Day
1913-1916, 1919, 1927, 1939-1941
box 1, folder 10
Five Year Diary
1934-1938
box 2, folder 1-3
Calendar, typescript
1935-1940
box 2, folder 3-4
Current events, typescript
1939 July 11 - 1941 July 19
box 2, folder 5
Journal
1941 July- November; 1943 March-December
box 2, folder 6
Calendar, typescript
1941 December - 1943 March
box 2, folder 7
Notes on Nuseirat and Cairo
1943-1944
box 2, folder 8-10
Handwritten notebooks
1945 February - 1946 February
box 8, folder 1
Handwritten notebooks
1946 February-November
Work Files
1863-1974
1863-1974
Scope and Contents note
Includes correspondence, reports, clippings, printed matter, and official documents reflecting Dr. Parmelee's work in Greece,
Turkey, and Palestine. This series illustrates Parmelee's role in establishing nursing schools in Greece, promoting access
to quality medical care among the poor, and caring for refugees displaced by the Armenian massacres, Greco-Turkish war, and
two World Wars. The material also reflects the career of Parmelee's friend and colleague Emilie Willms, and the involvement
of several relief organizations, including the American Women's Hospital, the Near East Foundation, and the United Nations
Relief and Rehabilitation Administration.
Arranged in three subseries: General, 1863-1969; Turkey, 1873-1974; and Greece, 1922-1973. Material relating to Nuseirat Refugee
Camp in Palestine is filed in the Greece subseries, since the refugees involved were Greek.
General
1863-1969
Scope and Contents note
Contains writings, official documents, notes, and clippings dealing with the entire course of Dr. Parmelee's career and upbringing,
arranged chronologically.
box 8, folder 2
Clippings from Parmelee scrapbooks
1863-1895
Scope and Contents note
Includes photographs.
box 3, folder 2
Work permits and travel documents
1896-1952
box 3, folder 5
Refugee stories, Armenian and Greek
1917-1954
box 3, folder 7
Outline of work
1960, 1969
box 3, folder 8
Vester, Bertha Spofford (Jerusalem)
1964
box 3, folder 9
Notes on Greek and Kurdish lessons
undated
Turkey
1873-1974
Scope and Contents note
Depicts Dr. Parmelee's upbringing in Trabzon and her early work setting up a medical practice in Harpoot that specialized
in obstetrics, care of war orphans, and training nurses. Arranged chronologically.
box 3, folder 11
Harpoot, Turkey
1922, 1966
Greece
1922-1973
Scope and Contents note
Reports, correspondence, clippings, and notes regarding Parmelee's work in Greece and Palestine. Depicts Parmelee's work establishing
and reforming hospitals, establishing nursing schools, and caring for refugees. In addition to work that took place in Greece,
this subseries includes material on Camp Nuseirat near Gaza, where Dr. Parmelee took charge of a camp of Greek refugees. Arranged
chronologically.
box 3, folder 12
American Women's Hospital, Salonica
1922-1932
box 3, folder 13-15
American Women's Hospital, general
1923-1952
box 3, folder 16
Nursing in Greece
1923-1935
box 4, folder 1
Nursing in Greece as related to Emilie Willms and Ruth Parmelee
1923-1960
box 4, folder 2-3
American Women's Hospital, Kokkinia, Greece
1929-1952
Scope and Contents note
Includes photographs.
box 4, folder 4
State School of Nursing (Greece)
1932-1937
box 4, folder 6-7
PIKPA School of Nursing
1934-1948
box 4, folder 9
World War II and occupation of Greece
1940-1947
box 4, folder 10
World War II, Greece
1941
box 4, folder 11
War relief, committee meetings
1941
box 4, folder 13-14
War relief, clippings
1941-1973
box 5, folder 1
Near East Foundation, Athens
1942-1947
box 5, folder 2
Near East Foundation annual reports
1941-1947
box 5, folder 3
Near East Foundation
1943-1948
Scope and Contents note
Includes photographs.
box 5, folder 4-5
Nuseirat refugee camp, Palestine
1943-1953
box 5, folder 6-7
Cyclades Islands
1944-1955
Photographs
1899-1957
Scope and Contents note
Contains photographic prints and negatives depicting Parmelee's work, including hospitals, staff, refugees. Includes images
of Turkey, Greece, and Palestine. Arranged chronologically.
envelope mA
Panoramic views of Erzroom and Trebizond, Turkey
undated
box 5, folder 8
Portraits: Tsaldaris, Kondylis, and Plastiras
undated
box 5, folder 14
Monastery orphanage and Voudritsa
undated
box 5, folder 17
Kindergarten - Trebizond
1899-1900
box 5, folder 18
Trebizond to Erzroom
circa 1900
box 5, folder 19
Trebizond and the road to Erzroom
1901
box 6, folder 1-3
Harpoot, Turkey
1906-1922
box 6, folder 4
Camp Lembet, Salonica
1922
box 6, folder 9
American Women's Hospital, Salonica and Kokkinia
1924-1932
box 6, folder 10-13
American Women's Hospital, Kokkinia
1927-1957
box 6, folder 14
American Women's Hospital, Kokkinia, and School of Nursing
1925-1934
box 6, folder 15
American Women's Hospital Clinic at Moschato
1929
box 6, folder 18
Children's Hospitals, St. Sophia and Kokkinia
1932-1940
box 6, folder 19
Princess Irene of Greece
1938
box 6, folder 20
P.I.K.P.A. School
1938-1939
box 7, folder 5
Near East Foundation
1941-1946
box 7, folder 6
Nuseirat Refugee Camp, Palestine
1944
box 7, folder 10
Cyclades Islands, Syros
1945
box 7, folder 11
Cyclades Islands, Milos
1945
box 7, folder 12
Cyclades Islands, Tinos
1945 August 15
box 7, folder 13
School of Physical Therapy, Athens
1946
box 7, folder 14
St. Sophia Children's Hospital
1947 August
box 7, folder 15
Naples and Gibraltar
1948
box 7, folder 16
Pierce College garden party for veterans (old campus)
1949 June 4
box 7, folder 17
Rehabilitation Center
1951
box 7, folder 18
Ekaterini, Sevasti, and Khora
1951-1952
box 7
Album of views of Trebizond, Egypt, Constantinople, and relief work in Trebizond
1895-1904
Incremental Materials 2022
box 9
Materials not yet described
box 10
Order of Beneficence medal from the King of Greece
Conditions Governing Access
Box 10 may not be used without permission of the Archivist.
