Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

“TAYLOR MEDAL” “EILEEN HILL – 1941”

Date

1941

Materials

METAL, GOLD PLATE

No. Pieces

1

Height

0.5

Length

4.25

Width

4

Description

CIRCULAR MEDAL SUSPENDED BY LINK FROM HORIZONTAL PIN BAR, GOLD-PLATED. FRONT PERIMETER OF MEDAL HAS REPEATING LEAF MOTIF, WITH ENGRAVED TEXT AT CENTRE READING “TAYLOR MEDAL”. BACK OF MEDAL IS ENGRAVED WITH TEXT READING “EILEEN HILL – 1941” AND STAMPED “BIRKS – 10K”. BACK OF PIN BAR HAS STRAIGHT PIN WITH CLASP CLOSURE. DISCOLOURATION ON MEDAL BACK; OVERALL VERY GOOD CONDITION.

Subjects

PERSONAL SYMBOL

Historical Association

HEALTH SERVICES

EDUCATION

COMMEMORATIVE

History

AT THE TIME OF DONATION, GALT SCHOOL OF NURSING ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION PAST ARCHIVIST ELAINE HAMILTON IDENTIFIED THIS MEDAL AS “DR. FRANK H. MEWBURN OBE TAYLOR MEDAL – EILEEN HALL”. ACCORDING TO GALT ARCHIVES RECORD 20111072 AND AN ARTICLE FROM THE JANUARY 31, 1941 ISSUE OF THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD, THE LOUISE TAYLOR MEMORIAL MEDAL WAS AWARDED FOR PROFICIENCY TO A GRADUATE OF THE GALT SCHOOL OF NURSING EACH YEAR. THE AWARD WAS DONATED BY LOCAL DOCTOR D.A. TAYLOR IN MEMORY OF HIS WIFE, LOUISE TAYLOR, WHO DIED IN 1916. IN 1941, EILEEN HILL OF VULCAN WON THE MEDAL “FOR GENERAL PROFICIENCY WITH AN AVERAGE IN ACADEMIC MARKS OF 83 PER CENT FOR HER THREE YEARS TRAINING”. THE MEDAL WAS PRESENTED BY DR. T.E. BROWN AS PART OF THE CLASS OF 1941 GRADUATION CEREMONY AT SOUTHMINSTER CHURCH. IN SUMMER 2014, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN KEVIN MACLEAN INTERVIEWED THE PAST ARCHIVISTS OF THE GALT SCHOOL OF NURSING COLLECTION, SHIRLEY HIGA, ELAINE HAMILTON, AND SUE KYLLO, ABOUT THEIR INVOLVEMENT WITH THE GSN ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION AND THE HISTORY OF THE COLLECTED ARTIFACTS. HIGA, THE EARLIEST GSN COLLECTION ARCHIVIST, SAID: “I TRAINED MOSTLY AT THE GALT. THE STUDENTS, WE ALL KNEW EACH OTHER, HELPED EACH OTHER BECAUSE THERE WERE MOSTLY STUDENTS THERE: ONE REGISTERED NURSE FROM 7AM TO 7PM. THE REST WERE ALL US STUDENTS THAT RAN THE HOSPITAL SO, BUT WE WERE REALLY GOOD FRIENDS AND WE HELPED EACH OTHER… WE HAD SUCH GOOD RAPPORT BETWEEN THE STUDENTS IN MY CLASS… I JOINED [THE ALUMNAE] WHEN I GRADUATED IN 1955… I WAS INTERESTED IN HOW EVERYBODY TURNED OUT, AND THE ALUMNAE SORT OF KEPT IN CONTACT WITH THEM, AND IT WAS QUITE IMPORTANT TO ME. I FELT QUITE HAPPY TO HEAR ABOUT ALL THE OTHER [NURSES]… IT’S NICE WHEN THEY CAME FOR THE REUNIONS. YOU SEE ALL THESE GIRLS YOU WORKED WITH, MAYBE ONLY FOR A LITTLE WHILE, BUT YOU REMEMBER THEM… I REALLY DIDN’T WANT TO BE THE ARCHIVIST, BUT WE DON’T HAVE TOO MANY PEOPLE THAT OFFER TO DO THINGS… I WAS INTERESTED IN ALL THE HISTORY AND ALL THE THINGS THAT THE GIRLS THOUGHT ABOUT IT… [THE ARCHIVIST WAS TO] KEEP TRACK OF ALL THE HISTORY AND THE PEOPLE THAT WERE INVOLVED, AND KEEP TRACK OF THE STUFF WE COLLECT[ED]… [THE COLLECTION IS IMPORTANT TO ME BECAUSE] I LIKE EVERYBODY TO KNOW ABOUT THE GALT AND HOW WE TRAINED AND HOW IT PROGRESSED… AS YOU GET OLDER YOU KIND OF HAVE MEMORIES THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO KEEP, AND YOU KNOW YOU THINK ABOUT THOSE THINGS… [WHEN] YOU LOOK AT [THE OBJECTS] YOU REMEMBER.” ELAINE HAMILTON BECAME THE GSN COLLECTION ARCHIVIST IN THE LATE 1980S AFTER SHIRLEY HIGA STEPPED DOWN. OF THE ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION, HAMILTON SAID: “I THINK THE RETIRED NURSES DECIDED THAT THEY SHOULD FORM A GROUP TO HELP THE STUDENTS… I WASN’T THERE BUT IT WAS ’45 WHEN THEY FORMED, AND THEY DID THINGS FOR THE NURSES STUDENTS LIKE, THEY BOUGHT FURNITURE [FOR STUDENT RESIDENCES]… THEY DID A WHOLE BUNCH OF BAKE SALES AND CRAFT SALES; THEY WORKED AT THE BULL SALE OUT AT THE EXHIBITION GROUNDS. THEY DID A LOT OF THINGS LIKE THAT TO RAISE MONEY FOR LITTLE THINGS THAT COULDN’T BE BOUGHT OTHERWISE, LIKE THE PATIENT COMFORT, LIKE PATIENTS WOULD COME IN WITHOUT TOOTHBRUSHES AND COMBS… THEY HAD A BANQUET [FOR NURSING STUDENTS], AND THEY HAD A TEA WITH OUR PARENTS TOO, FOR US IN THE RESIDENCE… FOR ME, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING WAS THE BANQUETS, AND HAVING MY CLASSMATES COME EVERY FIVE YEARS, BECAUSE THEY ARE LIKE SISTERS TO ME… OF COURSE I LIKE HISTORY AND ARCHIVES TOO SO [THE COLLECTION] IS KIND OF IMPORTANT TO ME TOO… WE LIVED TOGETHER, AND ATE TOGETHER, AND CRIED TOGETHER AND DID EVERYTHING TOGETHER FOR THREE YEARS, BECAUSE WE LIVED RIGHT IN A RESIDENCE. SO, WE BECAME VERY CLOSE… AND IF YOU WORK IN THE ALUMNI, YOU BECOME KIND OF LIKE A LITTLE FAMILY TOO BECAUSE THERE’S NOT THAT MANY OF US THAT GO TO OUR MEETINGS, SO WHEN WE GET TOGETHER, IT’S KIND OF NICE TO SHARE WHAT’S BEEN GOING ON… IT’S A FELLOWSHIP.” OF THE GSN COLLECTION, HAMILTON SAID: “IT’S AN ACCUMULATION OF ARTIFACTS FROM THE HOSPITALS AND FROM OUR TRAINING DAYS. AND, IT’S PART OF THE HISTORY OF LETHBRIDGE IN A WAY, BECAUSE THE SCHOOL WAS HERE FOR QUITE A WHILE… I’M A CARE GIVER AND I LIKE TO LOOK AFTER STUFF. SO, IT WAS IMPORTANT TO ME THAT IT GOT CARED FOR… I THINK WITH THE CLOSING [OF THE GALT SCHOOL OF NURSING, IN 1979] WE GOT ALL THE CHARTS, AND WE ALREADY HAD THINGS FROM THE GALT HOSPITAL IN OUR STUFF THAT PROBABLY SOMEBODY [BEFORE HIGA] ACCEPTED… WHEN WE WENT INTO THE MUNICIPAL HOSPITAL [IN 1955] IT WAS ALL BRAND NEW, STAINLESS STEEL, SO THERE WAS NONE OF THE ENAMEL STUFF, AND THEN WHEN THE MUNICIPAL CLOSED [IN 1988], THE OPERATING ROOM GAVE US A LOT OF THINGS. THERE WERE A LOT OF DONATIONS THEN FROM DIFFERENT SPOTS BECAUSE THEY DIDN’T WANT TO MOVE STUFF SINCE IT WAS OLD… WE GOT A PLACE [FOR STORING THE COLLECTION IN THE REGIONAL HOSPITAL], ACTUALLY ABOVE THE WASHERS IN THE LAUNDRY FIRST. BUT IT WAS PRETTY MOIST UP THERE. AND THEN THEY GAVE US A ROOM IN THE SEWING ROOM, WHICH WAS VERY NICE, OUR OWN SEPARATE LITTLE ROOM THERE FOR OUR STORAGE… WE HAD THINGS UP ON A SHELF AND WE HAD A TRUNK IN THERE, AND… WE HAD ALL THE LETTERS FROM THE RESIDENCE… WE HAD A DISPLAY CASE THAT THEY BUILT AT THE REGIONAL [IN THE HOSPITAL ATRIUM] AND WE HAD STUFF IN THERE, AND WE’D MOVE IT AROUND… HAVING THE DISPLAY CASE WAS IMPORTANT TO ME, AND CHANGING THE UNIFORM ON [THE DISPLAY MANNEQUIN] EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE, AND HAVING HER IN DIFFERENT OUTFITS… I ALWAYS HAD IT ALL TIDY FOR A REUNION… I WOULD CHANGE THE UNIFORM FOR THEM, DEPENDING ON WHAT CLASS WAS HAVING THEIR REUNION.” SUE KYLLO BECAME THE GSN COLLECTION ARCHIVIST IN 2010 AFTER ELAINE HAMILTON STEPPED DOWN. OF THE ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION, KYLLO SAID: “[I ATTENDED THE GALT SCHOOL OF NURSING] FROM ’66 TO ’69, AND I JOINED IN 1976 AFTER I CAME BACK TO LETHBRIDGE. I HAD TWO LITTLE KIDS AND I WANTED TO GET OUT AND MEET PEOPLE AND THE ALUMNI GAVE ME THAT… I WANTED TO STAY IN TOUCH WITH MY NURSING FRIENDS AND SEE IF I CAN HELP OUT IN SOME WAY… THE ALUMNI IS THE WAY TO GO TO KEEP OUR NURSING MEMORIES ALIVE AND I WANT TO DO THAT. SO NOW IT’S IMPORTANT TO ME WAY MORE THAN WHEN I WAS A YOUNG MOTHER THAT WANTED TO GET OUT… IT MEANS COMPANIONSHIP [AND] TO HELP EACH OTHER.” OF THE GSN COLLECTION, KYLLO SAID: “I DON’T KNOW HOW IT GOT STARTED. I WOULD THINK THAT MRS. BOYCHUCK WOULD HAVE A LOT TO DO WITH IT BECAUSE [SHE] WAS VERY ACTIVE IN THE ALUMNI AT THE BEGINNING, AND I WOULD THINK THAT IF ANYBODY, IT WOULD BE HER THAT STARTED COLLECTING THE ODD LITTLE THING, AND THEN IT WENT TO SHIRLEY. I DON’T KNOW THAT THERE WAS ANYBODY BEFORE SHIRLEY… OUR ALUMNI ONLY STARTED IN [1945], SO THERE WERE THOSE PERIODS WHERE I DON’T THINK ANYBODY CARED ABOUT ANY OF THIS STUFF… TO ME, IT MEANS AN AWFUL LOT. IT MEANS THAT WE EXISTED REALLY… IF WE DIDN’T HAVE ALL THIS STUFF, WELL WHAT WERE WE? A NURSE, WHAT DOES A NURSE DO? WITH THIS WE CAN SHOW THEM THAT WE DIDN’T JUST GIVE BEDPANS. WE DID A LOT OF THINGS, AND I’M REALLY PROUD THAT WE HAVE WHAT WE’VE GOT.” OF THE SITUATION LEADING UP TO THE DONATION OF THE GSN COLLECTION TO THE GALT MUSEUM, KYLLO SAID: “WE HAD A DISPLAY AT THE NORTH END OF THE HOSPITAL [THAT] WAS GOING TO STAY THERE [AND ADDITIONAL COLLECTION STORAGE] AND WE DIDN’T HAVE A PROBLEM... WE WERE ALWAYS UNDER THE IMPRESSION OF ALL THE PAST ADMINISTRATIONS THAT WE ALWAYS HAD A PLACE IN THAT HOSPITAL… NOW THAT ALL THE OLD GUYS HAVE GONE, THEY JUST UP AND MOVED [THE COLLECTION, IN FALL 2012] AND DIDN’T CARE. THEY WERE BUILDING A NEW WING AND ‘TO HECK WITH YOUR GUYS’ STUFF’… NOBODY WANTED TO EVEN TALK TO US ABOUT IT. I FINALLY GOT AHOLD OF THE GUY IN CHARGE OF MAINTENANCE, [HE] SAID, “WELL IT’S UPSTAIRS IN THE PENTHOUSE.” WELL, WE KNEW WHAT THE PENTHOUSE WAS LIKE, BECAUSE IT WAS VERY HOT AND YOU DON’T WANT [THESE ARTIFACTS] IN SOMEPLACE REALLY HOT, SO I WANTED IT OUT OF THERE… SO THAT’S WHEN IT WENT OUT INTO A STORAGE LOCKER. AND IN THE STORAGE LOCKER… IT WAS JUST NOT CLEAN ENOUGH TO BE IN THERE… WE WERE VERY DISAPPOINTED.” HAMILTON ADDED: “WE DIDN’T HAVE ANYWHERE FOR [THE COLLECTION], AND IT’S IN PEOPLE’S GARAGES AND BASEMENTS AND LIVING ROOMS… [THE MUSEUM IS HOUSED IN] THE GALT HOSPITAL. AND A LOT OF OUR MEMBERS TRAINED HERE. SO IT’S PRETTY SPECIAL TO THEM, AND THEY WOULD LIKE TO LEAVE SOMETHING HERE TO BE REMEMBERED BY… IT’S VERY IMPORTANT TO US TO LEAVE SOMETHING BEHIND.” SEE PERMANENT FILE FOR HARDCOPIES OF FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTS AND NEWSPAPER CLIPPING.

Catalogue Number

P20140006035

Acquisition Date

2014-03

Collection

Museum

Less detail