Nurse.
Born at Fletcher, Kent County, Ontario on 14 January 1878, daughter of Francis Beattie “Frank” Stewart (1840-1914) and Elizabeth Farquharson (1845-1919), sister of David Alexander Stewart, she trained as a nurse in the Winnipeg General Hospital in 1900. She was a supervisor at the hospital and later directed nursing education at the Teachers’ College of Columbia University.
During the 1930s, she toured the world to make a survey of nursing and, at one time, was voted “the most famous nurse in the world”. In recognition of her nursing service, she received an honorary doctorate from the University of Manitoba (1956), a medal from the government of Finland, and the Florence Nightingale Award from the International Red Cross.
She died at Chatham, New Jersey on 5 October 1963.
“‘Most famous’ nurse dies,” Winnipeg Free Press 9 October 1963.
Ontario birth registration [Isabella Maitland Stewart], Ancestry.
We thank Emma Prescott for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 2 July 2025
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