Mabel Seagrave


Mabel Seagrave was an American doctor who directed a hospital in France during World War I, and was decorated by the French government for her service.

Early life

Seagrave was born in Cheyenne, Wyoming and raised in Seattle, Washington, the daughter of Arthur Amasa Seagrave and Selina Stone Glass Seagrave. Her father built and operated a hotel in Seattle. She was valedictorian at Seattle High School in 1900. She attended Wellesley College, graduating in 1905, and Johns Hopkins University, where she earned her medical degree in 1912.

Career

Immediately after medical school, Seagrave focused on oral surgery, especially in children, at the Municipal Clinic of Seattle.
Seagrave joined the staff of Women's Oversea Hospitals in 1918, and was first posted to a refugee hospital in the south of France. After the armistice, she worked at a Red Cross hospital at Foug, and headed the Hopital Jeanne D'Arc at Nancy, France. She was presented with a medal from the French government in 1919.
After the war, Seagrave concentrated on obstetric and gynecological surgery. She was elected to the American College of Surgeons in 1928. She was active in the Women's Overseas Service League and the Women's University Club of Seattle. At the time of her death in 1935, she was Chief of Staff at Seattle General Hospital.

Personal life

Mabel Seagrave died suddenly from apoplexy in 1935, aged 53 years, at her home in Seattle. Seagrave's papers are archived at the University of Washington Libraries.