Emily Dunning Barringer, M.D.

From Bowery to Hollywood: Emily Dunning Barringer, MD, Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine - an exhibit at the New York Academy of Medicine Library

 

In 1903, Emily Dunning Barringer, MD became the first woman to serve as an ambulance surgeon in New York City. She was also an advocate for women's health, with a particular interest in venereal diseases and the plight of female inmates in New York prisons. With the coming of the second World War, she worked tirelessly to allow women physicians to serve as commissioned officers in the armed services.
In 1950, she wrote an autobiography, "From Bowery to Bellevue", about her experiences as an ambulance surgeon in 1903. Two years after the book's publication, a movie version, "The Girl in White", was released.
This exhibit explores Dr. Barringer's real and reel lives; journal and newspaper articles, photographs, and books explore her professional life, while  posters, ads, and memorobilia provide insight into the marketing of the film.
The exhibit is on display in the Library, 3rd Floor of the New York Academy of Medicine, 1216 Fifth Avenue, New York NY. The display is available for viewing Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, from 9am to 5pm and Wednesday from 9am to 7pm.