Orianna was born 11 Aug 1834 at the family estate known as Viewmont in Albemarle County, Virginia. She was the second of seven children and the oldest of five daughters born to Edward Harris Moon (a farmer) and Orianna "Anna" Maria Barclay.
16-year-old Orianna (shown as Oraannaa) appears in the 1850 Census with her family in Albemarle, Virginia. A Baptist Minister, J H Fox, is in their household, possibly as a boarder : [1]
Household | Role | Sex | Age |
---|---|---|---|
Edward H Moon | Head | M | 45 |
Ann M Moon | Wife | F | 41 |
Thomas Moon | Son | M | 19 |
Oraanna Moon | Daughter | ||
Isaac Moon | Son | M | 14 |
Charlotte Moon | Daughter | F | 10 |
Sarah Moon | Daughter | F | 6 |
Mary Moon | Daughter | F | 2 |
J H Fox | Other | M | 33 |
Orianna chose to attend Troy Female Seminary, a preparatory school in New York. After graduating, she announced that she wanted to follow in her brother's footsteps and become a doctor. Her parents were supportive of this decision.
She studied medicine at the Female Medical College of Pennsylvania (later Woman's College of Pennsylvania) in Philadelphia from 1854 to 1857. In 1856 Orianna submitted her thesis on the relation between cardiac and pulmonary disease. She graduated as a Doctor of Medicine on 28 Feb 1857. At the time, she was one of 38 women who had received medical degrees in the United States. After graduation, she went to Europe to spend another year on her medical studies. While abroad, she too an extended trip to Jerusalem with her missionary uncle James Turner Barclay.
As the Civil War broke out, Orianna was determined to use her skills in the war effort, despite the fact that only men were permitted to serve as surgeons. She was just 27 years old when she was recruited by the Confederacy and hurried to Charlottesville to volunteer her services when the wounded started pouring into the town. She supervised a ward in the local hospital and began to turn university buildings into hospital units.
Although doctors who worked beside Orianna respected her medical skills and dedication (in 1913 letter written by Dr. Peter Winston who ran the ward next to her), there were still those who believed that "no woman ought to dream of entering the ranks of the medical profession", even those like Orianna who demonstrated "high character and fine intelligence". (Dr. Edward Warren, medical inspector of the Army of Northern Virginia)
Following the Battle of Bull Run, Orianna was called in as a additional surgeon to examine the brother of Dr. John Summerfield Andrews, himself a commissioned surgeon. Unfortunately, John's brother died, however this was the beginning of a lasting relationship.
Orianna married Dr. John Summerfield Andrews on 28 Nov 1861. [2]They worked together treating the wounded until the fall of the Confederacy. The couple continued practicing medicine together (although the Census records don't indicate this) in Tennessee, and then in Scottsville Virginia where they established a hospital. Orianna and John had at least eight sons:
The family was in Hardin, Tennessee in 1870: [3]
Household | Sex | Age | Birthplace | Occupation |
---|---|---|---|---|
John L Andrews | M | 31 | Tennessee | Physician |
Orie Andrews | F | 35 | Virginia | Keeping house |
James B Andrews | M | 6 | Virginia | |
William T Andrews | M | 5 | Virginia |
and in Slate River, Buckingham, Virginia in 1880: [4]
Household | Role | Sex | Age | Birthplace | Occupation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
John S Andrews | Head | M | 42 | Tennessee | Physician |
Orie M Andrews | Wife | F | 45 | Virginia | Keeping house |
James B Andrews | Son | M | 16 | Virginia | Works on farm |
William L Andrews | Son | M | 15 | Virginia | Works on farm |
Sam Bryant Andrews | Son | M | 7 | Virginia | |
Isaac M Andrews | Son | M | 6 | Virginia | |
Owen M Andrews | Son | M | 4 | Virginia | |
Frank M Andrews | Son | M | 0 | Virginia | |
Robert Kidd | Servant | M | 22 | Virginia | laborer |
She passed away 26 Dec 1883 of ovarian cancer in Scottsville, Albermarle, Virginia and was buried in Scottsville Cemetery in Scottsville.[5]
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M > Moon | A > Andrews > Orianna Russell (Moon) Andrews
Categories: Scottsville, Virginia | Hardin County, Tennessee | Nurses, United States Civil War | Pennsylvania, Physicians | Tennessee, Physicians | Virginia, Physicians | Scottsville Cemetery, Scottsville, Virginia