Family Card - Person Sheet
Family Card - Person Sheet
NameFlorence Augusta DUCKERING MD 
, 996
, 996Census1930, Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA37 Age: 17
Census3 April 1940, Washington Street, Suffolk, Boston, Massuchusetts, USA2201 Age: 27
Death21 January 1961, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, USA Age: 48
FatherCharles DUCKERING , 993 (1867-1933)
MotherLillian M BECKWITH , 4585 (1878-)
Notes for Florence Augusta DUCKERING MD
Florence received her M.D. from Tufts University School of Medicine in 1937. (Tuft's University 23.4.96)
(See article on William D. )
Birth records parents were living at 63 Radcliffe Street.
‘Resignations and expired appointments, June 1942 including resignations during 1941-42, Florence A Duckering, Assistant Physician. Annual reports number of the Wellesley College bulletin, Wellesley, Massachusetts October 15, 1942.
Florence arrived at New York on the 24th May 1953 on the ship Se-Bds-Swedish, the ship had boarded at Shannon.2217
Florence arrived New York on a Trans World flight 14th June 1954. See copy on file.2217
Duckering was pioneer of women doctors
Beth Dippel, For Sheboygan Press Media 5:39 p.m. CDT August 28, 2015
Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States, also helped create the Womens Central Association of Relief, training nurses to treat wounded soldiers during the Civil War.
It may seem strange today that until 1970, women never made up more than 6 percent of any medical school class in the United States.
Since then, the number of women venturing into medicine has increased greatly due to a number of factors: medical schools opened their doors to more students, the womens movement broke down barriers, greater numbers of women finished college and the ratification of the Equal Opportunity Act of 1972 and Title IX of 1972 demanded equal treatment for women. Today medical school enrollment is split nearly equally between men and women.
Oddly, women took active roles in medicine as early as 3500 B.C. in the ancient civilization of Ur, the home of the biblical Abraham, according to historic records. This highly developed culture, thriving centuries before the rise of Greek and Roman civilizations, found women to be quite able when it came to practicing medicine.
But, during the Middle Ages, society took a step backward when it forbade women from practicing surgery unless they assumed their husbands practices upon their deaths or unless they were deemed fit by a competent jury. King Henry VIII of England, a celebrated misogynist, proclaimed that No carpenter, smith, weaver or women shall practice surgery.
Nearly 300 years later, Elizabeth Blackwell, born in 1821, was the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States. Elizabeth Blackwells parents were Quakers. They believed in equality and educated their sons and daughters equally. So, when Blackwell decided to be a doctor, her family was totally supportive. Convincing the rest of the world, however, was not so easy.
Dr. Florence Duckering began practicing medicine in Sheboygan in September 1945, filling the vacancy of Dr. John Boersma, a physician at the clinic since 1936. Duckering was one of the earliest women to enter general medical practice in Sheboygan County. A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Duckering received her undergraduate degree from Massachusetts State College and her medical education from Tufts College in Boston graduating in 1937. She did her internship at the New England Hospital for Women and Children in Boston. She also began her practice in 1938 as an assistant to an ob-gyn where she began her training in that field. At the time she was called to Sheboygan Clinic in 1945, Duckering was engaged in specialized training at New Yorks Lying-in Hospital (maternity) operated in connection with Cornell University Medical Center. She showed an interest in medicine at an early age, it being something of a family affair. An aunt was the first female gynecologist to be admitted to the American College of Surgeons. She also had three uncles who were physicians. Famous for her gentle bedside manner, Duckering built up an extensive practice almost immediately in Sheboygan. Her success was due to her kindness, understanding and attention to both the medical and emotional needs of those in her care. The welfare of her patients was uppermost in her mind. Friends described it as almost fanatical. Outside of medicine, she loved to play contract bridge and travel, visiting Russia, India, China, South America, Europe and the Holy Land. A member of the First Congregational Church, she was also active in AAUW, Altrusa and the Sheboygan Camera Club. Dr. Florence Duckering died on Jan. 21, 1961, at the young age of 48. She practiced just 14 years in Sheboygan, but delivered more than 3,000 babies. She had given up her practice in November 1959 following surgery at Mayo Clinic for lung cancer. Her concern for others continued even after her death. The bulk of her estate, $50,000 to $75,000,was given to the American Friend Service Committee, a foreign service group operated by the Quaker faith. Duckering had witnessed the committees work when she visited the Far East just before her death. She described the Quakers work as plain, fundamental help where they taught practical skills, helping hungry people by teaching them to grow their own food, rather than just feeding them. Dr. Duckering helped break the glass ceiling in medicine, but she will be best remembered for her kindness and compassion for her patients. Beth Dippel is executive director of the Sheboygan County Historical Research Center, 518 Water St., Sheboygan Falls; 920-467-4667; schrc.org.Read or Share this story: http://shebpr.es/1F4iKk5http://www.sheboyganpress.com/story/news/local/2015/08/28/history-column/71338556/2218
From a newspaper cutting: ‘Dr Duckering Dies; Local Obstetrician. Dr Florence A. Duckering, the first woman physician to enter general practice in Sheboygan, died early today at her home, 2407 N. 7th St., Her death ends the dedicated career of an eminent woman doctor who devoted the last 23 years of her life to helping others. Associated with the Sheboygan Clinic since 1945 as a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, Dr Duckering had delivered well over 3,000 babies in her 14 years of active practice in Sheboygan. Dr Duckering was a fellow in the American College of Surgeons. She had given up her practice in November 1959, following surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., which disclosed that she was afflicted with a non-curable malignancy. Health Failed Rapidly. He health had failed rapidly since that time. During the past 6 months she had been confined exclusively to her home where, at her own request, she received only her most intimate friends. She died there in her sleep at 2 o’clock this morning. Dr Duckering, 48, was a native of Boston, Mass. She was born…’ do not have the rest of the cutting. See copy on file
(See article on William D. )
Birth records parents were living at 63 Radcliffe Street.
‘Resignations and expired appointments, June 1942 including resignations during 1941-42, Florence A Duckering, Assistant Physician. Annual reports number of the Wellesley College bulletin, Wellesley, Massachusetts October 15, 1942.
Florence arrived at New York on the 24th May 1953 on the ship Se-Bds-Swedish, the ship had boarded at Shannon.2217
Florence arrived New York on a Trans World flight 14th June 1954. See copy on file.2217
Duckering was pioneer of women doctors
Beth Dippel, For Sheboygan Press Media 5:39 p.m. CDT August 28, 2015
Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States, also helped create the Womens Central Association of Relief, training nurses to treat wounded soldiers during the Civil War.
It may seem strange today that until 1970, women never made up more than 6 percent of any medical school class in the United States.
Since then, the number of women venturing into medicine has increased greatly due to a number of factors: medical schools opened their doors to more students, the womens movement broke down barriers, greater numbers of women finished college and the ratification of the Equal Opportunity Act of 1972 and Title IX of 1972 demanded equal treatment for women. Today medical school enrollment is split nearly equally between men and women.
Oddly, women took active roles in medicine as early as 3500 B.C. in the ancient civilization of Ur, the home of the biblical Abraham, according to historic records. This highly developed culture, thriving centuries before the rise of Greek and Roman civilizations, found women to be quite able when it came to practicing medicine.
But, during the Middle Ages, society took a step backward when it forbade women from practicing surgery unless they assumed their husbands practices upon their deaths or unless they were deemed fit by a competent jury. King Henry VIII of England, a celebrated misogynist, proclaimed that No carpenter, smith, weaver or women shall practice surgery.
Nearly 300 years later, Elizabeth Blackwell, born in 1821, was the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States. Elizabeth Blackwells parents were Quakers. They believed in equality and educated their sons and daughters equally. So, when Blackwell decided to be a doctor, her family was totally supportive. Convincing the rest of the world, however, was not so easy.
Dr. Florence Duckering began practicing medicine in Sheboygan in September 1945, filling the vacancy of Dr. John Boersma, a physician at the clinic since 1936. Duckering was one of the earliest women to enter general medical practice in Sheboygan County. A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Duckering received her undergraduate degree from Massachusetts State College and her medical education from Tufts College in Boston graduating in 1937. She did her internship at the New England Hospital for Women and Children in Boston. She also began her practice in 1938 as an assistant to an ob-gyn where she began her training in that field. At the time she was called to Sheboygan Clinic in 1945, Duckering was engaged in specialized training at New Yorks Lying-in Hospital (maternity) operated in connection with Cornell University Medical Center. She showed an interest in medicine at an early age, it being something of a family affair. An aunt was the first female gynecologist to be admitted to the American College of Surgeons. She also had three uncles who were physicians. Famous for her gentle bedside manner, Duckering built up an extensive practice almost immediately in Sheboygan. Her success was due to her kindness, understanding and attention to both the medical and emotional needs of those in her care. The welfare of her patients was uppermost in her mind. Friends described it as almost fanatical. Outside of medicine, she loved to play contract bridge and travel, visiting Russia, India, China, South America, Europe and the Holy Land. A member of the First Congregational Church, she was also active in AAUW, Altrusa and the Sheboygan Camera Club. Dr. Florence Duckering died on Jan. 21, 1961, at the young age of 48. She practiced just 14 years in Sheboygan, but delivered more than 3,000 babies. She had given up her practice in November 1959 following surgery at Mayo Clinic for lung cancer. Her concern for others continued even after her death. The bulk of her estate, $50,000 to $75,000,was given to the American Friend Service Committee, a foreign service group operated by the Quaker faith. Duckering had witnessed the committees work when she visited the Far East just before her death. She described the Quakers work as plain, fundamental help where they taught practical skills, helping hungry people by teaching them to grow their own food, rather than just feeding them. Dr. Duckering helped break the glass ceiling in medicine, but she will be best remembered for her kindness and compassion for her patients. Beth Dippel is executive director of the Sheboygan County Historical Research Center, 518 Water St., Sheboygan Falls; 920-467-4667; schrc.org.Read or Share this story: http://shebpr.es/1F4iKk5http://www.sheboyganpress.com/story/news/local/2015/08/28/history-column/71338556/2218
From a newspaper cutting: ‘Dr Duckering Dies; Local Obstetrician. Dr Florence A. Duckering, the first woman physician to enter general practice in Sheboygan, died early today at her home, 2407 N. 7th St., Her death ends the dedicated career of an eminent woman doctor who devoted the last 23 years of her life to helping others. Associated with the Sheboygan Clinic since 1945 as a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, Dr Duckering had delivered well over 3,000 babies in her 14 years of active practice in Sheboygan. Dr Duckering was a fellow in the American College of Surgeons. She had given up her practice in November 1959, following surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., which disclosed that she was afflicted with a non-curable malignancy. Health Failed Rapidly. He health had failed rapidly since that time. During the past 6 months she had been confined exclusively to her home where, at her own request, she received only her most intimate friends. She died there in her sleep at 2 o’clock this morning. Dr Duckering, 48, was a native of Boston, Mass. She was born…’ do not have the rest of the cutting. See copy on file