[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 159 (Wednesday, September 26, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1307]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                HONORING THE LIFE OF MARY EDWARDS WALKER

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JOHN KATKO

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 26, 2018

  Mr. KATKO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Mary 
Edwards Walker, an abolitionist, physician, and service member from 
Oswego, New York. Walker dedicated her life to the practice of medicine 
and her country, serving as a surgeon with the Union Army throughout 
the Civil War. In recognition of her service to protect this nation, 
Mary Walker is the only woman to ever receive the Medal of Honor.
   Mary Edwards Walker was born in Oswego, New York and grew up in the 
decades leading up to the American Civil War. Born the youngest of 
seven children, Walker was raised in a manner that was well ahead of 
its time. Determined that their daughters get the same education as 
their sons, Walker's parents established an elementary school that she 
attended in the late 1830s. After primary school, Walker would continue 
her education at Falley Seminary in Fulton, New York. Attending Falley 
Seminary would instill in Walker the motivation she needed to defy the 
norms of her time.
   Walker then studied at the Syracuse Medical College and graduated, 
with honors, as a medical doctor in 1855 and was the only female in her 
class. After marrying later that year, Walker and her husband joined 
together to establish a practice in Rome, New York. She would later 
attend Bowen Collegiate Institute in 1960 before returning to the 
medical profession full-time.
   Though she was able to find eventual success in private practice, 
Walker answered to a higher calling and enlisted as a volunteer surgeon 
when the Civil War broke out. Though initially limited to serve 
strictly as a nurse, Walker would later be allowed to serve as an 
unpaid field surgeon during the Battles of Fredricksburg and 
Chickamauga. As the first female surgeon of the Union army, she later 
would be promoted to ``Contract Acting Assistant Surgeon'' and then 
appointed assistant surgeon of the 52nd Infantry of Ohio. In the spring 
of 1864, Walker was captured and arrested as a spy after aiding a 
Confederate doctor conduct an amputation. She was released four months 
later and spent the rest of her life in Oswego, New York, championing 
women's rights and suffrage.
   Mr. Speaker, I ask that my colleagues in the House join me to honor 
the remarkable life of Mary Edwards Walker. She was a trailblazing 
figure from Central New York who paved the way for future Americans. 
Her many contributions to her community and service to her country will 
not be forgotten.

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