Interview with Helen H. Fortune, Carl H. Fortune, October 6, 1978

Partial Transcript: This is an interview with Mrs. Helen Hifner Fortune and Dr. Carl D. Fortune for the oral history project, Frontier Nursing Service, by Dale Deaton at approximately 2:30 p.m. on October 6, 1978.

Segment Synopsis: Helen Fortune discusses her father's job as the certified public accountant for the Frontier Nursing Service. She discusses the records that Mary Breckinridge brought in and how he helped her sort them out. She talks about how the FNS patients traded goods or labor for their services.

Keywords: Auditing; Bills; CPAs; Certified public accountants; Debts; FNS; Fathers; Friends; Labor; Records; Trades; W. A. Hifner, Jr.

Subjects: Accounts; Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965; Debt.; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Women accountants

Partial Transcript: Do you, uh--(coughs)--do you recall anything your father said about her, when he, when he first met her? What impression did she make on him with the riding clothes and the saddlebags and all of that?

Segment Synopsis: H. Fortune discusses her father's first impression of Mary Breckinridge as well as her own. She talks about Mrs. Breckinridge's personality, and how she continued to raise money for the FNS even during the Great Depression.

Keywords: Audits; Couriers; Faith; Great Depression; Hair; Money

Subjects: Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965; Depressions--1929--Kentucky; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Fund raising

Partial Transcript: You being the first woman certified public accountant in Kentucky, and Mrs. Breckinridge being in the position she was in, did you ever talk with her any about the accomplishments of women during that period?

Segment Synopsis: H. Fortune talks about whether she ever spoke with Mrs. Breckinridge about women's accomplishments, and gives her opinion on women's rights. She talks about the reasons Mary Breckinridge began the FNS, including her work with the Committee for Devastated France and her familiarity with the midwife program in England.

Keywords: Accomplishments; Ann Morgan; Annual meetings; Children; Committee for Devastated France; Demanding; Democratic; Equal Rights Amendment (ERA); FNS; Midwives; Mountain dialect; Mountain people; WWI

Subjects: Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965; Feminism; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Women accountants; Women's rights; World War, 1914-1918

Partial Transcript: Dr. Fortune, how did you first become associated with Frontier Nurs--

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Carl Fortune discusses his role on the Frontier Nursing Service Medical Advisory Board. He talks about the meetings of the Frontier Nursing Service Board of Governors, and about various treasurers for the FNS.

Keywords: Board of governors; Doctors; FNS; Manuals; Medical advisory boards; Nurses; Security Trust Company; Treasurers

Subjects: Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical care--Appalachian Region

Partial Transcript: I think, uh, my most vivid memory of Mrs. Breckinridge was the first time that I ever went up to, uh, uh, Wendover.

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Fortune talks about his own first impressions of Mary Breckinridge on his first trip to Wendover. He discusses her personality and what he learned of her background. He talks briefly about the board of governors meetings. He discusses the new FNS hospital that was built in the area, and how they obtained the funding.

Keywords: Board of governors; Dr. Josephine Hunt; FNS; Funding; Government funding; Horses; Impressions; In charge; Meetings; New hospital; Patients; Peggy Alomar; Russia; Secretaries; Talking

Subjects: Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical care--Appalachian Region; Wendover (Ky.)

Partial Transcript: And the early days, too, uh, uh, the government looked very much askance at, at midwifery.

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Fortune talks about the local doctors and others in the medical profession who were opposed to the Frontier Nursing Service or to the practice of midwifery.

Keywords: Antagonism; Cooperation; England; FNS; Graduate school; Medical profession; Opposition; Training; University of Kentucky

Subjects: Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Frontier School of Midwifery and Family Nursing; Midwifery; Midwives

Partial Transcript: Well the doctors that became associated with it from Lexington, do you think any of them would have supported the same type of organization in the Bluegrass region?

Segment Synopsis: Dr. Fortune discusses how Mrs. Breckinridge convinced doctors and other medical professionals to support the Frontier Nursing Service. He talks especially about how her personality helped her keep the FNS running despite the general opposition to midwifery.

Keywords: Breckinridge family; Connections; Detroit (Mich.); Doctors; Kate Ireland; Lexington (Ky.); Medical profession; Opposition; Personality; Problems; Toledo (Ohio)

Subjects: Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Midwifery; Midwives; Wendover (Ky.)

Partial Transcript: Well Mrs. Breckinridge, after she wrote her book, she burned most of her personal notes and so forth.

Segment Synopsis: H. Fortune and Dr. Fortune discuss what they knew of Mary Breckinridge's private life. They talk about her broken back, which prevented her from horseback riding. They talk about her faith in the success of the FNS.

Keywords: Broken back; Dictation; FNS; Faith; Horseback riding; Image; New York; Pain; Patients; Private life; Spiritualism; Success; Surgery

Subjects: Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.

Partial Transcript: Well when you went there as guests to Wendover, uh, what did you--were you presented with, uh, you know, the situations--the medical situations in that area or were you--

Segment Synopsis: H. Fortune and Dr. Fortune talk about visiting Wendover as guests. They talk about what may have convinced doctors who visited the area to provide their support for the FNS, and whether the doctors were aware of the lack of medical care in the area before their visits.

Keywords: Annual meetings; Board of governors; Guests; Kentucky; Lack of medical care; Medical conditions; needs

Subjects: Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical care--Appalachian Region; Wendover (Ky.)

Partial Transcript: Well she's--FNS and Mrs. Breckinridge were--are recognized as keeping detailed records on everything.

Segment Synopsis: H. Fortune and Dr. Fortune discuss the detailed records kept by the FNS on their patients, and their numbers for infant and maternal mortality rates. They talk about the FNS's connection to the state public health department. They talk about how Medicaid made the FNS's operations difficult for some time.

Keywords: Data; Diphtheria; Dr. McCormick; FNS; Germs; Government; Hospitals; Infant mortality rates; Maternal deaths; Medicaid; Recognition; Records; Reimbursement; State public health department; Worms

Subjects: Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical care--Appalachian Region

Partial Transcript: Can either of you think of anything else that we haven't talked about that you would like to tell me about?

Segment Synopsis: H. Fortune and Dr. Fortune talk about other people connected to the FNS that the interviewer, Dale Deaton, could contact in regards to his oral history project. [The interview cuts off abruptly.]

Keywords: Biography; Board of governors; Books; Contacts; Dr. Francis Massey; Frontier Nursing Service; Senile

Subjects: Oral history.