Throwback Thursday: Sabula's Pioneer Medicine Woman

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THROWBACK THURSDAY: Sabula’s Pioneer Medicine Woman

by Clearfield County Historical Society

 

 Thursday, April 7, 2022

 

in Features, Local News, Top Stories

 

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Mary McCoullough Osborne (1839-1926) lived in the Sabula and Narrows Creek area of Sandy Township.  Mary was the eighth child of William and Mary McCoullough.  She married Henry Osborne in 1858.  

The two were both raised in Jefferson County and relocated to Sabula in Clearfield County one year after they were married.   When Mary was 37 years old her husband passed away and she was left a widow with two children.

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The woods of Sabula where they lived had neighbors scattered widely as other families were settling in the area.  In those days there was much sickness and very little doctoring in the backwoods.

Mary always traveled over the hills and through the valleys to tend to the sick, comfort the dying and help families as they grieved. 

The locals would ride their horses to Mary’s cabin first and then into a more populated area for a doctor.  The doctors were not readily available most times.

In the winter of 1879-80, a diphtheria epidemic struck the community.  The sickness spread from house to house throughout Sabula like wildfire.

In those days, people helped one another in time of sickness, but not during this outbreak for fear of risking their lives and the lives of their families.  Mary was one person who took that risk. 

She went to every home that needed caring for the sick and dying.  She also helped prepare the dead for burial. 

After the epidemic was over, Mary was credited with saving the lives of many of her neighbors.  Throughout all this time, she and her children never fell ill.  The sickness escaped them.

Mary was also known for her home remedies and delivering many children.  She never kept count because she was too busy.  She was 78 years old when she helped with her last baby delivery and had her last sick call.  

Mary was laid to rest next her husband in Jefferson County 50 years after his death.  She was 86 years old when she passed away.