April 29, 2003

BIRMINGHAM, AL — She tended wounded soldiers in Poland after the Great War and served in Galveston, Texas, after the catastrophic hurricane of 1900. She battled Georgia’s great malaria epidemic in 1899. And she was the first nurse in Alabama to receive the coveted pin of an American Red Cross Nurse. Linna Hamilton Denny’s contributions to nursing, to Alabama and to the University of Alabama School of Nursing at UAB are legion.

Linna Denny, R.N., was a pre-eminent figure in the field of nursing in the state, and UAB will honor her memory and the field of nursing with a display on “The Life of Linna Denny” beginning during National Nurses Week, May 6-12, at the Lister Hill Library, 1700 University Boulevard.

The display will include items from the collections of the UAB Alabama Museum of the Health Sciences, including one of Denny’s American Red Cross pins; a portrait of Denny on loan from the School of Nursing and a commemorative album created after her death in 1955 by Red Cross volunteer Esther Howell Gross. The album was donated to UAB Archives by the School of Nursing.

“Nurses Week is a time when nurses are celebrated for their contributions,” says Patricia Cleveland, archivist for the School of Nursing Alumni Association Chapter and a retired faculty member. “We remember those pioneering individuals who helped make nursing what it is today. Linna Denny was one of those nurses.”

Born in Illinois in 1864, Denny spent much of her adult life in Alabama. She was the first nurse in the state and only the 46th in the nation to receive the prestigious certification as a Red Cross Nurse in 1900. She became the first president and executive secretary of the Alabama State Nurses Association.

Denny received an honorary Doctor of Humanities from the University of Alabama in 1952 in recognition of over 35 years of nursing service to the state. While serving as secretary of the State Board of Nursing Examiners, her advocacy of specialized education for nurses is hailed as the cornerstone of the School of Nursing.

“What makes Miss Denny’s life so inspiring, in addition to her considerable accomplishments, was the way she approached life,” says Cleveland. “Full of boundless energy and tireless devotion, she served in a magnanimous capacity to help others and elevate the status of nurses. Miss Denny’s nursing adventures remind us that she was truly a gem among nurses.”

Denny was among the first 12 people inducted into the Alabama Nursing Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Alabama Healthcare Hall of Fame in 2001.

The display of Denny’s life will run from May 5 through June 23 on the first floor of the Lister Hill Library and is sponsored by the Alumni Association Chapter and the School of Nursing in partnership with Historical Collections.