Compare Constellations

American physician and relief worker in Turkey, 1914-1917 and 1919-1922; Greece, 1922-1941 and 1945-1947; and Palestine, 1943-1945.

Biographical Note

Ruth A. Parmelee was born in Trebizond (now called Trabzon), Turkey on April 3, 1885. She studied with her missionary parents, Dr. and Mrs. M.P. Parmelee, until the family returned to the United States when she was eleven years old. Parmelee received her B.A. from Oberlin College in 1907 and her M.D. from the University of Illinois in 1912. She completed her internship at Philadelphia Women's Hospital.

Dr. Parmelee sailed for Turkey in May 1914 and was the first woman physician to settle in the Euphrates Valley. She set up a medical practice in Harpoot, specializing in obstetrics, care of war orphans, and training nurses. She continued this work until 1917, then resumed the same post from 1919-1922. In October of 1922, she moved to Thessaloniki, Greece, where she worked under the American Women's Hospitals (AWH) organization, and with their support opened a hospital and the first school of nursing in Greece. From 1925-1933, Dr. Parmelee was appointed Director of the AWH Grecian Area. During this period, she directed the hospital in Kokkinia and continued to run the school of nursing, which moved with her from Thessaloniki. At Kokkinia, Dr. Parmelee was assisted by Emilie Willms, R.N.

After a period of sick leave in the United States, Dr. Parmelee returned to Greece. From 1935-1941, she settled in Athens and worked with several institutions as an advisor, council member, or director, including: Athens Municipal Hospital, Kokkinia Hospital, Council for a Nursing School for Public Health, Patriotic Foundation of Social Welfare and Prevention (PIKPA) School of Nursing, Archbishop's Committee for Relief of Bombarded Families, Seventh Military Hospital, AWH Civilian Relief Center, and the Greek War Relief Committee.

In 1941, Dr. Parmelee left Greece due to the German occupation. She returned to the United States and studied at Harvard University in 1942-1943, where she earned the degree of Master of Public Health. In September of 1943, the Near East Foundation sent Parmelee with a relief group to the aid of Greek refugees at Camp Nuseirat, near Gaza in Palestine. As Senior Medical Officer, she was responsible for 8000 escapees from the German occupation. The refugees came from the island of Samos, the Dodecanese Islands, and mainland Greece. In the autumn of 1945, Dr. Parmelee was appointed to serve as the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration's (UNRRA) Regional Medical Officer in the Cyclades Islands. From 1946-1947, Parmelee returned to Athens, where she acted as Medical Advisor and Director of the Near East Foundation's School of Physical Therapy. After a leave of absence spent in the United States, Dr. Parmelee returned again to Greece in 1948. She served Pierce College in Elleniko (near Athens) until 1953, teaching hygiene, community health, and medical information for social workers. She then returned to the United States, and died in 1973.

In recognition of her service, Dr. Parmelee received several awards. She was appointed by King Paul of Greece as Commander of the the Royal Order of Efpiia in 1953, received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Oberlin College in 1943, was awarded the Silver Cross of the Chevalier of the Order of the Savior by King George II of Greece, and was given a citation for outstanding and meritorious service in 1945 by General Sir Bernard Paget, British Commander of the Middle East Forces.