Wilhelmina Smith was born at the farm house near Lakehurst, Harvey Township, Peterborough County, Ontario on August 26, 1890 daughter of George Smith and Helen Hastie.
She was educated locally, was a graduate of the Nursing School at Belleville in 1914, was then in the employ of the Hospital and lived at 218 Church Street; ‘Mina’ graduated from the Divisional School of Military Instruction on September 28, 1915 at Quebec City. Miss Smith enlisted in the Canadian Army Medical Corps on January 8, 1916 at Kingston.
Height: 5’ 6”
Weight: 160lb
Age: 25
Nursing Sister Smith served at the military hospital at Le Tréport, France, was admitted to the military hospital in Étaples for treatment of Rubella and was later transferred to Ramsgate, England. During the War, Miss Smith often slept in the woods curled in her green plaid blanket; if the hospital were bombed, they would still have nursing staff. She returned to Canada setting sail on July 3, 1919 aboard the S.S. Celtic and was discharged on July 14, 1919. After the War she was an operating room Supervisor at a private Doctor’s Hospital in New York until her retirement in 1958. She passed at the Peterborough Civic Hospital.
Wilhelmina Smith died on December 28, 1967 aged 77 years 4 months 2 days. She is interred at Sandy Lake Cemetery, Harvey Township, Peterborough County Section S.
First World War Belleville 