New Book Looks At Medical Practices and "Americanness" Among Immigrants In Pennsylvania's Coal Region

Online, December 5, 2011 (Newswire.com) - What does the current medical system in America say about American values? Is the United States a country that prizes self-support and independence, one that offers aid to those in need, or a combination of the two? In the new book "Medical Caregiving and Identity in Pennsylvania's Anthracite Region, 1880-2000" (978-0-271-04878-9, Hardcover, 200 pages, 6 x 9, $64.95, Penn State University Press) author Karol K. Weaver approaches this issue and several others by using the anthracite region of Pennsylvania as a case study.

Weaver examines communities' relationships with both biomedically trained physicians and informally trained medical caregivers, and how these relationships reflected a sense of "Americanness." She uses interviews and oral histories to help tell the story of neighborhood healers, midwives, Pennsylvania German powwowers, medical self-help, and the eventual transition to modern-day medicine. Weaver is able to show not only how each of these methods of healing was shaped by its patrons and their backgrounds but also how it helped mold the identities of the new Americans who sought it out.

"Finally, a scholar has tackled in rich detail the meeting of folk and modern medical beliefs and practices during international migration," said Professor Donna Gabaccia, University of Minnesota. "This book is highly recommended for anyone interested in the social history of U.S. immigra­tion."

In "Medical Caregiving and Identity in Pennsylvania's Anthracite Region, 1880-2000," Weaver em­ploys an impressive range of primary sources, including folk songs, patent medicine advertisements, oral history interviews, ghost stories, and jokes, to show how the men and women of the anthracite coal region crafted their ethnic identities via the medical decisions they made. She uses these sources to tell the story of neighborhood healers, midwives, Penn­sylvania German powwowers, medical self-help, and the eventual transition to modern-day medicine.

"While the histories of mining and labor in the anthracite region of Pennsylvania have been well documented, much less is known about medical practices among working-class immigrants," remarked Rowan University's Janet Lindman. "Weaver's well-researched and clearly written monograph goes a long way toward filling that gap."