MOTHER GEORGE (c. 1846 – c. 1919)
Mother George was a Black trans woman and midwife who lived in Grays Lake, Idaho throughout the late 19th century. Over the course of her life, she delivered over 1,000 children for both Black and white families.
With the support of her Native American mother, Mother George was able to live her life as a woman. Although many people commented on her large hands and stature, it was not until her death around 1919 that it was discovered that Mother George “had a male body.”
Unfortunately, not much else known about Mother George because her history has been erased. To quote Andrea Horne, a member of the Trans Advisory Committee for the San Francisco Office of Transgender Initiatives, “She was eradicated from Idaho history and American history. She and her family were Black pioneers, that came in covered wagons from the East to the West, and she and her family were some of the founders of the state of Idaho!”
Sources:
- Andrea Horne on Black Trans History
- Lavender Rights Project
- Mother George: The Midwife Who Shocked Grays Lake
- Tacoma Weekly
- The Gift of Giving Life
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