Friday, July 05, 2024

July 5, 1921: Septicemia after Criminal Abortion in the Bronx

According to New York death records, Eudora Edwards, a 23-year-old immigrant from the British West Indies, died at Bronx Hospital in New York on July 5, 1921. Her cause of death was septicemia, septic peritonitis, and endocarditis due to a criminal abortion. 

According to census records, this young Black woman left behind a husband and infant son.

Unfortunately, I have been unable to find any information about the perpetrator of the fatal abortion. According to research by both Planned Parenthood and author Nancy Howell-Lee, about 90% of pre-legalization abortions were performed by doctors. Howell-Lee broke down the remaining 10% and found that the bulk of them were perpetrated by somebody with medical training, such as a nurse or dentist.

Watch "Did Eudora Find a Doctor?" on YouTube.



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