Martha G. Thorwick

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Martha G. Thorwick, from a 1911 publication.

Martha G. Thorwick (1863 — November 16, 1921) was a Norwegian-born American clubwoman and medical doctor based in San Francisco, California, whose personal life was the subject of scandal and headlines.

Early life

Martha Gurine Thorwick was born in Tingvoll, Nordmøre, Norway, and immigrated to Chicago as a girl. She attended Jenner Medical College and the University of Illinois and earned her medical degree in 1901.[1][2]

Career

Thorwick had a medical practice in San Francisco from 1901. In 1920 she was listed as affiliated with the Mendocino State Hospital; in 1921, she resigned from a post as physician at the California School for Girls in Ventura; her resignation precipitated a school-wide violent protest.[3]

Thorwick was also active in Scandinavian women's organizations in San Francisco.[4] She founded NORA (a Norwegian women's hospital charity)[5] and was its president for several years.[6] She also helped to organize the Daughters of Norway Lodge Anna Kolbjornsen No. 4, and served as secretary of the Danish Sisterhood.[1]

Personal life

In 1915, Martha G. Thorwick married her patient, Niso Secondo di Giannini, an Italian count and World War I veteran she first met in Chicago.[7][8] However, the count soon accused Thorwick of trickery, medical malpractice, and abuse, and sued for annulment on the basis of "fraud and duress".[9][10] They divorced; in 1917 he announced that he was returning to France, because "I prefer the front line trenches to matrimony."[11] He nonetheless continued to harass Dr. Thorwick, narrowly avoiding a jail sentence for his activities.[12]

Martha Gurine Thorwick di Giannini died in 1921, aged 58 years,[13] from stomach cancer,[14] in San Francisco.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b "Dr. Martha G. Thorwick" The American Scandinavian (December 1911): 16.
  2. ^ "Graduates of 1901 of the College of Medicine" Proceedings of the Board of Trustees, University of Illinois (May 28, 1901): 72.
  3. ^ A. M. Rochlen, "Girls Plotted to Burn Whole School, Escape" Los Angeles Times (March 2, 1921): 17. via Newspapers.comOpen access icon
  4. ^ "Norwegian Citizens to Aid Stricken at Home" San Francisco Call (February 14, 1904): 28. via Newspapers.comOpen access icon
  5. ^ "Norwegian Club Nora to Give Entertainment" San Francisco Call (April 7, 1907): 36. via Newspapers.comOpen access icon
  6. ^ "Club of Norwegian Women" San Francisco Chronicle (May 29, 1903): 10. via Newspapers.comOpen access icon
  7. ^ "Births, Marriages, Deaths" New York Medical Journal (May 8, 1915): 980.
  8. ^ "Meet After 20 Years; Wedding is Result" Oakland Tribune (April 6, 1915): 6. via Newspapers.comOpen access icon
  9. ^ "Doped and Wed, Alleges Count" Los Angeles Times (December 7, 1915): II10.
  10. ^ "Count Giannini to File New Suit" San Francisco Chronicle (January 23, 1916): 50. via Newspapers.comOpen access icon
  11. ^ "Count Prefers Front Trench to Married Life" Muncie Evening Press (November 6, 1917): 6. via Newspapers.comOpen access icon
  12. ^ "Count Escapes Term in Jail by an Apology" San Francisco Chronicle (October 20, 1917): 4. via Newspapers.comOpen access icon
  13. ^ "All Up and Down the Illini Creation" The Alumni Quarterly and Fortnightly Notes (February 1, 1922): 120.
  14. ^ "Deaths" The Journal of the American Medical Association (January 21, 1922): 32.
  15. ^ The Alumni Record of the University of Illinois (1921): 80.
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