The outport midwives

In Newfoundland today, it is generally expected that women will give birth in a hospital.

However, the days of midwives are still well within living memory. Less than 50 years ago, many babies, especially those in isolated communities, were born under the guiding hands of a midwife.

Charlotte Courtney of La Poile remembers giving birth to her second child at her home in 1961. Her midwife also happened to be her mother, Priscilla Francis, who was La Poile's last midwife.

If a child was born in La Poile or any of the nearby outports between 1940 and 1965, it was likely under the guidance of Mrs. Francis.

Mrs. Courtney said the delivery of her daughter at home was the easiest of her four births. Her three sons were all born in hospital.

"It was good - a lot better than being in hospital. In the hospital you just had to suffer it out," she said, adding that a midwife had a more caring touch.

The only equipment Mrs. Francis needed to deliver a baby was some twine to tie off the cord and a pair of sterilized scissors to make the cut. The birth usually took place in the woman's bedroom.

Mrs. Courtney said after any baby was born, Mrs. Francis would visit the woman's home twice a day for several days to launder the mother's and baby's clothes. The mother was expected to stay in bed for that time.

"Sometimes she would be in there for 10 days, washing and drying laundry. Back then you had to wash it on the washboard by hand," said Mrs. Courtney.

According to one of Mrs. Francis's other daughters, Alma Warren of Burgeo, Mrs. Francis usually received $6 for her services. Many families simply couldn't afford to pay her. In those cases, Mrs. Francis went without pay.

Mrs. Francis helped delivered her first baby in October 1940. Mrs. Courtney remembers the story well. The birth happened just a few houses away from her current home in La Poile.

"This man came in the morning. He said, 'You gotta come down. Bess is sick.' When she came down this woman was in labour," said Mrs. Courtney.

Mrs. Francis successfully delivered that baby and about 300 others over the next 25 or so years. In that time, she didn't lose a mother or a child, although she did deliver a few stillborn children.

Mrs. Francis didn't only offer her services to the women of La Poile. She was often called to the now resettled communities of West Point and North Bay, two other communities located in La Poile Bay. In the summer, she was taken to these communities by boat. In the winter, men from the community would take her there on sled.

"She said she had some tough going," said Mrs. Courtney.

Mrs. Francis gave up the practice around 1965. She had learned midwifery from her mother-in-law, but she did not pass her knowledge on to anyone else in the community. By that time, people were travelling to hospital for births.

Grand Bruit

Midwives often meant the difference between life and death in isolated communities.

There had been many deaths in Grand Bruit due to complicated births during the 1930s, so a midwife from England was brought to the tiny coastal community.

Nurse Evelyn Mitchell arrived in Grand Bruit on Christmas Eve, 1938. She would be present for seven births in the following year.

More than 70 years later, the image of seven grinning moms holding seven healthy babies almost tells the whole story.

Those who read the caption on the faded photo will discover that three of the babies were born within 48 hours of each other on cold January days.

In a letter to a resident of Grand Bruit written in 1977, Ms. Mitchell recalled the first complicated birth she had to deal with in the community.

"Although I had a great deal of midwifery experience in this country (England), I had always had a specialists help on hand for anything abnormal," wrote Ms. Mitchell. "I'll never forget how I felt when I realized I had to cope with this abnormality by myself."

She goes on to write that the birth was successful and both mother and baby were fine.

In limbo

The legality of midwifery in Newfoundland and Labrador today is still up for debate. The practice has largely fallen by the wayside except in remote parts of Labrador.

In 1962, the provincial government received only one application for a midwife licence and stopped appointing people to the midwifery licencing board. The Midwifery Act remained on the books.

Some nursing students at Memorial University received midwifery training as part of their training up until 1986, according to the Association of Midwives of Newfoundland and Labrador's website.

The Midwifery Act was repealed in December 2008. At the time, the provincial health minister promised some "groundbreaking" legislation that could lead to a revival of the licenced practice of midwifery and home births, as has been seen in other provinces.

reporter@gulfnews.ca