"All my five girls were born at home, poor things, and got their shots at the health center. When you went in, you had to pick a number. It was a clean place, and the nurses treated us very nice. They would tell you what to feed the baby and how to get care for your child. They also had Planned Parenthood. We didn't see any white people in there, other than the white staff. Probably scheduled us Black people on different dates." Lucille Boston, church musician.
“Winters Lane was Winters Lane, a close-knit community. We all stuck together, you were adopted into a family. Neighbors looked out for neighbors. You could go to anybody's house and eat. My mother was known for her crab cakes. I come from a family of eight. We didn't have a flushing toilet. We were poor but we weren't hungry. And you didn't know you were poor, because you always had what you needed. You did.” Mae McCoy, caregiver and baker.
Catonsville Health Center
While many remember the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Catonsville in 2020, fewer may remember the waves of disease that threatened the town throughout the last century, like measles, scarlet fever, tuberculosis, and polio. The Catonsville Health Center, built nearby at the corner of Melrose Avenue and Egges Lane in 1926, was started by a women's organization that brought the first nurse to town in 1911 to attend to such threats and to more general public health issues. The health center, originally named for public health advocate Ethel H. Crosby, was at the heart of providing care to children, the poor, the disabled, and the elderly. While based in Catonsville, it offered free vaccines, X-rays, cancer screenings, and classes on infant care for mothers across Baltimore County.
By 1993, the health center was replaced by the Baltimore County Toddler and Infant Center. It later served as the home of the Community Behavioral Health Association of Maryland from 2003 to 2024. The building itself stands as a reminder of the legacy of public health nurses and the many volunteers who dedicated their lives to promoting an informed and healthy public.
Nursing class with mannequins, 1930. Courtesy of Baltimore County Public Library.
