The Ottawa Hospital has a rich history marking many milestones throughout its 100 years. For Anna Mussell’s family, two significant milestones stand out: the year she graduated from the Ottawa Civic Hospital School of Nursing and the year she turned 100!
Anna was in the very first graduating class of the new Ottawa Civic Hospital School of Nursing, receiving her symbolic red rose in 1925, along with 31 other graduates.
Her great-niece Mary Mussell fondly remembers her great-aunt Anna, saying she was a very accomplished piano player and had a lovely grand piano in her house.
“She was engaged to be married in the late 1920s,” recalls Mary, “but her fiancé died of appendicitis before they could marry. That must have been heartbreaking.”
Anna would spend a lifetime nursing and passed away in 1998 at the age of 100.
“Her death marked the end of an era for our family,” adds Mary.
