While I never heard my grandmother call herself a midwife, I am sure others must have used that title for her. She, Mary Kiser, was a licensed RN, trained in obstetrics, receiving her training in Latrobe, PA. About 1935, she and her family moved to Mt. Lake Park, MD. As there was not a hospital in the area, the nursing home (then simply referred to as the old folk's home) that Mary owned and operated served as a birthing place for mothers of the area. I have never found a count for how many babies were born there but I know babies were born at the Kiser Old Folk's Home, as was yours truly, her granddaughter. My grandchildren find it hilarious when I tell them I was born in an Old Folk's Home. As Mary notified the doctor when a mother was in labor, and if he arrived in time, the birth certification would show the doctors name, but I suppose it may show "Mary Kiser" if she delivered the baby. I am not sure how it was handled if the doctor arrived after the birth; if he signed the birth certificate or not (I just assumed he would have). Many obituaries for the area say the person died at "Mary Kiser's home". After finding and reading several of these obituaries and noting it only said "died at Mary Kiser's home" and not the Kiser Nursing Home, I chuckled at the thought of wondering if other researchers who have found these same obituaries (and not knowing Mary operated a nursing home) must not wonder if Mary wasn't a bad cook or something; to have so many people die at her home. I think too, most likely, some researcher must have scratched their head, wondering who Mary Kiser was and how she was to connected to their family, since their relative died at Mary Kiser's home. Garrett County Memorial Hospital, in Oakland, MD was open in 1951 (my sister was born there). ----- Original Message ----- From: "Branches & Lil' Twigs" <[email protected]> | 1930's, 1940's many times a family member or a neighbor delivered the baby. | My wife's grandmother delivered her with the help of a neighbor in Garrett | County. | | Ken