Dr. Catherine H. Travis

Dr. Catherine H. Travis (Hampton, N.B. 23 April 1873-13 February 1948 Saint John) was the daughter of Allan McNab and Mary H. Bartlett Travis. She received her B.A. from McGill University and then went on to attend Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, graduating in 1905 with her M.D. She practised medicine in New Britain, Connecticut, for 10 years before leaving for Serbia in 1915 in the service of the American Red Cross. In Serbia, Dr. Travis was in charge of the Mabel L. Grouitich Baby Hospital and also worked on the front lines during the war aiding injured soldiers until early 1916. Two years later, Dr. Travis’ went to work in China, where she was in charge of a large and well-equipped hospital at Kweiteh, Henan Province.

In 1923 Dr. Travis sent a donation directly from China for the Natural History Society. Although this initial gift was relatively small, consisting of a few items of costume and textile, altogether she gave the museum more than 200 objects, including costume, accessories, textiles, artworks, ceramics, metalwork, lacquer ware and dolls.