Evelyn Gertrude Brooke

Evelyn Gertrude Brown, ( Brooke; 13 September 1879 – 11 February 1962), usually known as Eva, was a New Zealand civilian and military nurse. She served during the First World War and was the only New Zealand nurse to receive the Royal Red Cross and Bar.

Early life Brooke was born in New Plymouth, Taranaki, on 13 September 1879. Her father, Thomas Brooke, was a carpenter who died in 1891. Her mother, Kate (née Coad), moved to Wellington after his death and remarried.

Nursing career

After completing her training, Brooke nursed at a private hospital in Hāwera, followed by a position at Wellington Hospital from 1910 to 1914. In January 1916, Brooke returned to New Zealand and worked as matron of the Trentham military hospital near Wellington. In November 1916 she returned to a hospital ship, the Marama. After the war, she returned to New Zealand, and was matron of the military hospital at Featherston from June to December 1919, and then spent a year at Narrow Neck Military Hospital in Devonport, Auckland. In 2015, an image of Brooke appeared on a New Zealand postage stamp, part of a series commemorating the centenary of the Gallipoli campaign.

Personal life In 1925, Brooke married William John Brown of Nelson and they lived together in Christchurch. After his death, Brooke moved back to Wellington and worked as a private nurse until her retirement in 1955. She died in Wellington on 11 February 1962, and is buried in Karori Cemetery.