TALLAHASSEE — A Palm Beach County woman is among those chosen to be inducted into the Florida Women’s Hall of Fame this year.

Millie Wilborn Gildersleeve

Each year, the governor selects three nominees from recommendations presented by the Florida Commission on the Status of Women. The nominees are considered for their work to make significant improvements in life for women and all citizens of Florida.

Millie Wilborn Gildersleeve was a midwife in Palm Beach County.

According to the Florida Commission on the Status of Woman website, Mrs. Gildersleeve, was born a slave in Cuthbert, Ga. in 1858 shortly before the U.S. Civil War. She served as a nurse and midwife in Florida during the Reconstruction Era. Mrs. Gildersleeve delivered into the world and cared for many of Palm Beach County, Florida’s leading citizens. Due to her good reputation, Mrs. Gildersleeve maintained strong relationships with families throughout Palm Beach County despite strict racial segregation. For many pioneering families tasked with building the area, she was the only source of maternal care. Mrs. Gildersleeve nurtured and cared for mothers, their infants, and their families. She played a significant role in women’s reproductive health and childbirth in the pioneering days of Palm Beach County, Fla. A deliverer, healer, coach, companion, and supporter, Millie and women like her ensured that generations of Floridian families could enjoy safe and healthy childbirth experiences.

In 1950, Mrs. Gildersleeve was posthumously inducted into the Lake Worth Pioneer’s Association. The Historical Society of Palm Beach County has recognized Mrs. Gildersleeve as one of the first healers and medical practitioners to settle in the Palm Beach County area. The Palm Beach Post called her “Midwife to Generations” due to her noted involvement in the births of many pioneer and Seminole babies. The other inductees for 2019 are Doris Mae Barnes and Dr. Judith Ann Bense.

According to the Florida Commission on the Status of Woman website, Doris Mae Barnes, of North Miami, helped shape Florida’s tourism industry by recording sport fishing for 50 consecutive years from the 1930s into the 1990s. Through her energetic efforts, this “Goodwill Ambassador of Florida Fishing” photographed thousands of anglers and celebrities with their outstanding, and in many cases, award-winning catches, and at her own expense sent prints to their hometown newspapers here and abroad, presenting an enticing image of Florida sport fishing.

Dr. Judith Ann Bense, of Pensacola, was the University of West Florida’s first female president. As both professor and president, she has served as a mentor to many students who will one day be front-runners in the archaeological world.

For more information on the Florida Women’s Hall of Fame, go online to https://flwomenshalloffame.org.