They say angels walk among us, and this can certainly be said about Josephine Cox Anderson, the saving angel for the citizens of Eddy.
This petite lady possessed immense strength, resilience, and kindness. All traits she would need to battle the monster Spanish Influenza epidemic of 1918, or “La Grippe” as it was more commonly known, along with tuberculosis which was spreading like wildfire in the country.
Lucius Anderson and his wife, Josephine, arrived in Eddy on the Overland Stage in 1888 at the request of Charles B. Eddy who hired Lucius to lay out the new town. The Andersons lived in a tent when they first arrived, but soon moved into the only hotel in town, the Missouri House which was located near the Pecos River. Lucius would become one of the first mayors of Eddy and was responsible for planting many of the cottonwood trees along the streets. It is a possibility that the skeletal remains of these trees can still be seen along Main Street today.
Josephine, who preferred to be called “Grandma” since her hair had turned snow white, noticed a great need for health care in the region since Dr. Amos Smith was the only doctor to administer help in the entire county. She observed early residents living in tents and shanties along the riverbanks in less than sanitary conditions which contributed greatly to the spread of disease. Never one to sit back and wait for someone else, Josephine rallied the ladies of the town to administer aid to the residents of these tent neighborhoods. Her only condition was for the volunteers to follow her strict rules exactly. Her first rule was: no heat was allowed in the rooms/tents. Vinegar bottles filled with hot water were placed in the beds as their only heat source. A diet of cornbread, gruel, crackers, fruit, crisp bacon, and milk provided breakfast while tomato soup was prepared for lunch.
Lucius built a twenty-six-room adobe house in 1896 which would be turned into a hospital/tuberculosis sanatorium at 104 W. Shaw, which later became an apartment building. Although she had no formal training as a nurse, Josephine worked tirelessly with her “patients,” even performing the duties of a mid-wife as needed. Dr. Smith instructed Josephine on the proper administration of the available drugs which she dutifully combined with her own methods. When asked if she thought her tasks to be dangerous, Josephine politely replied, “Danger? We were too busy thinking of someone else. It is part of the Lord’s work. It was what He wanted me to do.”
Every day, Grandma would hitch her mare affectionately named “Black Bess” to her wagon so she could do her work. Josephine was certain her horse had “intuition” since she would whinny each night at ten o’clock for the two to make their way home. So wrapped up in her work, Grandma would forget the time and to feed her faithful companion. Black Bess would gently remind her.
Josephine Cox Anderson has the distinction of being the only woman in Eddy County to have a highway marker dedicated to her. Known as the “Angel of Mercy” or the “Angel of the Pecos Valley.” Death was all around her. R.M. Thorne, the undertaker, asked her secret for saving patients since deaths were adding up to five or six patients a day, but none came from the Josephine’s sanatorium. Miraculously, she and her ladies did not lose one of their sixty patients. Josephine once said, “We didn’t have any money, but we could give of the things that we did have.” Time and care.
Grandma Anderson maintained her pleasant attitude even when she went blind later in life. A celebrated oil painter in her younger years, Josephine’s highly prized paintings of the places she traveled, in addition to her portraits graced many private collections. Some found their way into the Carlsbad Museum. Crochet then became her passion later as she created numerous colorful rugs and pin cushions to give away.
It was Josephine’s greatest desire to live to be 96 years old, for then she said, she would gain her second sight and would be able to paint again. Sadly, this Angel of Mercy would not see her magical year as she passed away in 1941 at the age of 91. Grandma Anderson was still caring for others up to her last day and has been described as an eternally cheerful person, truly living up to her “Angel on Earth” status.
Article written by Michele Robertson and originally published in Focus on Carlsbad 2023 Spring edition.
