The Forgotten Frontier
| The Forgotten Frontier | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Marvin Breckinridge Patterson |
| Starring | Mary Breckinridge |
| Music by | silent |
| Cinematography | Marvin Breckinridge Patterson |
| Edited by |
Marvin Breckinridge Patterson Judy Herbert (restored version) |
| Distributed by | Carousel Film & Video |
Release dates | 1931 |
Running time | 59 min. |
| Country |
 United States |
| Language | English |
The Forgotten Frontier (1931) is a documentary film about the Frontier Nursing Service, nurses on horseback, who traveled the back roads of the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States. It was directed by Mary Marvin Breckinridge, and featured her cousin, Mary Breckinridge, who was a nurse-midwife and founded the Frontier Nursing Service. Also featured are the people of Leslie County, Kentucky, many of whom reenacted their stories.
The film was shot with a hand-cranked camera, often in extreme climate. Stills created during the film's production are available at the Library of Congress.
A pseudo-hillbilly soundtrack was added in the 1990s by the Library of Congress.
The film has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.
Footage from the film was used in the 1984 documentary Frontier Nursing Service.[1]