Originally named Comfort by her parents,[REF] Pearl Sydenstricker was born in Hillsboro, West Virginia, to Caroline Stulting (1857-1921) and Absalom Sydenstricker.
Of her siblings who survived into adulthood, Edgar Sydenstricker (1881-1936) had a distinguished career in epidemiology as an official with the Milbank Memorial Fund[REF] and Grace Sydenstricker Yaukey (1899-1994) was a writer who wrote young adult books and books about Asia under the pen name Cornelia Spencer.