Leesburg in Lake County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

The Nurse Corp in WW II

— Leesburg Veterans Memorial Park —

Photographed by Brandon D Cross

1. The Nurse Corp in WW II Memorial

Inscription.

The Nurse Corp in world war two. . Army Nurses. On December 7, 1941 there were fewer than 1000 Army nurses and of those 82 were in Hawaii. They were serving at the three hospitals and they were overwhelmed with hundreds of causalities suffering from severe burns and shock. Wounded men lay bleeding on the floors waiting for their turn in surgery. Doctors performing major surgery passed scissors back and forth from one operating table to another. Doctors and nurses used cleaning rags as face masks and operated without gloves. There were a number of Purple Hearts awarded the nurses and doctors., In the Pacific, they were called the Angels of Bataan and Corregidor. They were a group of 88 Army nurses and 12 Navy nurses. The bombs began to fall at 8:19 am on December 8, 1941 leaving thousands dead or wounded. A bomb struck the hospital and 2 nurses were wounded. The doctors and nurses could hardly keep up with the casualties from the unrelenting air raids in one 24-hour period on January 16, 1942, they performed 187 major surgeries., The Japanese infantry assaulted Corregidor beaches with wave after wave. On May 6, 1942, General Wainwright surrendered. There were 55 nurses captured by the Japanese and sent to a POW (Prisoner of War) camp. On February 3, 1945 the 44th Tank Battalion of the 1st Cavalry Division rescued them from Camp Los Banos., The invasion of Europe began on “D Day,” June 6, 1944, in “Operation Overlord.” There were Army nurses on some of these ships that day and they were setting up a field hospital on June 7. By June of 1945, the number of Army nurses in the E.T.O. (European Theater of Operations) reached a peak of 17,345 Army nurses received 1,619 medals, citations and commendations reflecting their courage and dedication in total, 201 nurses died while serving., The nurses served under fire in field hospitals and evacuation hospitals. They served on hospital trains and ships. Flight nurses were on medical transport planes. It should be noted that the Army Nurse Corp was not made a full branch of the regular U.S. Army until April 16, 1947., Navy Nurses. There were only about 800 nurses serving on active duty in 1941. Over 900 reserves were on inactive duty by war’s end. There were 1,799 active nurses and 9,222 reserves (with the overwhelming number of reserves on active duty scattered across six continents). There were also 24 flight nurses that transported the wounded in the contiguous United States, Navy nurses were stationed at 263 locations aboard hospital ships. Navy nurses followed the fleet in their assaults. Donated by: Fraternal Order of Eagles, Lake County Aerie 4273, Aerie and Auxiliary

Army Nurses
On December 7, 1941 there were fewer than 1000 Army nurses and of those 82 were in Hawaii. They were serving at the three hospitals and they were overwhelmed with hundreds of causalities suffering from severe burns and shock. Wounded men lay bleeding on the floors waiting for their turn in surgery. Doctors performing major surgery passed scissors back and forth from one operating table to another. Doctors and nurses used cleaning rags as face masks and operated without gloves. There were a number of Purple Hearts awarded the nurses and doctors.

In the Pacific, they were called the Angels of Bataan and Corregidor. They were a group of 88 Army nurses and 12 Navy nurses. The bombs began to fall at 8:19 am on December 8, 1941 leaving thousands dead or wounded. A bomb struck the hospital and 2 nurses were wounded. The doctors and nurses could hardly keep up with the casualties from the unrelenting air raids in one 24-hour period on January 16, 1942, they performed 187 major surgeries.

The Japanese infantry assaulted Corregidor beaches with wave after wave. On May 6, 1942, General Wainwright surrendered. There were 55 nurses captured by the Japanese and sent to a POW (Prisoner of War) camp. On February 3, 1945 the 44th Tank Battalion of the 1st Cavalry Division rescued them from

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Camp Los Banos.

The invasion of Europe began on “D Day,” June 6, 1944, in “Operation Overlord.” There were Army nurses on some of these ships that day and they were setting up a field hospital on June 7. By June of 1945, the number of Army nurses in the E.T.O. (European Theater of Operations) reached a peak of 17,345 Army nurses received 1,619 medals, citations and commendations reflecting their courage and dedication in total, 201 nurses died while serving.

The nurses served under fire in field hospitals and evacuation hospitals. They served on hospital trains and ships. Flight nurses were on medical transport planes. It should be noted that the Army Nurse Corp was not made a full branch of the regular U.S. Army until April 16, 1947.

Navy Nurses
There were only about 800 nurses serving on active duty in 1941. Over 900 reserves were on inactive duty by war’s end. There were 1,799 active nurses and 9,222 reserves (with the overwhelming number of reserves on active duty scattered across six continents). There were also 24 flight nurses that transported the wounded in the contiguous United States, Navy nurses were stationed at 263 locations aboard hospital ships. Navy nurses followed the fleet in their assaults.
Donated by: Fraternal Order of Eagles, Lake County Aerie 4273, Aerie & Auxiliary

Erected by

The Nurse Corp in WW II Memorial (on right) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Brandon D Cross

2. The Nurse Corp in WW II Memorial (on right)

Fraternal Order of Eagles, Lake County Aerie 4273, Aerie & Auxiliary.

Topics. This memorial is listed in these topic lists: Science & Medicine • War, World II • Women. A significant historical date for this entry is December 7, 1941.

Location. 28° 48.825′ N, 81° 52.716′ W. Memorial is in Leesburg, Florida, in Lake County. It is at the intersection of Orange Avenue and West Line Street, on the right when traveling north on Orange Avenue. The marker is located in Veterans Memorial Park. Touch for map. Memorial is at or near this postal address: 600 W Meadow St, Leesburg FL 34748, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this memorial is in Greater Orlando

and in Central Florida.

It is also in the American South.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Women Marines / Rosie the Riveter (here, next to this marker); WAVES / WAC (here, next to this marker); World War II (here, next to this marker); Medal of Honor Recipients (within shouting distance of this marker); F. Brown Gregg (within shouting distance of this marker); Korean War Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Battlefield Cross (within shouting distance of this marker); Vietnam War Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Leesburg.

Also see . . .
1. Highlights in the History of The Army Nurse Corps. U.S. Army Center of Military History PDF (Submitted on May 14, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida.)

2. Veterans Memorial at Fountain Park - Leesburg

U.S. Army's Angels of Bataan Arrive at Hickam Field in Hawaii image. Click for full size.

via Women of World War 2, February 20, 1945

3. U.S. Army's Angels of Bataan Arrive at Hickam Field in Hawaii

Japanese forces captured the nurses on Corregidor in 1942. The nurses, along with 3,700 men, women, and children civilian prisoners of war, were liberated from Santo Tomas Internment Camp in Manila, by the First Cavalry Divison on 3 February 1945. Brig. Gen. Denit, Chief Surgeon, Southwest Pacific Area, awarded the Bronze Star Medal and one grade promotion to the nurses, on the beach at Leyte. Photo taken 20 February 1945.

. (Submitted on May 14, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida.)

Additional commentary.
1. Spelling in the marker
The spelling of Corp is taken verbatim from the marker, rather than the standard Corps.

— Submitted July 7, 2024, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.

U.S. Navy Nurse Indoctrination School, Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia, October 1943 image. Click for more information.

via Naval History and Heritage Command, October 1943

4. U.S. Navy Nurse Indoctrination School, Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia, October 1943

U.S. Navy Nurse Corps
Naval History and Heritage Command website entry
Click for more information.

Veterans Memorial Park Sign image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Brandon D Cross

5. Veterans Memorial Park Sign

Credits. This page was last revised on November 28, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 14, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. This page has been viewed 287 times since then and 14 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 14, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. 3, 4. submitted on November 13, 2024, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. 5. submitted on May 14, 2024, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.