5. Elsie S. Ott
Though many other females on the list are nurses, Lieutenant Elsie S. Ott was a specialized flight nurse. What makes her so important is the fact that she took part in the first intercontinental air evacuation flight in January 1943. The most surprising fact is that Ott had no sort of formal training in air evacuation and had never flown in an airplane before. Stationed at the 159th Station Hospital at Karachi, on January 26, 1943 she was told to prepare herself for the daunting task of taking care of five patients while in flight. Ott didn’t let this new unknown task allow for failure. For six days she took care of each patient until the plane arrived in Washington, D.C. By ship or some other sort of transportation, this journey would have taken months.
Despite having to complete an unfamiliar task without any type of training, Ott succeeded and was rewarded for her great efforts. She was given the first Air Medal that was ever presented to a female and she was also given the opportunity to undergo formal flight nurse training. Not only did she properly take care of each patient, she paid money out of her own pocket to pay for their meals, and even found the time to write very detailed suggestions for flying patients from one place to another. Some of her recommendations included having readily available oxygen on planes as well as a small first-aid kit, and Ott even suggested a change in uniform for nurses, as a skirt was not very practical for the required duties.
4. Cordelia E. Cook
One of the many medically inclined females on the list, Cordelia E. Cook served as an Army Nurse Corps during WWII and stands as the first woman to receive two awards for her actions during the war: the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. Cook was stationed in Italy and was able to successfully perform her duties as a nurse during a time of tough battles and swarms of wounded and dying soldiers.
In 1943 First Lieutenant Cordelia E. Cook was awarded the Bronze Star, making her the first woman to ever receive such an award. Soon after, she was also given the Purple Heart, making her the first woman in history to ever receive two very honorable awards for her time and efforts given during WWII.
3. Margaret Corbin
Margaret Corbin fought in the American Revolutionary War, despite the status of women during her time. Born on November 12, 1751, Corbin lived the life of a normal woman of that era until she married John Corbin in 1772. They both fought alongside the hundreds of men battling against the British troops, most notably at Fort Washington in Manhattan. Though John was enlisted in the First Company of Pennsylvania Artillery, Margaret was not, but she was known as a camp follower, which was highly common for those who had husbands in the military. Her main role was to cook, clean, and provide for the soldiers; basically a housewife away from home.
Once her husband and others were put into battle, Margaret went as well. She helped alongside her husband in firing the cannon until he was injured and died. Bravely, she was able to successfully take over the job of firing the cannon. Margaret didn’t come out unharmed: she was hit in her jaw, chest, and arm, and eventually had to surrender due to her injuries. She then moved to Philadelphia in 1779 and was granted money, the amount equaling to the pay of a soldier in battle for half a month. With this, she became the first woman to ever receive pension. She is also the first and only Revolutionary soldier to be buried at West Point cemetery. (Image above, artist: Herbert Knotel)
2. Annie G. Fox
Annie G. Fox, born on August 4, 1893, was the first woman in the military to receive a Purple Heart for her courageous and outstanding performance in the Army Nurse Corps. Though the award was canceled due to a change in requirements, most notably the fact that to be given the Purple Heart, you have to be injured, she was still given the Bronze Star, which is almost always given for an act of bravery. Fox played a big role in helping U.S. soldiers during the attack on Pearl Harbor. Here, Fox was the First Lieutenant and Chief Nurse at Hickam Field, Oahu, Hawaii.
As a nurse she was of course trained to take care of the injured and dying, but it is said that she bravely continued her job, even while extremely heavy bombardments were still taking place. She was able to properly administer anesthesia and was even able to teach the civilian volunteer nurses how to properly dress wounds. Fox was definitely calm under pressure and completed very meritorious acts for which she was given the Purple Heart. During WWII, about 964,409 Purple Hearts were awarded. Today, there is an estimated number of 287 Purple Hearts that have been given to women in the armed forces.
1. Mary E. Walker
Born in Oswego, New York into an abolitionist family, Mary Walker today stands as the first and only woman in the entire military force to have ever received the Congressional Medal of Honor for her actions and duties during the Civil War. While she didn’t start off in the military, Walker was known for pushing for women’s rights as well as dress reform. Before the Civil War broke out, Walker was the only female in her class to graduate with a medical degree from Syracuse Medical College. Soon after getting her degree, the war broke out and Walker volunteered to join the Army as a medical officer, but was given a stern “no.”
Though discriminated against because of her gender, Walker pushed on, becoming the assistant surgeon in the Army of the Cumberland in 1863. During this time she was able to modify an officer’s uniform in order to properly travel alongside with soldiers. She was then made assistant surgeon to the 52nd Ohio Infantry but was captured in 1864 by the Confederates and released four months after. She then worked in Tennessee at a woman’s and orphan asylum. On November 11, 1865, she was awarded the Medal of Honor. It was taken away in 1917 (after she didn’t match up to the set standards at the time), but reinstated in 1977 posthumously.
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