On December 7th, 1941, First Lieutenant Annie G. Fox was a Head Nurse at Hickam Field on Pearl Harbor. While Fox had joined the Army Nurse Corps at the end of WWI in 1918, the attack on Pearl Harbor landed Fox and her fellow Army nurses in combat for the first time.
Nurses recalled that enemy planes flew so close and low that the pilots could be seen talking to each other. Explosions and masses of black smoke enveloped the scene, and casualties poured into the hospital within minutes of the first bombing run. Hospital staff leaped into action as the constant noise of torpedoes, bombs, machine guns, and anti-aircraft guns filled the air. Casualties were so numerous that nurses had time only to administer pain medication before triaging them on to Trippler hospital.
As Head Nurse, Lt. Fox rallied the nurses and organized the hospital’s response to the attack. The wives of officers reported to the hospital to help as well, and Lt. Fox organized the civilian volunteers to make hospital dressings by the hundreds and assist with patient care. During the heaviest of the bombing, Lt. Fox herself participated in surgery and administering anesthesia.
Almost a year later, on October 26, 1942, in recognition of her efforts, Fox became the first woman in American history to be awarded the Purple Heart medal. Her citation read: “During the attack, Lieutenant Fox in an exemplary manner, performed her duties as head nurse of the Station Hospital… [She] worked ceaselessly with coolness and efficiency and her fine example of calmness, courage, and leadership was of great benefit to the morale of all with whom she came in contact.” Though at the time the Purple Heart award was generally awarded to service members wounded by enemy forces, it was occasionally awarded for any “singularly meritorious act of extraordinary fidelity or essential service.”
The Purple Heart Award criteria later changed to be limited to wounds received from enemy action. In 1944, Lt. Fox was awarded the Bronze Star Medal as a replacement for her Purple Heart.
Eighty-two Army nurses were stationed in Hawaii serving at three Army medical facilities on December 7th, 1941. By the end of World War II, more than 59,000 American nurses had served in the Army Nurse Corps, often working closer to the front lines than in any prior conflict. These nurses received 1,619 medals, citations, and commendations during the war, sixteen of which were awarded posthumously to women who died as a result of enemy fire. Lt. Fox exemplified the courage and dedication of all those nurses who were called to service and made sacrifices to save the lives of others during the Second Great War.
Source: https://www.womenshistory.org/articles/bravery-army-nurse-annie-g-fox-pearl-harbor
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