Nurses at a flag presentation at a party for members of the 65th General Hospital

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Description
  • Female nurses of the 65th General Hospital at a formal going-away party held at the Hope Valley Country Club in Durham, N.C.. The party was held on July 15, 1942, just twelve days after receiving orders to report to Ft. Bragg, N.C. for training. (Back row, left to right) Allene Mayes, Credith Loy; (front row, left to right) Sue Warden, Edith Bryant, Laureen Rearden, Louise Dobbin, Mary Lou Lineberger, Kathleen Godwin, Jean Witherspoon, Elizabeth White, Irene Elks, Pearl Kaiser, Nell Madry, and Carrie Wilson. Loy, Dobbin and Madry achieved the rank of officers of the 65th General Hospital during World War II. The idea for a Duke hospital army unit was born in October 1940, the brainchild of Wilburt C. Davison, then dean of the Duke University School of Medicine. The Army reserve unit's original core, activated in July 1924, consisted of male and female doctors and nurses who all had some connection to Duke University, creating a mix of faculty, medical and nursing school graduates, and current or former house staff. Members of the 65th handled a constant stream of front-line casualties from heavy bomber crews, acute diseases and emergency cases, and acted as a specialty center for neurosurgery, thoracic and plastic surgery, burns, and hand injuries. In all, the unit treated more than 17,250 patients during its time in England.
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Identifier
  • per00067
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Holding entity
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  • Photograph & Negative Collection
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