While Island men of
valour served as servicemen and merchant mariners, many
local women also served their country during war times as
Nursing Sisters. More than 45,000 Canadian women served
during World War II alone. Many young female graduates of
Prince Edward Island’s School of Nursing (and, in
some cases, other Nursing Schools in Canada or New
England) joined the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps
or Canadian Military Hospital in Halifax when
the two World Wars broke out.
Working near the front lines, living in tents, they
ministered to war casualties throughout the years of
battle. Their work was hectic, often trying, and
certainly wrought with distress as the severely injured
young Canadian soldiers were brought to their field
hospitals. The nursing sisters often said: “You did
all you could—often you wished you could do
more.”
However, they did accomplish a great
deal. Some of these nurses, such as Hattie E. MacLaine,
were
promoted to the rank of captain/matron
and were “mentioned-in-dispatches” for their
work. Lieutenant (Nursing Sister) Mary Winnifred MacNutt
of Charlottetown was the first Canadian Nurse in World
War II to receive the Royal Red Cross First Class.
Many women, upon their return to Canada, resumed their
nursing activities in civilian or military hospitals in
Prince Edward Island, Atlantic Canada, or elsewhere in
the country. Vera G. Darrach, for example, began working
with the Red Cross Society when she returned to Canada
and was promoted to Director of Nursing Service for the
Red Cross. She served in this position from 1952 until
1958. Many became very active members of their
communities, continuing to contribute their skills, hard
work, and compassion for the betterment of others.
Link to list of nurses who served abroad.
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