Medical Service
Once the war started, there was an immense need for medical help. Doctors, nurses, and dentists already in the profession enlisted to serve in units at home and abroad. Others learned nursing, and also volunteered as orderlies, ambulance drivers, and Red Cross workers. Although they were not active combatants in the war, they still risked their lives in service to others.
Meet some of the Minnesotans who served in roles like these throughout the war.
- Portrait of Tena Heglund Johnson in her World War I nursing uniform, Fosston, Minnesota
- Dr. Hagan's World War I army unit, Stewartville, Minnesota
- Amy Robbins Ware in a World War I Red Cross uniform, Robbinsdale, Minnesota
- Portrait of Glenn S. Donaldson, St. Paul, Minnesota
- Portrait of Carolyn Schlattman, Morris, Minnesota
One example of a medical unit with Minnesota roots is Base Hospital 26, which mobilized in Minneapolis in December 1917. Dr. Sam Robinson of the Mayo Clinic helped recruit officers, nurses, and enlisted men. After training in Georgia, members of the unit arrived in France in June 1918 and set up Base Hospital 26. On a single day in July 1918, the hospital received one thousand wounded soldiers.
In 1920, members of Base Hospital 26 wrote this book to tell the history of their hospital using photographs, official histories, drawings, and personal anecdotes. Use the viewer to zoom in and page through the book:
Continue exploring this exhibit using the page links below.