Ruby Bradley

Colonel Ruby Bradley (December 19, 1907 – May 28, 2002) was one of the most decorated women in United States military history.[1] She was a native of Spencer, West Virginia but lived in Falls Church, Virginia, for over 50 years.

Ruby Bradley
Bradley as the Director, Nursing Activities, Brooke Army Medical Center
Born(1907-12-19)December 19, 1907
DiedMay 28, 2002(2002-05-28) (aged 94)
Buried
Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service1934–1963
RankColonel
UnitNurse Corps
Battles/warsWorld War II
Korean War
AwardsLegion of Merit (2)
Bronze Star (2)
Army Commendation Medal (2)
Florence Nightingale Medal

Military career

Bradley entered the United States Army Nurse Corps as a surgical nurse in 1934. She was serving at Camp John Hay in the Philippines when she was captured by the Japanese army three weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

In 1943, she was moved to the Santo Tomas Internment Camp in Manila. It was there that she and several other imprisoned nurses earned the title "Angels in Fatigues" from fellow captives. For the next several months, she provided medical help to the prisoners and sought to feed starving children by shoving food into her pockets whenever she could, often going hungry herself. As she lost weight, she used the room in her uniform for smuggling surgical equipment into the prisoner-of-war camp. At the camp she assisted in 230 operations and helped to deliver 13 children.

When U.S. troops captured the camp on February 3, 1945, Bradley weighed only 86 pounds (39 kg). She was then returned to the United States where she continued her career in the Army. She received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California in 1949.

Bradley served in the Korean War as Chief Nurse for the 171st Evacuation Hospital. In November 1950, during the Chinese counter-offensive, she refused to leave until she had loaded the sick and wounded onto a plane in Pyongyang while surrounded by 100,000 advancing Chinese soldiers. She was able to jump aboard the plane just as her ambulance exploded from an enemy shell. In 1951, she was named Chief Nurse for the Eighth Army, where she supervised over 500 Army nurses throughout Korea.[2]

She was promoted to the rank of colonel in 1958 and retired from the Army in 1963.

Later life

She was the subject of a February 23, 2000 NBC Nightly News report by Tom Brokaw about the forgotten heroes of the military.

After her death in 2002 she was also the recipient of a memorial resolution, drafted by Congressman Joe Baca of California, regarding her exemplary service to this nation.

Awards

Her military record included 34 decorations, medals and other awards. These included:[3]

Dates of rank
  • 2nd Lieutenant (relative rank) – 16 October 1934[4]
  • 1st Lieutenant (AUS) – 18 February 1945[4]
  • Captain (AUS) – 27 October 1945[4]
  • Captain (RA) – 19 August 1947[4] (to rank from 19 December 1942)
  • Major (RA) – 15 May 1950[4]
  • Lieutenant Colonel (RA) – 23 July 1952[4]
  • Colonel (RA) – 4 March 1958[4]
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References
  1. "Ruby G. Bradley, Colonel, U.S. Army Nurse Corps Director, Nursing activities, Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas" (web). U.S. Army Office of Medical History. 2009-07-07. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
  2. McLellan, Dennis (2 June 2002). "Ruby Bradley, 94; Army Nurse Was 'Angel in Fatigues' for POWs". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  3. Norman, Elizabeth M. (1999). We Band of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan by the Japanese. New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 317. ISBN 9780671787189.
  4. "Col Ruby Grace Bradley". history.amedd.army.mil. US Army Medical Department. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
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