Lenah H. Sutcliffe Higbee (May 18, 1874 – January 10, 1941) was a pioneering Canadian-born

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

military nurse, who served as Superintendent of the

U.S. Navy Nurse Corps The United States Navy Nurse Corps was officially established by Congress in 1908; however, unofficially, women had been working as nurses aboard Navy ships and in Navy hospitals for nearly 100 years. The Corps was all-female until 1965. Pre-190 ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. She is best known for being the first female recipient of the Navy Cross.

Early life and education

Higbee was born Lenah H. Sutcliffe in Chatham, New Brunswick, Canada, on 18 May 1874. She completed nurses' training at the New York Post-Graduate Hospital in 1899 and entered private practice soon thereafter. Lenah Higbee took postgraduate training at

Fordham Hospital Fordham Hospital was the first public hospital in the Bronx, New York City, having opened in 1892. Prior to that time, all the New York City municipal hospitals were in Manhattan. It was located in the Fordham section of the Bronx on Valentine Av ...

, New York in 1908. In 1899, she married retired Marine Corps

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

John H. Higbee. His first wife Isabel Higbee had died in 1898. John Higbee had served as a Marine Corps officer from 1861 to 1898. He died in April 1908 and was interred at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

Career

In October 1908, she joined the newly established U.S. Navy Nurse Corps as one of its first twenty members. These nurses, who came to be called "

The Sacred Twenty The Sacred Twenty were a group of nurses who were the first female members to ever formally serve in the United States Navy representing the Nurse Corps. Officially formed in 1908, the Sacred Twenty made broad contributions during wartime, not o ...

", were the first women to formally serve as members of the Navy. The Navy required its first Nurse Corps candidates to be between 22 and 44 years old and also unmarried. As a 34-year-old widow, Higbee met these requirements. She was promoted to Chief Nurse in 1909. Lenah Higbee became Chief Nurse at Norfolk Naval Hospital in April 1909. In January 1911, Higbee became the second Superintendent of the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps. For her achievements in leading the Corps through the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Chief Nurse Higbee was the first woman awarded the Navy Cross. Navy nurses Marie Louise Hidell, Lillian M. Murphy and Edna E. Place were also awarded the Navy Cross in 1920 for their World War I service, but these women all received the award posthumously after having succumbed to the

Spanish flu The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case was ...

, which they contracted while caring for hospital patients. Lenah Higbee in 1918 - LCCN2016869261 (cropped)

Navy Cross citation

Later life and death

She resigned from the position of Superintendent and retired from the Navy on 23 November 1922. Higbee died at

Winter Park, Florida Winter Park is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 30,183 according to the 2022 census population estimate. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Winter Park was fo ...

, on 10 January 1941 and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county is ...

Legacy

The US Navy has named two ships in her honor; * , a commissioned in 1945, as the first U.S. Navy warship to bear the name of one of its female members. * , a planned guided missile destroyer scheduled to enter the fleet in 2024.

References

External links

Photos of Lenah Higbee

Naval Historical Center

Naval History and Heritage Command * {{DEFAULTSORT:Higbee, Lenah 1874 births 1941 deaths Canadian emigrants to the United States Female United States Navy officers United States Navy Nurse Corps officers American nursing administrators United States Navy personnel of World War I American women in World War I Female nurses in World War I Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) Burials at Arlington National Cemetery