Regina Purtell (April 23, 1848 – August 3, 1933) was an American Catholic religious sister and nurse, best known for her service with the United States Army during the Spanish–American War and for her long career in public health nursing. She was a member of the Sisters of Mercy and earned the nickname “the Angel of the Battlefield” for her work in military hospitals.
Early life and education
Regina Purtell was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Irish immigrant parents, James and Mary (née McMahon) Purtell. She received her primary education in Chicago’s public schools. In 1865, at the age of 17, she entered the novitiate of the Sisters of Mercy in St. Louis, Missouri, taking the religious name Sister Regina. She completed her formation and took final vows in 1868.
Religious vocation and nursing training
Following her vows, Sister Regina was assigned to the Mercy Hospital in St. Louis, where she received practical training in nursing. Throughout the 1870s and 1880s she worked in various Mercy institutions, including schools and hospitals, developing a reputation for competence in patient care and hospital administration.
Spanish–American War service
In 1898, after the outbreak of the Spanish–American War, the United States Army sought the assistance of Catholic religious nurses for its field hospitals. Sister Regina was selected to serve as a contract nurse at the U.S. Army General Hospital No. 1 in Jacksonville, Florida, and later at the temporary hospital at Camp Alger, Virginia. Her diligent care for wounded soldiers earned her widespread acclaim in contemporary newspapers, which referred to her as “the Angel of the Battlefield.” She was one of the few women granted a military rank (acting as a “contract nurse”) and received the U.S. Army’s Medal of Merit for her service.
Public health nursing and later career
After the war, Sister Regina returned to Chicago, where she became involved in the city’s emerging public health initiatives. In 1901 she was appointed chief nurse of the Chicago City Hospital (later known as Mercy Hospital), overseeing the training of lay nurses and the implementation of sanitation protocols. She played a key role in establishing the Chicago Visiting Nurse Association, promoting home-based care for the poor and ill.
During World I (1917–1918), although now in her late sixties, she volunteered for the U.S. Army’s Nurse Corps Reserve, providing training and advisory services to younger nurses deployed overseas.
Death and legacy
Regina Purtell died on August 3, 1933, in Chicago at the age of 85. She was interred at Calvary Cemetery in Evanston, Illinois. Her contributions to military nursing, public health, and the professionalization of nursing in the United States have been documented in nursing histories and biographies of notable Catholic religious nurses. Several nursing awards and a scholarship at Mercy Hospital were posthumously named in her honor.
