Nurses serving in the Spanish-American War
On April 25, 1898 the United States declared war on Spain following the sinking of the Battleship Maine in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898. The Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898 ended the war and Spain lost its control over the remnants of its overseas empire. The Treaty established the independence of Cuba, ceded Puerto Rico and Guam to the United States, and allowed the United States to purchase the Philippine Islands from Spain for $20 million.
The war had cost the United States $250 million and more than 5,000 lives. Only about 400 were killed in battle or died of wounds--the remainder succumbed to disease. More than 1,500 female nurses served under contract to the Army or the Navy, twenty-one of them died in the line of duty and their service led to a permanent niche for them in the U.S. Armed Forces.