CPT US Army, Lorraine Adelle Bly West
Born: June 2, 1919
Died: May 24, 2017
Burial Site: SFNC, Section 6, Site 67A
Lorraine Bly West served as an officer in the U.S. Army during World War II from 1943 to 1946 where she was stationed in the South Pacific with the Army Nurse Corps. 1, 2, 3
Adelle Bly West was born to Ellen and Ray Bly at River Lawn Farm in the township of Roosevelt, County of Burnett, Wisconsin. 2 She graduated from high school at Shell Lake High in 1937 and began nursing school in 1939 at the University of Wisconsin. In 1940, she was recorded living in the Student Nurses Dormitories at Wisconsin General Hospital, where she was treasurer for her class. 4, 5, 6 In 1941 she received her nursing certificate at the University of Wisconsin and gained nursing experience between December 1940 and February 1941 with the Visiting Nurses Association of Madison. 7, 8, 9,10 Thereafter she completed her Bachelor of Nursing from the University of Oregon. 2 She worked for the Visiting Nurse City-County Health Department in Boise, Idaho for two and a half years, and was promoted to supervisor for the Visiting Nurse Association in Ada County, Idaho. 1
In 1946, she was the nurse supervisor at a contagious hospital in Madison, Wisconsin. 12 In 1947, she was working temporarily at the Osceola Camp Clinic in Florida. 13 While with the Visiting Nurses Association in Boise Idaho in 1950, she cared for people in their homes. 14 In Boise, she became involved with the League of Women Voters and was president of the Idaho League for Nurses. 15 In 1954 she married Sam West, and they had two children, Nelson and Wilson. 2, 16, 17, 18
According to her obituary, Bly’s career included working at a WPA camp, as a school nurse, and as a staff nurse for the Midwestern Agricultural Workers Health Association, and improved the lives of migrant farm workers, the poor, and others in need. 2 Her obituary tribute states, “She enjoyed her life as a mother, wife, grandmother, aunt, and friend.” 2
Images & Documents
West, Lorraine Adelle Bly D1
“Army Appoints Four City Nurses,” Wisconsin State Journal, July 27, 1943, 8. Newspapers.com.
West, Lorraine Adelle Bly D2
“Nurses Enter U.S. Army Corps,” The Oshkosh Daily Northwestern, July 28, 1943, 8. Newspapers.com.
Notes:
1. “Army Appoints Four City Nurses,” Wisconsin State Journal, July 27, 1943, 8. Newspapers.com.
2. “Lorraine West Obituary (1919 – 2017) – Las Cruces, NM – Las Cruces Sun-News.” Legacy.com. Accessed February 27, 2023. https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/lcsun-news/name/lorraine-west-obituary?id=16093855.
3. “Nurses Enter U.S. Army Corps,” The Oshkosh Daily Northwestern, July 28, 1943, 8. Newspapers.com.
4. “U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012”; School Name: University of Wisconsin–Madison; Year: 1939.
5. “U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012”; School Name: University of Wisconsin–Madison; Year: 1940
6. Year: 1940; Census Place: Madison, Dane, Wisconsin; Roll: m-t0627-04469; Page: 19A; Enumeration District: 13-50A
7. “Certificate of Graduate Nurse,” The Capital Times (Madison), June 22, 1941, 6. Newspapers.com.
8. “Assistant Nurse Added to Staff by Attic Angels,” The Capital Times, January 15, 1942. Newspapers.com.
9. “Attic Angel Association Makes Plan for Radio Programs,” Wisconsin State Journal, January 15, 1942. Newspapers.com.
10. Wisconsin Board of Nursing; Wisconsin; Registered and Practical Nurses Permanent Record Cards, Circa 1912-1982; Series: Registered and Practical Nurses Permanent Record Cards; Book Series: 2675 or 2676
11. “Lorraine Bly Named to Head Nursing Unit,” The Idaho Statesman, April 15, 1952, 6. Newspapers.com.
12. Favor $50 Fee for City Pest Exterminators,” The Capital Times, February 7, 1946, 5. Newspapers.com.
13. Rushing, Gene, “Belle Glade,” The Miami Herald, February 5, 1947, 2. Newspapers.com.
14. “Brewerton, Denton,” Boise’s Visiting Nurse Service Summarizes First Year Record of 2500 Errands of Mercy,” The Idaho Statesman, January 3, 1950, 10. Newspapers.com.
15. “League Schedules Trade Discussion,” The Idaho Statesman, January 10, 1950, 6. Newspapers.com.
16. “Nurse’s Betrothal Announced,” The Idaho Statesman, May 17, 1954, 8. Newspapers.com.
17. “Marriage Licenses,” Idaho Daily Statesman, June 6, 1954, 8. Newspapers.com.
18. Ancestry.com. Idaho, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1864-1967 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2017.
Featured Image:
“Lorraine West Obituary (1919 – 2017) – Las Cruces, NM – Las Cruces Sun-News.” Legacy.com. Accessed February 27, 2023. https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/lcsun-news/name/lorraine-west-obituary?id=16093855.
Prepared by Sue Ruth, Ph.D., Central New Mexico Community College