Dora E. Thompson

Dora Elizabeth Thompson (1876 – June 23, 1954) was the fourth Army Nurse Corps Superintendent, and the first selected from within the Corps, having served as an Army nurse for 12 years prior to her appointment. She received the Distinguished Service Medal for her service during World War I.

Early life Dora Elizabeth Thompson was born in 1876, at Cold Spring, New York, to Dora and Arthur Thompson. Her father was a carpenter from Canada. At five years old, her father died and she was raised by her aunt Alma Armstrong. In 1897, she graduated from New York Hospital Training School for Nurses. She took a postgraduate course on operating room methods.

Career Thompson started working as an operating room and private duty nurse for a few years. She joined the United States Army Nurse Corps in 1902. She was assigned to the Army General Hospital at Presidio of San Francisco. In August 1905, she was promoted to chief nurse and oversaw the hospital through the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. In 1911, she was transferred to the division hospital in Manila as chief nurse. She served for 12 years before getting promoted as superintendent on September 22, 1914.

Legacy In May 1955, the women officers' quarters at Letterman Hospital was renamed to Thompson Hall in her honor.