The Angels of Bataan and the Woman They Called Mama Josie

Every group eventually has a “mom” who looks out for everyone. The one who reminds you to eat and asks if you've slept enough, even if you’ve just met.

During World War II, as 77 American military nurses (who later became known as the Angels of Bataan) found themselves trapped inside Japanese prison camps, one woman became that mother figure amidst unimaginable uncertainty.

They called her “Mama Josie.” As a lieutenant, she became legendary for sustaining and protecting American military nurses during the darkest periods of the war in the Pacific. She was somebody’s wartime mom; this is the story of her and the Angels of Bataan and Corregidor.

Who Was Mama Josie?

Josephine Nesbit, affectionately known as Mama Josie, was born on a family farm in Butler, Missouri, on December 23, 1894. Farm life was difficult, but losing her parents before she turned 12 was even harder. She was taken in first by her grandmother and later cared for by her cousin.

Inspired by her sister, Nesbit felt a calling to the nursing profession. After speaking with her sister’s supervisor, she entered training and became a registered nurse in 1914.

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When an Army recruiter came to Kansas City in 1918, nurses were urgently invited to join the Army Nurse Corps to help combat the Spanish Influenza epidemic. Nesbit answered the call. As time marched on, she rose through the ranks, eventually becoming a First Lieutenant and second-in-command at Sternberg General Hospital in Manila.

Nesbit was famous for her maternal affection toward her staff. They called her Mama Josie, and in return, she lovingly referred to her staff as “her girls.”

The Angels of Bataan and Corregidor

For American Army and Navy nurses, the Philippines initially felt like a tropical paradise. The scenery was beautiful, the weather was warm, and the duties were relatively light. They had time to golf, socialize, and enjoy their station.

However, life changed overnight. Just hours after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Mama Josie had a gut feeling that the Philippines would be next. She gathered her nurses. "Girls, you’ve got to sleep today," she declared. "You can’t weep and wail over this, because you have to work tonight."

Exactly as she predicted, Japanese forces began bombing the islands.

For the first time, these nurses were faced with brutal, horrific combat injuries. American and Filipino troops fought desperately across the region. Everyone worked under impossible conditions. As Manila was about to fall, the medical teams were evacuated to Bataan and Corregidor, setting up two jungle hospitals.

In Bataan, the nurses worked while covered in wounds, fighting off malaria and dysentery, with bombs dropping relentlessly around them. The situation became even more dire after the fall of Bataan in April 1942. The nurses, alongside 80,000 Allied troops, were ordered to retreat to the island fortress of Corregidor.

During the evacuation, Mama Josie was instructed by Col. James O. Gillespie, the medical commander, to bring her American nurses to his office and to take only what they could carry. Mama Josie immediately asked, “What about my Filipina nurses?” Col. Gillespie initially said only the Americans could go, but Mama Josie adamantly refused to leave without them.

Because of her steadfast refusal to abandon her team, Col. Gillespie eventually secured permission to evacuate all the nurses and the civilian women working with them.

The Japanese Prison Camp During World War II

Corregidor Island fell on May 6, 1942. The remaining Allied soldiers, nurses, and civilian staff were captured by the Japanese military. Mama Josie, along with Captain Maude C. Davison (the chief nurse of the Philippine Department) and the 77 American nurses, were sent to the Santo Tomas Internment Camp in Manila.

There, they took over the camp hospital, establishing strict routines and requiring the nurses to work four-hour shifts every day to maintain a sense of purpose and discipline. The conditions were agonizing; the Japanese military eventually cut their rations to a mere 700 calories per day. The women lost an average of 30% of their body weight, growing weaker by the day.

Yet, Mama Josie's maternal instinct never wavered. When a nurse was too weak to work, Nesbit would step in. She would scavenge to find tiny pieces of meat or extra nourishment, giving it solely to "her girls" to keep them alive.

Mama Josie’s Enduring Legacy

After nearly three long years of starvation and brutal captivity, Allied forces liberated the Philippines in early 1945. By the time they were rescued, the prisoners of war—including the nurses—had been reduced to eating weeds, roots, flowers, and slugs just to survive.

Miraculously, every single one of the 77 Angels of Bataan survived their internment. Their survival is widely credited to the strict discipline, unwavering support, and maternal comfort provided by Mama Josie and Captain Davison.

Following the liberation, Mama Josie retired from the military as a Major on November 30, 1946. But her connection with her nurses never faded. For the next 49 years, without fail, she wrote birthday and Christmas cards to every single nurse of the Angels of Bataan.

Long after the war ended and the prison camps were torn down, Mama Josie was still checking in on her nurses, just like any mother would.

Ultimately, Mama Josie’s story is about more than just the horrors of war. It is a testament to the kind of care, leadership, and love that people never forget, even decades later.