Encyclopedia.com lists June 21, 1943 as the date Edith Greenwood 'became 1st woman to receive the Soldier's Medal,' differing from other primary sources citing June 10.
According to the reference compilation Encyclopedia.com, Edith Ellen Greenwood "became 1st woman to receive the Soldier's Medal" on June 21, 1943, for her heroism in evacuating all patients from a military hospital in Yuma, Arizona following the fire of April 17, 1943.
This date differs from the more commonly cited June 10, 1943 award date found in primary military citation narratives and the Hall of Valor database. The discrepancy may stem from administrative processing delays, a distinction between the date of the formal citation versus a public announcement or ceremony, or simply a transcription error in secondary sources.
Despite the date discrepancy, both sources agree on the substance of the achievement: Greenwood was recognized as the first woman ever to receive the Soldier's Medal for her heroic rescue of patients during the hospital fire. Historians and archivists researching her legacy should note this variance and treat the June 10 date as more likely authoritative given its grounding in citation-based primary sources, while the June 21 date remains a documented alternate record worth preserving for completeness.
This kind of date discrepancy is common in mid-20th-century military records, particularly for women's achievements, which were often less rigorously documented and cross-referenced than those of their male counterparts during World War II.