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Margaret Utinsky

  • Writer: chanfebe04
    chanfebe04
  • Jul 8
  • 3 min read

Updated: Jul 14

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An American nurse who disguised her identity to smuggle aid into Japanese prison camps in the Philippines, Margaret Utinsky’s resistance was daring and meticulously calculated. Operating under intense surveillance, she risked execution daily, yet persisted in saving countless POWs. Her post-war memoir won critical acclaim, but her story has since been overshadowed in Western histories that rarely foreground female espionage in Asia.


🕊️ LIFE BEFORE THE WAR

  • Birth & Childhood: Born August 26, 1900, in St. Louis, Missouri; raised partly on a wheat farm in Canada. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

  • Nursing Education: Trained at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City and built a reputation for compassion and steel-nerved professionalism. [2] [6] [4] [7] [5] [8]

  • Career in Manila: By the late 1930s, worked as a nurse in Manila while maintaining a low-profile civilian life. [1] [2] [4] [5] [9]

  • Refusing Evacuation Orders: As Japan advanced, Margaret refused U.S. evacuation orders in order to stay with her husband in Bataan. [1] [3] [4] [6] [10]

  • Going Underground: After Manila fell in January 1942, she slipped off the final evacuation ship and went into hiding. [1] [2] [3] [5] [9]

🕊️ CONTRIBUTIONS TO WWII RESISTANCE IN ASIA

  • Forged Identity: Assumed the identity of “Rena Utinsky,” a neutral Lithuanian nurse, using forged identity papers to avoid internment. [1] [3] [6] [7] [9] [11]

  • Philippine Red Cross Access: Her alias helped her secure a role in the Philippine Red Cross, granting her mobility across Japanese-occupied zones. [1] [2] [4] [9] [10] [11]

  • The “Miss U Spy Ring”: Margaret co-founded an underground network—later dubbed the “Miss U Spy Ring”—that smuggled food, quinine, money, and messages to American and Filipino POWs. [1] [3] [6] [7] [9] [11]

  • Arrest and Torture: Captured by the Japanese Kempeitai, Margaret endured 32 days of torture, starvation, and infection in a dark cell. She lost 45 pounds and developed gangrene. [1] [6] [4] [5] [9] [10]

  • Improvised Surgery and Escape: Directed Filipino doctors to operate on her wounds without anesthesia; she escaped before full recovery. [1] [2] [6] [7] [9] [10]

  • Guerrilla Resistance: After escaping captivity, she joined Philippine Commonwealth guerrilla forces, working as a courier and nurse in mountain strongholds. [1] [3] [6] [7] [9] [11]

  • Counterintelligence Work: Later served with the U.S. Army Counter Intelligence Corps, identifying collaborators and gathering intelligence. [1] [6] [4] [5] [9] [10]

  • Recognition: In 1946, Margaret was awarded the U.S. Medal of Freedom for her wartime bravery and humanitarian service. [1] [2] [3] [4] [10] [11]

🕊️ LIFE AFTER THE WAR

  • Reunion with Survivors: After the liberation of the Philippines, she was flown to meet 511 POWs rescued from Cabanatuan—many of whom she had helped from the shadows. [1] [2] [5] [9] [10] [11]

  • Memoir: In 1948, she published Miss U, detailing her clandestine work, survival, and reflections on resistance. [1] [2] [4] [5] [6] [7]

  • Final Years: Continued nursing and advocacy for war survivors. Died on August 30, 1970, in Lakewood, California; buried at Roosevelt Memorial Park in Gardena. [1] [3] [4] [5] [9]

References

[1] Find a Grave – Margaret Elizabeth “Miss U” Doolin Utinsky. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/21904597/margaret-elizabeth-utinsky

[2] Seton Magazine – Miss U, American Heroine. https://www.setonmagazine.com/dad/bob-wiesner/miss-u-american-heroine

[3] FactSnippet – 17 Facts About Margaret Utinsky. https://www.factsnippet.com/site/facts-about-margaret-utinsky.html

[4] DayHist – Margaret Utinsky, Nurse. https://dayhist.com/persons/margaret-utinsky-nurse

[5] Bookey – Miss U by Margaret Utinsky. https://www.bookey.app/book/miss-u

[6] Amazon – Miss U: Angel of the Underground. https://www.amazon.com/Miss-Angel-Underground-Margaret-Utinsky/dp/1549681052

[7] Philippine Defenders (PastPerfect Archive) – Margaret Utinsky Collection. https://philippinedefenders.pastperfectonline.com/archive/6386A8D2-E7E0-4FC2-B7FD-213094105542

[8] Goodreads – Miss U Reviews and Reader Commentary. https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/36232963-miss-u

[9] Internet Archive – Miss U (1948). https://archive.org/details/MissU1948-nsia

[11] Survivalist Boards – Forum Thread: Learning from “Miss U”. https://www.survivalistboards.com/threads/learning-from-“miss-u”.2633




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