Women at Work During World War II

Cathy opted to leave school at the end of the semester and found work with the United Engineering and Foundry Company, where she worked with representatives from the Soviet Purchasing Commission. After working with the United Engineering and Foundry Company, Cathy joined her husband after the war on Adak.

Shirley Allen (later Shirley Johnson) wanted to contribute to the war effort and put off going to college to do so. She made her way to Memphis and found work at the Army Depot. Robert Johnson was a member of the 206th Coast Artillery band (trombone) out of Marianna, Arkansas. He served at Dutch Harbor and Amchitka. Learn about the Johnsons' experience from photos and a transcription of Robert's wartime diary, courtesy of his daughter.

Lucille Lambert made her contribution to the war effort working for the American Red Cross in Whittier. With the Army’s 7th Infantry Division, Donald Condrill was involved in the battles to reclaim Attu and Kiska from Japanese forces and also served in Whittier.

Jean worked at the Columbia Aircraft Factory in New York where her mother was employed building the J2F Duck. Jean discusses how the war forced young people to grow up quickly and accept responsibility at a young age. Bernie worked at Grumman Aircraft in New York during the war and enlisted for duty as part of an occupation force in Japan following the bombing.

A college graduate, Jeanne contributed to the war effort through her work with Ranger Aircraft Engines in New York. She also recalls stories of her husband’s service in the Aleutian Islands during the war and adaptation to marriage and life post war for her and her extended family.

Working in the Burbank Lockheed Aircraft Plant, Eleanor Mae Cramer recalls plant security, secret product development, rationing, & bomb scares. Listen to her interview, and browse her photo album of the Aircraft Plant.

This lesson is part of a series teaching about the World War II home front, with Paterson, New Jersey, an American World War II Heritage City. The lesson contains photographs and newspaper articles to contribute to learners’ understandings about the home front contributions of women in Paterson. Women worked and served in many ways in Paterson during World War II. The lesson does not cover all roles and specifically focuses on paid war industry work and service.

This is a series of lesson plans about the WWII home front, focused on Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a World War II Heritage City. The lesson contains primary and secondary sources readings, photographs, statistics and other resources, as well as questions for students to consider. The lessons highlight specific contributions of the people of Pittsburgh, and they connect to the larger themes and understanding of the US home front during wartime.

This lesson is part of a series about the World War II home front, with Pensacola and Escambia County, an American World War II Heritage City. The lesson contains three primary reading sources and photos to contribute to learners’ understandings about the role of the Pensacola Vocational School in training home front war workers, and particularly women.

World War II transformed Evansville. Located just north of the Ohio River in southwestern Indiana, Evansville’s inland location was perfect for large-scale defense production. The city’s factories received military contracts and converted to wartime production, drawing federal funding and workers into the city. New job opportunities also opened for women and African Americans. This article explores some of the many places and stories associated with WWII history in Evansville

The lesson is based on the Floyd Bennett Field Historic District, one of the thousands of properties listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Learn about the vital role played by naval aviators delivering aircraft to combat-bound units in the Pacific during WWII, and the women workers on the home front who helped in one of U.S. history's greatest industrial feats

After the passage of the 19th Amendment, the fight for women’s rights continued in the workplace. Although women in general began making strides in the workplace during World War II, African American women faced various barriers due to their race and gender. At the Charlestown Navy Yard, two African American women, Mabel Kahn and Helen Franklin, sought to bring attention to discrimination at the Navy Yard and called for action.

Explore the World War II effort through the experiences of three women who served in the United States Naval Reserve, better known as the WAVES, at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, New York. 

This lesson is part of a series teaching about the World War II home front, with Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania an American World War II Heritage City. The lesson contains photographs, 2 readings, a documentary extension, and a culminating mastery project. The first reading shares Pittsburgh voices, and the second connects Pittsburgh to the Heritage City designation. The culminating project explores the city as a WWII Heritage City, especially in combination with the other lessons.

This lesson is part of a series teaching about the World War II home front, with Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, an American World War II Heritage City. The lesson contains photographs, two newspaper articles, and an interview to contribute to learners’ understandings about the home front contributions of women in Pittsburgh. The lesson does not cover all roles women played but does cover women in industry and women volunteerism.

Overview of three lessons, and culminating fourth lesson, develop the significance of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as an American World War II Heritage City: its impacts to home front efforts with its contributions to war manufacturing and industry, with accompanying economic, social, geographical, and environmental changes. The lessons highlight specific contributions but connect to larger themes and understandings of the U.S. home front during wartime.