Last updated: December 7, 2023
Article
Women in World War II: Home, Family, and Community
During World War II, American women entered the workforce and the military in unprecedented numbers. These dramatic changes also altered the way they related to their homes, families, communities, and private lives. Women grappled with changes to their family structures, served their communities in novel ways, and struggled to balance war work, rationing, and wartime restrictions with the obligations of domestic labor.
Social injustice also impacted women in unequal ways. For example, Japanese and Japanese American women saw incarceration damage their relationships and communities. The government forcibly removed Unangax̂ (Aleut) people from their homes in the Aleutian Islands. Jewish refugee women sought to build new lives for their families after escaping persecution in Europe.
This page collects stories of women and their homes, families, communities, and private lives during World War II.
Voluntarism and Community Building
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ArticleVictory GardensFaced with feeding an expanded military and a hungry population during WWII, the US government encouraged people to plant Victory Gardens.
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Lesson PlanThe USO in Wilmington, NCThis lesson plan explores the history of USO clubs for servicemen in Wilmington, NC, an American WWII Heritage City.
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PersonRuth Nomura TanbaraForced out of California by the US policy of Japanese incarceration, Ruth Tanbara and her family made a new home and community in Minnesota.
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PersonSallie Wyatt StewartDuring WWII, Sallie Wyatt Stewart organized a Colored Women’s Work Committee to promote the sale of war bonds and stamps in Evansville, IL.
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ArticleMaterial DrivesGovernment programs encouraged citizens to collect and donate metal, rubber, paper, and kitchen fats for the war effort.
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PersonHaruko TakahashiHaruko Takahashi was a Shintō priestess who spent part of World War II imprisoned at Honouliuli Internment Camp on O’ahu, Hawai’i.
Childcare & Domestic Work
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ArticleChildcare on the World War II Home FrontDuring WWII, the United States subsidized childcare for some of the many women workers who powered the war effort.
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ArticleRestrictions and RationingWartime shortages meant people had to do without or make due. Nylons, canned dog food, and sugar were some of the goods in short supply.
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ArticleFood Rationing on the WWII Home FrontSupply issues, military needs, and economic factors drove food rationing during World War II.
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ArticleNutrition on the Home FrontDuring World War II, nutrition and food became linked with the future of America and of democracy itself.
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ArticleCanning and Food PreservationPlanting Victory Gardens was only part of the work. Efficiently and safely preserving that bounty for later use was crucial.
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ArticleMeat RationingMeat was on the ration list from March 1943 through November 1945, spurring Meatless Tuesdays, a thriving black market, and new recipes.
Struggle and Injustice
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Jewish Refugee Experience(H)our History Lesson: Fort OntarioThis lesson plan about Jewish refugees at Ft. Ontario helps students understand religion, foreign policy, & refugee policy during WWII.
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Article SeriesThe Munemitsu Family & IncarcerationThis series introduces the Munemitsu family and shares some of their experiences with migration and Japanese American incarceration.
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Oral History InterviewEva Tcheripanoff InterviewThis interview details the experiences of Eva Tcheripanoff (nee Kudrin), who was forcibly removed from her home in Kashega during WWII.
Family, Health, & Private Life
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ArticleLGBTQ Histories From the WWII Home FrontWWII drew millions of servicemen and women and defense workers to the Bay Area, where many of them found queer community.
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Oral History InterviewWilliam & Bobbe CrooksLongtime spouses William and Bobbe Crooks talk about their wartime life in Alaska.
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Lesson PlanWomen's Sexual Health & Safety in WWIIThis lesson guides students through the important history of women's sexual health and safety on the American WWII home front.