The WAVES came from all over the country and served alongside their male counterparts. WAVES stands for Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service and the organization (under the purview of the Navy) was created in 1942 as a way to gain much-needed military personnel. While most WAVES served stateside, towards the end of the war some WAVES were shipped out to the front.

Women’s Land Army worker harvests beans in MA, 1944. Via/ U.S. National Archives
1941, factory worker takes a break outside the John Inglis & Co. gun plant. Via/ Flickr
WAVES at the Hospital Corps School at National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MD, 1945. Via/ U.S. National Archives
1941. Via/ Flickr

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