Navy·Integration / civil rights·In Memoriam
Yeoman (F)
Yeomanette
Served: 1917–1919
First women enlisted in the US Navy in non-nursing roles. Clerks, draftsmen, translators, fingerprint experts, even ship-camouflage designers — ~11,000 served by Armistice.
The Story
Secretary Daniels created the rating by asking his staff: "Is there any law that says a Yeoman must be a man?" There was not. Loretta Perfectus Walsh enlisted 17 March 1917 — the first American woman to serve in any branch as anything other than a nurse. Same pay as men: $28.75/month.
Epitaph
“Existed because someone read the statute carefully. Killed by Congress reading it again.”
Sources
- NHHC — Yeoman (F) Overviewwww.history.navy.mil
- National Archives Prologuewww.archives.gov