Brrr! Members of the final graduating class of WAVES at the Northampton Naval Reserve Midshipman’s School march to their graduation in December 1944.
The photograph comes from the National Archives.
Tag Archives: navy training
The Crash
Aviation in World War II was a dangerous business – both in combat and (perhaps even more so) in training. These photographs from the National Archives show just how dangerous aviation training could be.
The wreckage is of a fatal crash of an SNV-1 (of Squadron 2B based at Saufley Field) 100′ north of north end of Lyons Field, FL. Pilot: D.H. Kaufman. Passenger: AVCR. Sample. Both died in the crash, which happened 70 years ago today, December 13, 1944.
Learning the Guns
A WAVE learns to handle a machine gun at NATC Pensacola, FL where she will later teach male gunners the sights. The photo comes from the National Archives.
Eleanor Roosevelt, Part II
First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, visiting to the officer training at Smith College in Northampton, MA with WAVE Commander Mildred McAfee.
The photograph comes from the Schlesinger Library at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studies, Harvard University.
Turkey Day Preview
Getting ready for Thursday? How about this tidbit from the Navy History and Heritage Command from Thanksgiving 1944 at the Amphibious Training Center in San Francisco?
Gunnery Films
WAVE Bertha May Rasmussen rewinds a film used to project a target on the screen. The film is used during gunner training. Rasmussen taught men how to track and bring down the on-screen target – skills which would later be used in the field.
The photograph comes from the National Archives.
Joan Angel
Joan Angel, author of “Angel of the Navy,” sends birthday greetings to the Cedar Falls boot camp on its first anniversary in Fall 1943. Her book was used as a recruitment tool during World War II.
Sewing Stripes
WAVE Annabell Dean get her first stripe sewn on after she graduates as an ensign from the Northampton Women’s Reserve Officer’s Training School at Smith College. Ensign Mabel Theobald helps her get the placement just right.
The photograph comes from the National Archives.
Tight Quarters
Check out the living quarters for WAVES at NATTC in Norman, Oklahoma. The WAVE shows that folding was an art form – and a necessity.
The photograph comes from the National Archives.
Letters Home
This February 1943 photograph shows a WAVE writing a letter aboard a train while en route from the Cedar Falls boot camp to the Madison, Wisconsin advanced training facility for radio coding/decoding.
The photograph comes from the National Archives.
Hinges of History 