One Woman's Army A Black Officer Remembers the WAC by Charity Adams Earley

One Woman's Army describes in candid detail how Charity Adams Earley and a group of committed African American women "rode point" in World War II in the battle to serve their country.

As the first black officer commissioned in what was then the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps, Earley held a position of responsibility and vulnerability under the scrutiny of both American and Allied forces. Entering a segregated unit in the newly formed women's corps, she underwent training in Iowa and experienced the frustrating attempts by authorities to outfit and train the military's first uniformed women. Quickly displaying a talent for leadership, she was promoted to major. As commander of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion in Europe, she led the only unit of black women to serve overseas during World War II.

Earley faced many a fight behind the lines, including court-martial charges filed by a general who had made a racist remark to her and segregation in housing and recreational facilities. When she left the Women's Army Corps in 1946, she held the rank of lieutenant colonel, second only to that of the WAC commander.

CHARITY ADAMS EARLEY, like thousands of other veterans, used the GI Bill to continue her education. For many years she has been a highly respected civic leader in Dayton, Ohio. Her biography is included in Black Women in America: An Historical Encyclopedia. On February 17, 1995, she spoke at the Department of Defense's salute to black veterans and introduced the commander-in-chief.

Number Twelve:
Texas A&M University Military History Series

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One Woman's Army
0-89096-694-X paper $15.95

LC 88-20181. 6x9. 232 pp. 40 b&w photos. 4 line drawings. Index.
African American Studies. Military History. Women's Studies.

Publication Date: March 1989.

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