Kathryn B. Cerwinski Photograph Album
Content Description
Photograph album titled “Evolution of Kathryn B. Cerwinski from Civilian, First Class to Tech/Sgt, WAC, June 30, 1943 to March 20, 1946,” Other than the first four images, which show Cerwinski “fresh out of basic” at Fort Devens in Massachusetts, and around 26 photos of Cerwinski on furlough, the entirety of the album is devoted to her time with Headquarters Detachment at the WAC Third WAC Training Center, Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, between 1944 and 1946. This includes portraits of Cerwinski and other officers (many identified), a photo of Cerwinski shoveling coal (captioned “firing furnaces”), and images of a rare Georgia snowstorm, including a snapshot of a Mexican-American WAC captioned “Theresa Moreno Mexican First Snow Theresa Has Ever Seen,” together with photos of Christmas parties, the mess hall, the 3rd WAC Training Center Band on Parade, WACS posing and hanging out together, and more. Towards the end of the album are eight photographs measuring 8 x 10”, including two press photos and images stamped “Official WAC Photo” on the back. These include a photo of Al Jolson’s visit to Fort Oglethorpe; a photo of a “Pre-Christmas Tea” held in December of 1944; a photo of Lt. Col. Elizabeth C. Strayhorn, Commandant of the Third WAC Training Center (this photo inscribed by Strayhorn to Cerwinski; an additional, smaller photo inscribed by Strayhorn is also present); an inscribed photo of Colonel Westray Battle Boyce, second director of the Women’s Army Corps. The album also includes several smaller identified photos of WAC higher ups including Col. Oveta Culp Hobby, the first director of the Women’s Army Corps. There is also a mimeographed list of members of Cerwinski’s detachment and a program for a dinner at the camp.
Dates
- 1943-1946
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright is retained by the creators of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information. Please see our Sensitive Materials Statement.
Biographical / Historical
Kathryn B. Cerwinski served in the United States Women's Army Corps (WAC) from 1943-1946. She completed her basic training at Fort Devens, Massachusetts and was then stationed with the Headquarters Detachment at the Third WAC Training Center, Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, between 1944 and 1946.
Extent
0.42 Linear Feet (1 Photograph Album.)
Language of Materials
English
Metadata Rights Declarations
- License: This record is made available under an Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International Creative Commons license.
Condition Description
The condition is fair.
Offensive Language Statement
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Processing Information
Processed by Victoria Hinshaw.
- United States. Army. Women's Army Corps -- History
- United States. Army. Women's Army Corps -- Military life
- Women and the military
- Women veterans
- World War, 1939-1945
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Participation, Female
- World War, 1939-1945 -- War work
- World War, 1939-1945 -- War work -- United States
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Women
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Women -- United States
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Women -- United States -- Photographs
- Title
- Kathryn B. Cerwinski Photograph Album
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Victoria Hinshaw
- Date
- 2023 February
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- eng
Repository Details
Part of the Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives Repository