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Willie Mae Williams Collection

 Collection
Identifier: WV 0202

Content Description

The collection includes a 2001 February oral history transcript; photograph of Williams in off-duty Women's Army Corps (WAC) dress with cap, circa 1944; a typed 4 page paper, "Women in the Military Services in the Past"; newspaper article (copy) of Williams on her 90th birthday, 2002 November 22; and additional items are available at Florida State University collections: https://archives.lib.fsu.edu/repositories/6/resources/494.

Dates

  • circa 1942-1945

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

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

Willie Mae (Mattier) Williams (1912-2009) of Archer, Florida, served in the WAAC (Women's Auxiliary Army Corps) and the WAC (Women's Army Corps) from 1943 to 1945, then worked in a Cleveland, Ohio, post office for 23 years.

Willie Mae Williams was born in Archer, Florida, on October 23, 1912, and raised in Tampa. There she graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in 1933. Three years later she enrolled in Edward Waters College, but left due to illness. Williams moved to Washington, D.C., where she performed domestic work until rumors of war motivated her to return to Tampa.

Williams enlisted in the WAAC in late 1942, and in April of 1943 was sent to Fort Devens, Massachusetts, for basic training. In September, they were sent to Fort Des Moines, Iowa, where she completed cooks' and bakers' school. Williams was then transferred to Camp Gruber, Oklahoma, in December 1943. There she worked as a hospital cook until December 1945, when the camp closed and she was sent to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, for discharge.

After her service, Williams used the GI Bill to attend photographers' school in New York, X-ray technician training, and business school. Williams eventually moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where she worked in the local post office as a distribution clerk for 23 years, retiring in 1972. She returned to Tampa and began work with the local Girls Clubs. She helped organize a branch of the American Legion in Tampa and has been the commander of two American Legion posts.

Extent

0.21 Linear Feet (2 folders )

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 good.

Offensive Language Statement

The UNC Greensboro University Libraries collects, preserves, and makes accessible unique and historical materials for learning and research. The nature of historical materials is such that some material may represent positions, norms, and values that are offensive and objectionable. These materials represent the opinions and actions of their creators. By providing access to these records in our reading room and through our digital collections, we recognize that archives and rare books can play a vital role in holding those creators accountable and in helping us learn from the past.

Our finding aids and other collection descriptions may occasionally re-use language provided by creators or former holders of the materials, but we strive to place outdated or offensive terminology in context. That said, we recognize that we may not always make the right decision and welcome feedback from all sources so we can learn and adjust our practices. Please contact us at scua@uncg.edu if you encounter problematic language in our finding aids or other collection description. We will review the language and, as appropriate, update it in a way that balances preservation of the original context with our ongoing commitment to describing materials with respectful and inclusive language.

Processing Information

Processed by Matthew McCarthy.

Title
Willie Mae Williams Collection
Status
Completed
Author
Matthew McCarthy
Date
2022 July
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

Contact:
P.O. Box 26170
320 College Ave.
Greensboro NC 27402-6170 US
336-334-5246