Helen VanGuilder WWII WAAC
Shared by Sandy Chamberlain

The Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) was a group of women who served in the United States Army during World War II. The WAAC was created to free up men for combat by taking on administrative duties.

Formation

The WAAC was established in 1942 in response to the attack on Pearl Harbor

The WAAC was created as an auxiliary unit, but was later converted to an active duty branch of the Army in 1943

The WAAC's first training center was located at Fort Des Moines, Iowa

Roles

WAACs performed a variety of roles, including aircraft spotting, mail sorting, and printing V-mail cards

WAACs were deployed all over the world

Challenges

The WAAC faced opposition from some quarters, including the defense industry and those who thought women shouldn't serve in uniform

Black WACs faced additional challenges, including being given menial jobs and court-martialed

Legacy

The WAAC's contributions were recognized with the passage of legislation that established a lasting presence of women in the Armed Services

The Women's Army Corps (WAC) was the women's branch of the United States Army before 1978. It was created as an auxiliary unit, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), on 15 May 1942, and converted to an active duty status in the Army of the United States as the WAC on 1 July 1943. Its first director was Colonel Oveta Culp Hobby. The WAC was disbanded on 20 October 1978, and all WAC units were integrated with male units.

Tioga Point Museum has been gifted some letters written by Sgt. Helen Van Guilder while she served in the WAAC during WWII. Helen was from Sayre, Pennsylvania. She shared interesting thoughts and feelings as she served her country. From her excitement of entering training to her excitement about being able to come home to the U.S. again is palpable to the reader of her letters.

On March 23rd in 1943 she was “on her way”, leaving from Penn Station, NY. On March 24th her father received word that she had arrived safely at Fort Oglethorp, Georgia and would be undergoing processing for the next 2 days. After that she would be assigned to basic training and able to send her address for those 4 weeks.

In May of 1943, she wrote of having a large piece of chocolate cake but assured her mother that it was only “almost as good” as hers. She talked about celebrating her birthday and lamenting that her grades weren’t as good as she’d hoped. She said the WAAC’s couldn’t complain about food, that they ate well. She mentioned how much they enjoyed potatoes as they often had “substitutes” like rice or macaroni. She said they sure couldn’t complain because they were all putting on weight!

One letter of interest from June, 1944 shared that her boss was “in a peck of trouble.” She couldn’t elaborate but expressed her utmost sympathy for him! She also added a p.s. to this letter requesting some things from home, including Arrid, a garter belt, starch , soap and gum. She commented more than once about soap being hard to get.

By August of 1945 Helen was anxious to get home and mentioned the “red tape” of the military. A letter from September 29th, 1945 from England mentions not being sure when she would actually get to the U. S. but “will see you again. Loads of love to all. Helen”

More can be learned about Helen’s time in the WAAC by visiting Tioga Point Museum website. To view the letters on website scroll down to Virtual Collection then choose Archives and enter Helen Van Guilder.

The Tioga Point Museum is open Tuesday and Thursday all year but hours are seasonal so please check our web page or Facebook page for current hours or call at 570 888 7225.

Myra and Alice Kingsbury

tpointmuseum
Jul 6
2 min read

Spotlight on Early Settlers-

Myra and Alice Kingsbury

Myra and Alice Kingsbury were the daughters of Lemuel and Sarah Osborn.

Myra was born December 5, 1847 in Sheshequin, Pennsylvania

From writings of Rev. Ann Marie Alderman:

Myra never married and had no children. What is remarkable about her is that she was ordained to the ministry by the Sheshequin Universalists in 1880, and she twice served as their pastor, in 1880 and again from 1896-1898. Although she served as a pastor for this congregation, in total, for less than three years, the singular fact that she was ordained to the ministry by Universalists during the last half of the 19th century is quite an achievement.

There certainly were not many women ministers in her day. By 1870, there were only 15 known to be Universalist ministers. Some stories of these women are known, some not. It is known that these women worked for suffrage, for theological and educational reform and sought ordination. Like so many women of her time, records of her achievements could have been lost forever. Thanks to members of the congregation, her memory has not been completely lost. Myra died on July 11, 1898, just 50 years old from cancer. Much more can be learned about Myra from the archives at the museum.

Alice Kingsbury was born in 1845 and died in 1886, just 41 years old. She was married to Orrin D. Kinney No other records are available at this time for Alice.

A portrait of a Myra and her sister Alice as children, hangs in the Tioga Point Museum in Athens. According to the Unitarian Universalist Church of Athens and Sheshequin, the painting is by folk artist Susan Waters.

To see the portrait of the Kingsbury sisters, visit Tioga Point Museum, open from 12p-4p on Tuesdays and Thursdays.