Consider Memories Embedded in Trends or Movements
My mother told me often she was a Postmistress in her Georgia town all through WWII and until early 1947, punctuating her memories with comments about her professional dress and demeanor. Her pride was obvious. I assumed she wanted me to know that my stay-at-home mother had a professional job before she married.
My mother was a postmistress in her Metter, GA, hometown during WWII.
Only recently, I remembered older residents in my mother’s hometown saying to my sister and me on our visits, “Oh, you’re Eva Greene’s girls. She was Postmistress during the War, you know.” The clues added up: my mother’s pride, her emphasis on professionalism, and the townspeople remembering her tenure some twenty years later. Research showed me there’s more to the story.
As the 20th century dawned, women managed about 10% of U.S. post offices, mostly in the Northeast. But during World War II, the number of female postmasters increased significantly to more than 40% just in the first two years of the war; young males who might be civil servants were drafted or volunteering for service.
After World War II, the overall number of women postmasters decreased only slightly even as men returned from the war and some reclaimed their jobs. In August 1949, more than 40 percent of the nation’s postmasters were women, and the numbers increased thereafter, along with the number of female mail carriers. My mother’s pride was well-founded. Her hard work and professionalism for several difficult and busy years paved the way for a far more diverse work force in the USPS.
Selected Bibliography:
The Postal Museum, Women in the Post Office
Smithsonian National Postal Museum, Women Take to the Streets
USPS Postal History, Women Postmasters
USPS Blog, Postal Pioneers - USPS Celebrates Women’s History Month