Edna Smith Wilson Collection
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Oral history interview with Edna Wilson
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Primarily documents Edna Wilson's service in the Marine Corps Women's Reserve during World War II and the impact of her service on the rest of her life. Wilson provides a brief overview of her childhood residences and education, and her search for "Rosie the Riveter" or Red Cross war work She chiefly discusses her service in the Marines from 1943 to 1946, including her decision to join the Marines; her younger brother being sworn in with her; and friends joining other branches of the service. Wilson also comments briefly on boot camp and her uniforms. " Topics related to Wilson's assignment in San Francisco include traveling by train across the country and stopping at cafes for food; living arrangements; being mistaken for a prostitute while in uniform; working in the supply office with mostly civilians; and her lack of interaction with officers. Wilson provides many details of her social life, including ice skating and the Pepsi Cola Building; seeing Gene Kelly and Joe E. Brown; traveling along the West Coast; V-J Day in San Francisco; her involvement in the theater and a choral group; singing for Marines returning from the Pacific; and meeting Marines in San Francisco that had served with her brother on Iwo Jima. Wilson also recalls feeling confused at the end of the war about what she wanted to do and declining a commission in the Marines Corps. " Wilson also discusses her parents' service in World War I, when her father was in the Marine Corps and her mother a member of the Motor Corps; her sons; the Vietnam War; Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt; and her opinion of women in combat.
