Naomi Peers Malone Collection

Details

Who's responsible?: Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives, UNCG University Libraries (Repository)
How much has been digitized?: Most of this collection has been digitized. Some items have not beed digitized due to copyright or other logistical issues.
Where can I find more information?: https://uncg.as.atlas-sys.com/repositories/2/resources/1251
What's in the full collection?: May 2011 oral history transcript and scanned photographs.
Full biography: Naomi Peers Malone (b. 1935), of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, served in the United State Marine Corps from 1953-1954. She did her basic training at Parris Island, South Carolina, and worked in disbursement at Cherry Point, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.
Topics: Women's History
Military
Branch of service: Marines -- Women Marines
Conflict: Post World War II, Korea (1947-1963)
Subject headings: Korean War, 1950-1953
United States. Marine Corps--Women
Contributing Institution: Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives, UNCG University Libraries

: Naomi Peers Malone in front of an airplane; Naomi Peers Malone poses in front of an airplane at Parris Island, South Carolina, circa 1957.

: Naomi Peers Malone in summer dress uniform; Naomi Peers Malone poses in her Women Marines summer dress uniform, at Parris Island, South Carolina, circa 1957.

: Naomi Peers Malone in work attire; Naomi Peers Malone poses in her work uniform, at Parris Island, South Carolina, circa 1953.

: Oral history interview with Naomi Peers Malone; Documents the life of Naomi Peers Malone from her early life as a Mennonite in Philadelphia during the 1930s and 1940s, her decision to join the United States Marines in 1953, basic training at Parris Island, South Carolina, and her assignment to Cherry Point, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Also discussed is Malone's marriage to a fellow marine and her involvement with military-affiliated organizations after being discharged. Malone discusses her childhood growing up as a Mennonite in Philadelphia in the 1930s and 1940s, her conversion to the Baptist faith, and her mother's beliefs that the military would provide needed discipline. She recalls joining the U.S. Marines in 1953 and attending basic training at Parris Island, South Carolina. She discusses the challenges of basic training and her career working in the disbursement office. Malone also reveals her decision to quit the U.S. Marines after marriage and accompany her husband to California, as well as her life as a military spouse and her thoughts on the frequent absences of her husband. Personal topics include racial discrimination in the Jim Crow south in the 1950s and an early interracial relationship, as well as her feelings on the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" controversy and the sexual integration of the military. Malone discusses her work as a schoolteacher for thirty-seven years after her discharge from the military and her involvement with the Women Marines Association in Jacksonville, North Carolina.