World War II was a seminal event in Alaska that involved thousands of people and impacted lives in a myriad of ways. Women’s experiences ran the gamut. Alaska Native peoples who were forceable removed from their homes on Attu and taken to Japan, as well as the Unangax people, living around Unalaska, who were taken to relocation camps in southeast Alaska. Women were also providing military service with the “Women’s Army Corps” having a presence, as well as providing support to the war effort as civilians and on the homefront.
Learn More
- Their War Too: The Women’s Army Corps and Ladd Field https://home.army.mil/alaska/application/files/8815/7747/9253/Womens_Army_Corps_REDUCED_SIZE.pdf
- Aleutian Islands WWII – Aleutian WWII National Historic Area https://www.nps.gov/aleu/index.htm
- Ruth M. Gardiner, a nurse who served in the Alaskan Theater of Operations with Flight A of the 805th Medical Air Evacuation Transport Squadron and rose to the rank of Second Lieutenant. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruth_M._Gardiner
- Ruth Gruber, witnessed firsthand the effects of militarization on the Alaska Native people leading to her life work helping refugees. https://www.icp.org/exhibitions/ruth-gruber-photojournalist-traveling-exhibition
- Women in WWII https://www.nps.gov/subjects/worldwarii/women.ht
- An overview of WWII in the Aleutian Islands – a story map
https://www.nps.gov/subjects/worldwarii/alaskaandaleutians.htm -
Understanding Forcible Removal through Maps
https://www.nps.gov/aleu/learn/historyculture/removal-maps.htm - History at a Glance: Women in World War II , The National WWII Museum https://www.nationalww2museum.org/students-teachers/student-resources/research-starters/women-wwii
Last updated: July 30, 2020