Capturing the Women's Army Corps: The World War II Photographs of Captain Charlotte T. McGraw

Photographs of Compassion and Assistance

photographs of compassion and assistance • 69 Photographs of Compassion and Assistance These photos show the very human face of patriotic sacrifice . Captain McGraw took them as part of her mission to help recruit female medical technicians in the Women’s Army Corps. By showing images of the women serving in the army taking care of soldiers wounded in battle, the WAC hoped that women who were already trained would join. In addition, we have included some photos of soldiers that Captain McGraw took while on this assignment. They are intriguing; Captain McGraw recorded information about how these soldiers were wounded in combat. It is unclear why she wrote such detail, but they are included here for historical and human interest. The soldiers’ smiles seem genuine, which is remarkable given their wounds. Their eyes show gratitude for the care they received and also maybe just to be home. Captain McGraw was sent to several hospitals used to treat wounded men. Some of the photos are from Baker General Hospital in Martinsburg, West Virginia. One of Baker General’s more famous soldiers was an administrator and former WAC truck driver named Jeanne M. Holm. She was one of the first women to enlist in World War II; she became well known later when she rose to the rank of air force Major General. Other photos are from Halloran General Hospital in New York City. In 1941 the army built the three thousand–bed facility on preexisting structures, and it was the largest army hospital in the nation at that time. Finally, some photographs are from Deshon General Hospital in Baker, Pennsylvania, which originated as a tuberculosis sanatorium before being converted to a general hospital in World War II. left: Helping [a] soldier’s hand to work again, Wac Medical Technician S., daughter of Mrs. O. W., Boswell, Pa., is performing one of the vital jobs for which American women are needed to serve under supervision of Army nurses in General Hospitals all over the country. Infantry Rifleman S. of Newark , N.J. was wounded in the left shoulder and arm while serving with the 60th Infantry in Tunisia, North Africa. Technician S., assigned to the PhysioTherapy Section at the Deshon General Hospital, Butler, Pa., says that, “Being able to help the veterans of battle return is a feeling words can’t express.” 70 • Captain McGraw’s Work Halloran Hospital. Standing by with instructions, WAC Physical Therapy Technician W., daughter of . . . , of Barryton, Michigan, graduate and former Michigan State Bacteriological Research Assistant, is performing one of the vital jobs for American women[, who] are needed to serve side by side with the Army nurses in General Hospitals all over the country. Infantry Mortarman A., whose wife and three children live at . . . Syracuse , New York, was wounded in the ankle by a German Rifle bullet while serving with the 110th Infantry in the Black Forest, Germany. Technician W., assigned to the Physio-Therapy Section of the Deshon General Hospital, Butler, Pa., whose brother, Pfc. J. E. W., is serving overseas, joined when she learned of the “urgent need for Wacs in the Medical Corps.” McGraw’s caption. photographs of compassion and assistance • 71 Head and body completely encased in a plaster cast, Corporal S., of Sydney, Ohio, is one of the thousands of wounded soldiers back from overseas who needs care through long, torturous months of healing. To do this work hundreds of American women like WAC Medical Technician B., daughter of Mrs. M. B., Luzenne, Pennsylvania, who is serving with the Medical Corps at the Deshon General Hospital, Butler, Pennsylvania, are needed to help, side by side with the Army Nurses and doctors in General Hospitals all over the country. Halloran Hospital. McGraw’s caption. 72 • Captain McGraw’s Work Shaving patients who cannot use their hands during their stay in bed is one of the many vital jobs performed at the Baker General Hospital, Martinsburg, W. Va. by WAC Medical Technician A., daughter of Mr. J. J. A., of Greensboro , Georgia, former student at the University of Georgia, here removing the “Five O’clock Shadow” from the face of Infantry Scout E., of Harrisburg, Pa., who is shown with his hands bandaged together while skin from the uninjured hand is grafted onto the bullet wound received while he was serving with his Infantry Regt. in Italy. Technician A. is one of the thousands of American women needed to serve as...