Mary Bluford Turner- A Rosie the Riveter By Gladys Turner Finney

Six million women of diverse ages and ethnicity transcended the traditional roles of women to fill industrial and defense jobs during World War II. The appearance of those women dressed in overalls and using industrial tools led to the emergence of a popular icon, “Rosie the Riveter,” proclaiming We can do it.” Rosie the Riveter became symbolic of all women who worked in the war-time industries. Opened in 2000 in Richmond, California, Rosie the Riveter Memorial is situated on the site of the former Kaiser Shipyard #1. It is a national monument honoring women’s labor on the home front during World War II. It commemorates and documents the contributions women made towards the war effort, its success and victory. The location of the Memorial is significant. The Kaiser Shipyards, the largest and most productive , produced 747 ships at Richmond during World War II. Women of different ages, races and backgrounds came to Richmond to find jobs throughout the war. It is estimated that women made up more than twenty-five percent of the workforce at the Richmond Kaiser Shipyard. In other industries women represented up to eighty percent of the workforce. Many African-American women were employed in war service industries. Among these was my twenty-seven year old mother, Mary B. Turner. She balanced the duties of wife, mother, and Munitions Handler at the Pine Pluff U.S. Army Arsenal in Arkansas . Mary B. Turner’s war service appointment began on July 13, 1943. She was issued Identification Badge 12-P8230 and hired as a G-4 Civil Service Worker, earning fifty-four cents an hour. She was assigned to the “graveyard shift,” 11:00 P.M. to 7:00 A.M. My father, Willis J. Turner, worked at the Cotton Belt Railroad Shop at Pine Bluff and was my caretaker while my mother worked. Mary B. Turner worked alongside other African-American women on the bomb assembly line, supervised by white males. Working in this environment was dangerous. Any mishap could cause death or injury. This was a Bomb Factory. And in deed there were accidents and serious injuries. Mary B. Turner escaped without injury. Her employment help transform the family from the rank of renter to homeowner and enabled me to attend a Catholic parochial school. Mary B. Turner’s service at the Pine Bluff Arsenal ended on September 16, 1945. The war was over. Japan had surrendered. Her war service is included in the “Rosie the Riveter Memorial.” Sources: (1) Mary B. Turner papers, (2) Personal Files of Gladys Turner Finney, (3) “Rosie-the Riveter, “ Memorial website-(www.rosietheriveter.otg). Reprinted from The African American Genealogy Group of the Miami Valley (AAGGMV) Newsletter, Volume 5, Issue 2, # April 2006, p. 6.