Document Type

Oral History

Elizabeth “Beth” Carlson, interviewed by Melissa St. Peter, Part 1

Interviewee name

Elizabeth Carlson

Interviewer

Melissa St. Peter

Interview date

11-3-2001

Interview location

Bangor, Maine

Time

00:47:45

Files

Streaming Media

Abstract

Elizabeth “Beth” Carlson, interviewed by Melissa St. Peter, November 3, 2001, at Ms. Carlson’s home in Bangor, Maine. Carlson talks about Elizabeth's birthplace; her parents; reasons for joining the military; basic training; her assignment as a weather equipment specialist; her service from 1977 to 1981 in the Air Force; her assignment to funeral detail; marriage and becoming a parent in the service; stationed in Chanute, Illinois; her views on women in combat; her views on the draft; what she did after she left the military; her family's reactions to her enlistment; her opinions of politics and the military. Also, 2-page journal of interview with Carlson. Text: 25 pp. partial transcript, 2 pp. interview journal. Time: 57 minutes. Photographs: p14539, p14540.

Listen:

Part 1: mfc_na3209_c2311_01
Part 2: mfc_na3209_c2311_02

Disciplines

Military History | Oral History | United States History | Women's History

Birth date

April 6, 1959

Location

Springfield, Hampden County, Massachusetts

Nation of origin

United States

Home state/Territory

Massachusetts

Gender

Female

Ethnicity

European-American

Occupation

Associate Director of the Resident Dining Program, University of Maine

Branch of service

U.S. Air Force

Dates of service

1977-1981

Date of entry

September 1977

Service entry

Enlisted

Location of Service

Chanute Air Force Base, Chanute, Illinois

Entry Rank

E-1 Airman Basic

Highest Rank

E-4 Senior Airman

Exit Rank

E-4 Senior Airman

Names

Fredrick Mason; Violet Swanson

Locations

Springfield, Massachusetts; Connecticut; Farmington, Maine; Portland, Maine; Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas; Chanute Air Force Base, Chanute, Illinois; Korea; Boston; Indiana; Wisconsin

Headings

Women in the Military, Pregnancy in the Military, Motherhood in the Military

Collection name

Women in the Military

Collection number

MF144

Item number

NA3209

Recommended Citation

Carlson, Elizabeth, "Elizabeth “Beth” Carlson, interviewed by Melissa St. Peter, Part 1" (2023). MF144 Women in the Military. 23.
https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mf144/23

Rights and Access Note

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