MF144 Women in the Military
Document Type
Oral History
Interviewer
Sarah Beazley
Interview date
5-15-2003
Interview location
Brewer, Maine
Files
Download Full Text (7.7 MB)
Abstract
Christine DiPompo, interviewed by Sarah Beazley, May 15, 2003, in her home in Brewer, Maine. DiPompo, age 82, talks about her family background; joining the Women's Army Corps in World War II; her basic training experiences; barracks life; her work as a W.A.C. lab technician; married women being forced out of the lab; working a second job at a plastics factory; her treatment from her male and female superiors; visiting home; social life during the war; meeting her husband, a fellow lab technician; her family and friends’ reaction to her enlistment; the W.A.C.’s scandalous reputation; lesbians in the W.A.C.; her most memorable W.A.C. experience; the relationships she formed during the war; her civilian work as a lab technician; her family life; how her service has shaped the rest of her life; whether she would do it all over again; whether she encouraged her daughters to enlist; her brother’s military service; and changes in the role of women in the military. Text: 15 pp. transcript. Recording: No recording. Photograph: p14496, detail p14497.
Disciplines
Military History | Oral History | United States History | Women's History
Birth date
April 5, 1921
Location
Southampton, Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Death date
November 25, 2009
Location
Bangor, Penobscot County, Maine
Nation of origin
United States
Home state/Territory
Pennsylvania
Gender
Female
Ethnicity
European-American
Ethnic group
German
Branch of service
U.S. Army
Service Unit
Women's Army Corps.
Dates of service
August 5, 1943 - January 14, 1946
Date of entry
August 5, 1943
Service entry
Enlisted
Location of Service
Camp Edwards, Mashpee, Massachusetts; Fort Devens, Massachusetts
Wars & Conflicts
World War II
Entry Rank
E-1 Private
Other
TEC-4 Technical Sergeant
Other
TEC-4 Technical Sergeant
Names
Mary Elizabeth Bard; Charles Benton Ermentrout; Colonel Hobby
Locations
Southampton, Pennsylvania; Germantown, Pennsylvania; Daytona Beach, Florida; Camp Edwards, Mashpee, Massachusetts; Philadelphia
Headings
Women in the Military; Sexual Equality; Sexual Stereotypes
Collection name
Women in the Military
Collection number
MF144
Item number
NA4149
Recommended Citation
Ermentrout DiPompo, Christine, "Christine DiPompo, interviewed by Sarah Beazley" (2023). MF144 Women in the Military. 75.
https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mf144/75
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