6888th Central Postal Directory

My mother, Lydia Esther Thornton, was one of the first to enlist in World War II from her hometown of Nogales, Arizona. Bilingual and biracial (African American and Mexican heritage) she was given the option of joining either a Black or White unit. She chose the Black unit (6888th Central Postal Directory) which was the only one comprised of Black women to serve in the European theater during WWII. See below for more information on these remarkable women:

Organized in February, 1945 as the 6888th Central Postal Battalion and commanded by Maj. (later Lt. Col.) Charity Adams, these 800 women were stationed in Birmingham, England, for three months, moved to Rouen, France, and finally settled in Paris. The battalion was responsible for the redirection of mail to all U.S. personnel in the European Theater of Operations (including Army, Navy, Marine Corps, civilians, and Red Cross workers), a total of over seven million people. When mail could not be delivered to the address on the face of the envelope, it was sent to the Postal Directory to be redirected. The 6888th kept an updated information card on each person in the theater. Some personnel at the front moved frequently, often requiring several information updates per month. The WACs worked three eight-hour shifts seven days a week to clear out the tremendous backlog of Christmas mail. Each shift averaged 65,000 pieces of mail. Although the women's workload was heavy, their spirits were high because they realized how important their work was in keeping up morale at the front. From: Electronic New Jersey: A Digital Archive of New Jersey History. Website: http://www.scc.rutgers.edu/njh/WW2/ww2women/wacoverseas.htm