LTJG Eleanor Unger Inge Oral History

title:

LTJG Eleanor Unger Inge Oral History

creator:

Inge, Eleanor (Unger)

subject:

Navy WAVES

description:

This is the original, unedited interview audio. Eleanor Inge (formerly Unger) was born in Mobile, Alabama and grew up on a farm there with her parents and two younger sisters. She spent one year of college at Mary Baldwin College for Women in Stanton, Virginia but transferred to the University of Alabama since her two close friends had gotten married and she missed home. She graduated with a degree in English and history and enlisted in the Navy WAVES when they began, which she could because she had a college degree. She was partially motivated to enlist because her father was a veteran of World War I, and his mother was very involved in supporting soldiers in that time as well. She applied in the fall of 1942 for WAVES officer’s training, and was one of ten women from Alabama who were accepted at the time. Her birthday was in December, so she didn’t get to training until January or February of 1943. She spent one month in general training, then went to Smith College in Massachusetts for three months of communications school. She requested to be stationed near her home, and ended up in Pensacola, Florida. Although she didn’t like the location at all, se enjoyed working in the code room at the main naval air station. After staying there for around 14 months, Inge was stationed at Bronson Field, located in the larger Pensacola Air Base, and worked as a communications officer for squadron 8B. She remained in Florida for another year before being stationed in New York in 1945. Here, she met back up with her boyfriend from high school who had been a POW in Germany, and they got married in September 1945. Her last four or months were spent at Mt. Vernon Seminary in the Code Lab, and she requested a discharge at the end of 1945 after her husband received one in November of that year. Upon her discharge Inge had reached the rank of lieutenant junior grade, and for her service she was awarded an American Campaign Medal and World War II Victory Medal. A transcript of this interview is available.

publisher:

Military Women's Memorial Foundation

contributor:

St. John, Carol

date:

1990-07-10

type:

Audio

format:

Cassette

identifier:

90.209

source:

NSCD | CLIR - Recordings at Risk

language:

English

relation:

541718

coverage:

World War II (1939-1945) | 1943-46

rights:

Unrestricted