Frances Eliza Wills | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 12 July 1910 Philadelphia, U.S. |
| Died | 18 January 1998 (aged 87) New York, U.S. |
| Other names | Frances E. Thorpe |
| Alma mater | Hunter College, University of Pittsburgh |
| Occupation(s) | Naval officer, secretary |
| Employer | United States Navy |
| Known for | Being one of the first two African American women officers in the US Navy. |
| Notable work | Navy Blue and Other Colors: A Memoir of Adventure and Happiness |
| Spouse | Charles L. Thorpe |
Frances Eliza Wills (married name: Frances Thorpe; 12 July 1910 – 18 January 1998)[1][2] was an American naval officer and one of the first two African American female officers commissioned by the United States Navy.[3] After her years with the WAVES, she worked as secretary to Langston Hughes.[4][5]
Frances Eliza Wills was born in Philadelphia.[1] She attended Hunter College in New York City, and subsequently earned a master's degree in social work from the University of Pittsburgh.[1][6] While there, she met the poet and activist Langston Hughes.[1] Wills worked for some years at the YMCA, organizing community events and social aid.[6] She was working in New York as a social worker when approached to enlist with the WAVES.[3]
_Harriet_Ida_Pickens_(left)_and_Ensign_Frances_Wills_80-G-297449.jpg)
The Women's Reserve force of the US Navy, known as the WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service), was established on 30 July 1942.[3] Though many African American women sought to enlist, then Secretary of the US Navy Frank Knox refused their admission.[6][3] Following Knox's sudden death in April 1944, existing pressure from activists was increased, and on October 19, President Franklin D. Roosevelt authorized their inclusion in the WAVES - which was to be fully integrated.[3] Frances Wills and Harriet Pickens were chosen as the first African American female recruits.[3] They were enlisted in the WAVES on November 13, 1944.[3]
In her memoir, Wills would recall:
In October 1944 when the Navy said it was ready for me and I said, ‘Take me,’ I was not consciously making a statement about race relations.[7]
Both women were sent to the WAVES training facility in New York City, where Wills became a classification test administrator for the enlisted.[6] By the end of the war, over 70 more African American women had joined the ranks of the WAVES.[6]
Wills was discharged from the Navy at the end of the war.[3] She later authored a book on her experiences called Navy Blue and Other Colors: a memoir of adventure and happiness.[1][8] This was published under her married name, Francis Wills Thorpe.[1][9] Her husband was Charles L. Thorpe.[2] Wills also became President of the Brooklyn Botanical Garden Auxiliary, in Palm Coast, Florida.[2]
Frances Wills Thorpe died on 18 January 1998.[2] A memorial service was held for her in Sag Harbor, New York.[2]