IOWA WOMEN’S ARCHIVES
UNIVERSITY OF IOWA LIBRARIES
IOWA CITY, IOWA
MARION COX LICHTY
(1915- )
PAPERS, 1942-1989
10 linear inches
|
ACQUISITION: |
The papers
(donor no. 180) were donated by Marion Cox Lichty in 1993. |
|
ACCESS: |
The papers
are open for research. |
|
COPYRIGHT: |
Copyright has been transferred to the University
of Iowa. |
|
PHOTOGRAPHS: |
In box 1. |
|
PROCESSED BY: |
Stuart Hinds, 1993. |
Biography
Marion Cox Lichty was born
August 28, 1915 in Waterloo, Iowa, to Burr G. and Winnifred Cox Lichty. The couple had another daughter, Jean
Lichty, born in 1918. Marion attended
elementary and secondary school in Waterloo, studied liberal arts and received
an Associate of Arts degree from Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri in
1935, and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in business administration from
George Washington University in Washington, D.C. in 1950. She held a number of civilian jobs over
time, but was consistently associated at varying levels with the Smith, Lichty,
and Hillman Company in Waterloo, a beverage distributor which later dealt in
real estate management. Her father was
a president of the company.
Lichty enlisted in the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps
(WAAC) on July 9, 1942, at Fort Des Moines, Iowa. She was selected as a member
of the first WAAC Officer Candidate Class and received her commission as Third
Officer on August 29, 1942. By 1951 she
had been promoted to Lieutenant Colonel.
Her career with the Women's Army Corps (as WAAC became known after 1943)
lasted until 1946, during which time she served in a number of positions that
dealt with personnel, training, and recruitment. She was given duty assignments to serve at the Fifth Service
Command at Fort Hayes, Ohio during 1942 and 1943; at the Air Service Command at Paterson Field, Ohio in 1943 and
1944; at Wright Field at Dayton, Ohio
during 1944 and 1945; and at the headquarters
of the Selective Service System in Washington, D.C. from 1945 to 1946. Upon the illness and subsequent death of her
father in 1946, Lichty took leave from the military, in order to settle his
estate and deal with business affairs.
After working as a program director for a radio
station in San Rafael, California in 1948 and 1949, Lichty applied for
commission in the United States Air Force Reserve (Women's Air Force) and
received that appointment on November 18, 1948. From 1950 to 1954 she was stationed at the U.S. Air Force (USAF)
headquarters in Washington, D.C. During
this assignment, she completed a number of projects that focused on USAF
personnel issues. Her duties were
transferred to the Strategic Air Command (SAC) in Omaha, Nebraska in 1955,
where she performed her military duties but maintained her residence in
Waterloo. Here she worked on such
projects as the development of youth programs at SAC and a televised nationwide
recruiting program. Her association
with SAC lasted until 1965, at which time she retired from duty in the USAF
Reserve and became a member of the Retired Reserve. That membership lasted until 1975, when she retired from the
military altogether.
Scope and
Content Note
The Marion Cox Lichty papers measure 10
linear inches and date from 1942 to 1989.
The papers are divided into five series: Biographical Information,
Civilian Life, Women's Army
Auxiliary Corps, Women's Army Corps, and United States Air Force Reserve
(Women's Air Force). The bulk of the
papers document Lichty's military career during World War II and later as a
member of the Air Force Reserve. Items
of note are the projects completed by Lichty during her tenure at the USAF
headquarters and the Strategic Air Command.
Biographical Information
contains Lichty's resume (called "Personal Data Sheet") from the
period she attended George Washington University (1949-50).
Civilian Life (1943-1963)
includes the papers outlining admission requirements for George Washington University
and essays written by Lichty while she was a student there. This series also contains a few newspaper
clippings about Waterloo, Iowa; photographs of Lichty and friends; and several
typed poems.
Women's Army Auxiliary Corps
(1942-1943) is made up of memoranda concerning the WAAC Officer Candidate
Board, Clothing and Equipment Records, and Army Special Orders.
Women's Army Corps
(1942-1946) consists largely of the paperwork from each of Lichty's four
wartime assignments. The history of her
promotions within the Service is here, as are the results of several physical
examinations. A few government
publications are present, including an undated WAC directory.
The United States Air Force
Reserve (Women's Air Force) (1948-1989) contains the documents which
chronicle Lichty's military career from assignment into the Reserve through her
retirement. Some of the projects she
completed at the USAF headquarters and the Strategic Air Command are here,
including a study of WAF clothing, supply, and storage requirements and
recruitment of WAC and WAF candidates in Iowa.
Numerous official USAF forms and documents are located here, as are
several government publications, including one entitled Sex Hygiene for Women Officers and Women Officer Candidates of the
Armed Forces (1950).
Box no. Description
Box 1
Biographical Information
Personal Data Sheets, ca.
1950
Civilian Life
College
Assignments, 1950-51
Forms, 1949
Newspaper clippings, 1948,
1950, 1964
Photographs
Poems and miscellaneous
papers
War Bonds, Insurance,
1943-63, scattered
Women's Army Auxiliary Corps, 1942-43
Individual Clothing and
Equipment Records, 1942
Special Orders, 1942
WAAC Officer Candidate
Board, 1943
Women's Army Corps, 1942-1946
Air Service Command Duty,
1943-44
Appointment and Promotions,
1942-46
Columbus Recruiting District
Duty, 1942-43
Duty Orders, 1942-46
Fifth Service Command Duty,
1942-43
General Information
Government Publications
General
The WAC Directory, undated
Leave Orders, 1942-46
Letters, 1942-50
Permanent Change of Station,
1942-46
Physical Exams, 1942-46
Selective Service Duty, 1945-46
Separation from Active Duty,
United States Army, 1946
Wright Field Duty, 1944-45
United States Air Force Reserve (Women's Air Force), 1948-1989
Application materials,
1948-49
Authorizations for Inactive
Duty Training
1950-51
1952-55
1959-65
Calculation of Credits,
1950-65
United States Air Force Reserve (Women's Air Force), 1948-1989 (cont.)
Government Publications
General
Sex Hygiene for Women Officers and Women Officer Candidates of the
Armed Forces,
1950
Box 2
Retirement, 1965-89
Strategic Air Command
(Omaha, Neb.), 1955-65
Active Duty Reports, 1950-60
Continuing Education
materials
1956-60
1961-64, undated
Correspondence, 1951-61
Official USAF forms,
documents, and correspondence, 1950-60,
undated
Press Releases, 1957,
undated
Projects
Personnel Services Division,
1955
Development of Youth
Activities, 1956
Televised Recruitment
Campaign, 1956
Dependents Assistance
Program, 1956
Base Commanders Newsletter,
1957
Information Services Survey,
1957
Training of Mobilization-Day
Officers, 1958
Commercial Solicitation on
Air Force Bases, 1958
Absentee Voting, 1958
Test Safeguarding Classified
Information, 1959
MacDill Air Force Base
Family Services Program, 1960
Outgoing Classified Section
Processing, 1961
Industrial Security Violations,
1962
Reserve Orders, 1950-60
USAF Headquarters
(Washington, D.C.), 1950-54
Correspondence, incoming and
outgoing, 1950-54
Official USAF forms,
documents, and correspondence, 1950-54
Projects
Statistical Information on
Airmen (WAF), 1950
New Blue Air Force Uniform,
1950
Staff Study on Participation
of Women Veterans in WAC and WAF Recruiting, 1951
WAF Clothing, Supply and
Storage Requirements, 1952
Sports Program, 1952
WAC Vets Convention, Des
Moines, Iowa, 1952
USAF Reserve Officers (WAF) Statistics,
1953
Historical Summary, Office
of the Director, WAF, 1953
Lackland Air Force Base
Visit, 1953
WAF and WAC Recruitment in
Iowa, 1954
Personnel Services Division,
1955
Reserve Orders, 1950-54