By: Sherwood H. Pea, Jr.

The 6888th Women’s Battalion

“Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail, shall keep the postman from their appointed rounds.”

“The postal service’s mission is to provide the nation with reliable, universal mail service.”

“NO MAIL, LOW MORALE” was the motto of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion.

In honor of Black History Month, the Veteran’s Committee wants to share this historical achievement. During World War II, sitting in aircraft hangers at Birmingham, England, were millions of undelivered pieces of mail and packages. Those U.S. service members in England took notice that no mail was being delivered and Army officials reported that a lack of reliable mail was hurting morale. It was predicted that it would take six months to clear the backlog in England, but who was up to the task.

In November of 1944, African-American women- 824 enlisted, and 31 officers- were recruited from the Women’s Army Corp, the Army Service Forces, and the Army Air Forces to form the 6888 Central Postal Directory Battalion, or the “Six Triple Eight.”

The first and only all-female African-American battalion to be deployed overseas during World War II was organized into a headquarters company for administrative and service support, and four postal directory companies (A, B, C, and D). The battalion was commanded by Maj. Charity Edna Admas Early. The first African-American woman to achieve the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army.

Upon arriving in Birmingham, England after their initial training at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, to the 6888, this mission seemed simple. Clear the backlog of mail bags that filled hangers form floor to ceiling.

Some of the obstacles facing the 6888th Postal Battalion in completing the mission in 6 months was many of the letters and packages were simply addressed to “Junior,” “Buster,” or to soldiers who shared common names such as “Robert or Smith.” Also, the hangers themselves were poorly lit, unheated, cold, damp, and with rodents making their homes in packages of stale cookies and cakes. The windows were blacked out to prevent alerting enemy aircraft of their location during nighttime air raids.

The 6888th Postal Battalion was given 6 months to sort and deliver the mail. They did it in three months. The women divided into three 8-hour shifts and worked seven days a week to sort and redirect an average of sixty-five thousand pieces of mail per day, totaling nearly seven million pieces in Birmingham alone.

The mail clerks used special locator cards that contained soldiers’ names, unit number, and serial numbers to help ensure proper mail addressed to those service members who had died.

Following their three months in Birmingham, England, the members of the 6888th were deployed to Rouen, France to clear two to three years of backed-up mail. Again, the women completed the task in just three months.

The battalion was transferred home and disbanded at Fox, Dix, New Jersey in 1946. There was no ceremony, no parades, no public appreciation and no official recognition for all their accomplishments.

There was eventually a memorial monument dedication ceremony to honor the 6888th Postal Directory Battalion on November 30, 2018. The monument is located at the Buffalo Solider Commemorative area at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

All information for this article was taken from Military Review, Editor Beth A. Warrington and Wikipedia.

“Semper FI”