Rosie the Riveter
by Chelsea Agles, May 2007

Rosie the Riveter was and is the embodiment of women who worked in factories during WWII. The plants which produces ammunition and the material for war were traditionally manned by men, but they were off fighting so it was up to the women to keep the home-front working. Rosie was a real person, Ms. Rose Will Monroe born in Kentucky in 1922. Moving to Michigan as a young woman, Rosie began working as a riveter building B-29 and B-24 bombers at the Willow Run Aircraft Factory. Staring in promotional films and poster campaigns about the effort to support the war at home and encourage women to go to work, she became known as Rosie the Riveter. This icon aroused the patriotism in women and many of them entered the workforce. The most famous image of Rosie was on a poster called “We Can Do It” created by Westinghouse which was actually modeled after factory worker Geraldine Doyle. This poster and Rosie the Riveter embrace a woman’s strength.

Bibliography

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosie_the_Riveter