A real-life "Rosie" working on the A-31 Vengeance bomber in Nashville, Tennessee (1943)

Rosie the Riveter is a cultural icon of the United States, representing the six million women who entered the workforce for the first time during World War II^[1][2], many of whom worked in the manufacturing plants that produced munitions and material . WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout A cultural icon can be an Image, a Symbol, a Logo, Picture, Name, Face, Person, or Building The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Workforce (Voyager episode The workforce is the labour pool in Employment. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including A factory (previously manufactory) or manufacturing plant is an industrial Building where workers manufacture goods Ammunition, often referred to as ammo, is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which Materials are physical Substances used as inputs to production or Manufacturing. These women took the places of the male workers who were absent fighting in the Pacific and European theaters. The Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO was the World War II military activity in the Pacific Ocean and the countries bordering it a geographic scope The European Theater of Operations (ETO is the term used in the United States to refer to US operations north of Italy and The character is now considered a feminist icon in the US, and a herald of women's economic power to come. Feminism is a discourse that involves various movements theories, and Philosophies which are concerned with the issue of Gender difference, advocate Rosie and her slogan "We Can Do It!" were featured on posters, magazines, and more. A slogan is a memorable Motto or Phrase used in a Political, commercial, Religious and other context as a repetitive expression of

History

Another real-life "Rosie" at work

Rosie the Riveter was most closely associated with a real woman, Rose Will Monroe, who was born in Pulaski County, Kentucky^[3][4][5] in 1920 and moved to Michigan during World War II. Pulaski County is a County located in the US state of Kentucky. Michigan ( is a Midwestern state of the United States of America. She worked as a riveter at the Willow Run Aircraft Factory in Ypsilanti, Michigan, building B-29 and B-24 bombers for the U.S. Army Air Forces. Ypsilanti (ˌɪpsɨˈlænti Ǐp'-sǐ-lǎn-tē but often /ˌjɪpsɨˈlænti/ by outsiders is a city in Washtenaw County in the U The United States Army Air Forces ( USAAF) was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II. Monroe was asked to star in a promotional film about the war effort at home, and was featured in a poster campaign. A poster is any piece of printed Paper designed to be attached to a wall or vertical surface The song "Rosie the Riveter" by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb was released in early 1943,^[2] and Monroe happened to best fit the description of the worker depicted in the song. Events January 1, 1943 - Frank Sinatra appears at The Paramount causing a mob scene of hysterical bobby-soxers to ^[6] Rosie went on to become perhaps the most widely recognized icon of that era. For other uses of the term see Icon (disambiguation. For a list of icons for use on Wikipedia see WikipediaIcons. The films and posters she appeared in were used by the U.S. government to encourage women to go to work in support of the war effort. The federal government of the United States is the central United States Governmental body established by the United States Constitution.

According to the Encyclopedia of American Economic History, the "Rosie the Riveter" movement increased the number of working American women to 20 million by 1944, a 57% increase from 1940. ^[6] (In 1942, just between the months of January and July, the estimates of the proportion of jobs that would be "acceptable" for women was raised by employers from 29 to 85%. ) Conditions were sometimes very poor and pay was not always equal—the average man working in a wartime plant was paid $54. 65 per week, while women were paid $31. 21 per week. ^[7] Nonetheless, women quickly responded to Rosie the Riveter, who convinced them they had a patriotic duty to enter the workforce. Some claim that she forever opened up the work force for women, but others dispute that point, noting that many women were discharged after the war and their jobs given to returning servicemen.

After the war, the "Rosies" and the generations that followed them knew that working in the factories was in fact a possibility for women, even though they did not reenter the job market in such large proportions again until the 1970s—by that time factory employment was in decline all over the country.

On October 14, 2000, the Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park was opened in Richmond, California, site of four Kaiser shipyards, where thousands of "Rosies" from around the country worked (although ships at the Kaiser yards were not riveted, but rather welded). Events 1066 - Norman Conquest: Battle of Hastings - In England on Senlac Hill seven miles from Hastings, the forces 2000 ( MM) was a Leap year that started on Saturday of the Common Era, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park is located in Richmond California, near San Francisco. Richmond (ˈɹɪtʃmənd is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The Kaiser Shipyards were seven major shipbuilding yards located on the U ^[8] Over 200 former Rosies attended the ceremony. ^[9][10]

The documentary film The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter addresses the history of Rosie. The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter is a 1981 Documentary film by Connie Field about the American women who went to work during

Popular images

J. Howard Miller's "We Can Do It!", commonly mistaken to be Rosie the Riveter

The image most iconically associated with Rosie is J. Howard Miller's famous poster for Westinghouse, entitled We Can Do It! (above right), which was modeled on Michigan factory worker Geraldine Doyle in 1942. J Howard Miller was an American Graphic artist. He painted posters during World War II in support of the war effort among them the famous We Can Founded in 1886 as Westinghouse Electric Company and later renamed Westinghouse Electric Corporation by George Westinghouse. Geraldine Doyle (born July 31 1924, Inkster Michigan) was the real-life model for the World War II era We Can Do It ^[11][12]

But the woman in the painting bore no name. In fact, this picture was not meant to represent Rosie the Riveter at all. ^[2] Penny Colman writes that "Since the 1970s, this poster has been mistakenly labeled Rosie the Riveter and has been reprinted on posters, magazine covers, and many other items. "^[13] It wasn't until several years later that the connection was made between the name "Rosie" and the image. Finally, Norman Rockwell used the name for his cover for the May 29, 1943 Saturday Evening Post, which depicted a different Rosie (model Mary Doyle Keefe). Norman Percevel Rockwell ( February 3, 1894 &ndash November 8, 1978) was a 20th century American painter and Illustrator Events 363 - Roman Emperor Julian defeats the Sassanid army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Saturday Evening Post was a weekly Magazine published in the United States from August 4, 1821 to February 8, ^[14][15] It is not clear whether Rockwell had seen the Miller poster, but he admitted that "I made a mistake in the detail that people will be calling me down for. The cover shows Rosie with goggles on and a risinglass protective shield. " For two mornings, Keefe was paid $5 a day for the two sittings. On May 22, 2002, Rockwell's painting of Rosie the Riveter was auctioned by Sotheby's for $4,959,500. Events 334 BC - The Greek army of Alexander the Great defeats Darius III of Persia in the Battle of the Granicus. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Sotheby's ( is the world's second oldest Auction house in continuous operation (the oldest being Stockholms Auktionsverk founded in 1674

Homages

A "Wendy the Welder" at the Richmond Shipyards

According to Colman's Rosie the Riveter, there was also, very briefly, a "Wendy the Welder" based on Janet Doyle, a worker at the Kaiser Richmond Liberty Shipyards in California. The four Richmond Shipyards, located in the city of Richmond California, United States, were run by Permanente Metals and part of the Kaiser Shipyards ^[13]

In the 1960s, Hollywood actress Jane Withers gained fame as "Josephine the Plumber," a character in a long-running and popular series of television commercials for "Comet" cleansing powder that lasted into the 1970s. Jane Withers (born April 12[[ 926]] in Atlanta Georgia) is an American actress best known for being one of the most popular child film stars For other uses of Comet see Comet (disambiguation. Comet is a powdered cleaning product sold in North America and distributed in the USA This character was based on the original "Rosie" character and thus owes much to exemplary women's efforts in the traditional male workplace. ^[16]

More recent cultural references include a type of Big Daddy called a "Rosie" in the video game BioShock armed with a rivet gun and an action figurine by Accoutrements. BioShock is a video game by 2K Boston/2K Australia —previously known as Irrational Games A rivet gun is a type of Tool used to drive rivets. Nearly all rivet guns are pneumatically powered

See also

• United States home front during World War II
• Land Girls - the British equivalent
• Ronnie the Bren Gun Girl - the Canadian equivalent
• Women in the workforce

References

External links

• Library of Congress Webcast
• Rosie the Riveter World War II / Home Front National Historical Park
• American Rosie the Riveter Association
• A Real-Life "Rosie the Riveter"
• Another Real-Life "Rosie" from the Library of Congress' image set
• "Rosie the Riveter" image is not the same as "We Can Do It!"