It was not until 1794, when the deteriorating U.S. relations with Great Britain and France, as well as the continuing attacks by Barbary pirates, forced Congress to appropriate funds to construct 6 frigates.

[5] On 17 March 1917, Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels received authorization to enlist women to perform yeoman's duties.

To enter Yeoman School, the recruit was required to have some prior clerical experience, be able to write legibly, and type a 200-word letter with a passing grade of 70% or better.

[7]: 27 Preliminary classes, lasting between 4–6 weeks, would cover arithmetic, spelling, composition, and general naval knowledge.

[7]: 28 Supply-officer department classes covered preparation of requisitions, surveys, public bills, official returns, and supply-related duties.

Correct preparation of forms for arrival/departure of men; ratings and disratings; appointments; and discharges, desertions, and death were covered.

The women also contributed to the war effort in non-clerical positions, replacing their male counterparts who were called for sea duty.

They became switchboard operators, recruiters, code decipher clerks, painters, look-outs at naval bases, translators, and messengers.

[8] Convoy escort duty of the ships transporting men and materiel to Europe became the primary function of the US Navy during WW 1.

[11] Agnes Meyer Driscoll graduated from Ohio State University in 1911 with a bachelor's degree in mathematics and physics.

Driscoll enlisted with the US Navy as a chief yeoman (F) in 1918, and worked in the Code and Signal Section of the Director of Naval Communications.

Suspicions of Embassy military officials and possible Japanese naval officers posing as English language students at US universities resulted in increased surveillance, and led to the expulsion of Japanese assistant naval attaché, Yoshiro Kanamoto, for photographing US Navy fuel oil depots.

[14] The Navy Cross award for valor was established by the US Congress on 4 February 1919 to honor sailors and marines who displayed extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force.

It contained divisions responsible for supply, medical, engineering, security, and the executive functions aboard ship.

They were:[21] Note that duties of battle recorder and the various circuit talkers (who relayed orders over the shipboard telephone system) required the attention to detail that was part of the yeoman training.

Another aspect of the yeoman's duties was highlighted during the Court of Inquiry convened in August 1945 to investigate the loss of the USS Indianapolis.

During World War I (WWI), a US Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) was established under the Department of Military Science and Tactics, and IU women graduates became yeomen (F).

[23] The 7 December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor galvanized the university administration (some of whom were WWI veterans) and the student body.

They also established an organization, the "Junior Division", to help high school graduates make the university transition more easily.

Course subjects included: general storekeeping, disbursement, provisions, clothing and small stores, aviation, typewriting, spelling, English grammar, and correspondence.

The Sextant, the blog of the Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC), quoted Jacqueline Van Voris (an instrumented flying instructor for Navy pilots between 1944 and 1946) in her unpublished manuscript: "New recruits were warned that one midshipman dropped her pencil during a history lecture and while she was picking it up missed all of the naval battles of the civil war".

The WAVES were given permission to spend their liberty hours on two weekends (29-30 July and 5–6 August 1944) as farm emergency workers.

)[31][32] Boot camp for the WAVES recruits was a six-week program, similar in emphasis and content to the male version.

(2001 Goodson) Physical fitness was stressed, with classroom instruction in Navy ranks and ratings, naval history, tradition and customs, courtesy, discipline, and the organization of the fleets.

[33] An interesting episode centered around the mess hall at Hunter College according to Van Voris as quoted in The Sextant.

Most graduates were assigned to stations within the continental US, until an act of Congress permitted WAVES to serve in Alaska and Hawaii, which were US territories at the time.

The 1945 yearbook staff, on its introductory page to the military students, wrote: Wilson also recalled another time in May 1943, when Bob Hope and his USO troupe stopped at Georgia College to entertain the WAVES with a show that would be broadcast throughout the country.

[35] The Special Collections of the Ina Dillard Russell Library houses the WAVES uniforms of 2 Milledgeville residents: Dr. Barbara Chandler and Harriet Kidd.

Yeoman Class 'C' school, for flag officer writer (NEC A15A), is also at NTTC Meridian, and is run as a five-week course.

Individuals serving as flag writers are in a highly visible position and must conduct themselves in a professional manner at all times.