SSGT Bertha D. Taylor, USMC
About BERTHA
SSGT, USMC
Bertha Taylor (1922-2011) was a newlywed beautician in Massachusetts in June 1942. Husband, Walter Taylor was drafted in 1942. Bertha enlisted in the Marine Corps. She was among the first group of 90 women to join the Marines. She chose the Marines because they didn’t have a women’s branch. They were not “Women’s Auxiliary,” they were simply Marines.
Upon arrival at boot camp, her drill instructor stated: “They’re all women, nobody told me they were women!” She was proud to endure the same boot camp as the men. Her test scores indicated that she should drive tanks, so they made her a bookkeeper and put her in charge of inflammables in Cherry Point Marine Air Station, NC. She was so proud to have earned her Staff Sargent stripe, one more than her husband in the US Army Air Corps.
Flag Location
Flag
AC-21
Sponsor
Todd Taylor
Location
Honor Field A
