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Collection Veterans History Project Collection

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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: WAC (Women's Army Corps)
  • Unit of Service: WAC Detachment Headquarters, Army Ground Forces, Fort Monroe
  • Location of Service: Fort Des Moines, Iowa; Fort Benning, Georgia; Fort Monroe, Virginia
  • Highest Rank: Technician Four

View full service history

"Hello Mom: Well, I’m in the Army now. Pvt. Gandreau, doesn’t that sound important?" (Letter to mother, 7/8/1945)

Enlisting in the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) in late June 1945, Technician Four Audrae Marie Miller Gandreau served first at Fort Benning, Georgia, and then at Fort Monroe, Virginia. Despite some initial hesitation about her decision to enlist—particularly the physical training, known as PT, that was part of basic training—she grew enthusiastic about both her work in Army administration and also her fellow soldiers. Writing her mother on October 10, 1945, she explained, "I’m meeting people from every (and I mean every) walk of life, and in uniform, we are all one big happy family." Her letters provide a glimpse into the life of a WAC serving stateside, and the interactions between genders in a field that had previously been off-limits to women.

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[ Photo Album ]

More Resources

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[ Letter of separation from the Armed Services [2/28/1947] ]
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[ Certificate of achievement ]
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[ Honorable Discharge [3/8/1947] ]
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[ Letter of discharge [3/8/1947] ]
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[ Separation Qualification Record ]
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[ Honorable Discharge and Military History ]

Show more resources (25)

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[ Request for grave reservation [2/14/1956] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/04/1945] ]
Transcript: XML
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[ Postcard to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/1945] ]
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[ Postcard to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/07/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/07/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/08/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/14/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/15/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/22/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [08/01/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother et al. from Audrae Gandreau [08/04/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [08/07/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [07/25/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [08/13/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [08/20/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [09/01/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [08/25/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [09/17/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [09/05/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [09/15/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [09/24/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [10/01/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [10/10/1945] ]
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[ Letter to her mother from Audrae Gandreau [10/19/1945] ]
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[ Biographical information for Audrae Gandreau ]

About this Item

Title

  • Audrae Marie Gandreau Collection

Names

  • Knecht, Donna
  • Gandreau, Audrae Marie Miller

State of Birth

  • OR

Home State

  • VA

Headings

  • -  Gandreau, Audrae Marie
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army. Women's Army Corps.

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Female

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: WAC (Women's Army Corps)
    • Unit of Service: WAC Detachment Headquarters, Army Ground Forces, Fort Monroe
    • Location of Service: Fort Des Moines, Iowa; Fort Benning, Georgia; Fort Monroe, Virginia
    • Highest Rank: Technician Four
    • Dates of Service: 1945-1947
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Scrapbooks [1 item] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1945)
  • Manuscript: Biographical information [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2009)
  • Manuscript: Correspondence [23 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1945)
  • Photograph: Photographic print [10 items] -- Photograph (collected 1945)
  • Manuscript: Civilian papers (certificates, forms, wills, etc) [2 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1956 - 2004)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [7 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1947 - 1956)
  • Audio: Other Audio Recording [2 items] -- Audio correspondence (collected 1945)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/64747

Cite as

  • Audrae Marie Gandreau Collection (AFC/2001/001/64747), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Knecht, Donna, and Audrae Marie Miller Gandreau. Audrae Marie Gandreau Collection. 1945. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.64747/.

APA citation style:

Knecht, D. & Gandreau, A. M. M. (1945) Audrae Marie Gandreau Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.64747/.

MLA citation style:

Knecht, Donna, and Audrae Marie Miller Gandreau. Audrae Marie Gandreau Collection. 1945. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.64747/>.