More information:

https://www.nhd.org/sites/default/files/MelinaOliveShaw.pdf

Olive Shaw was a student at the New England Conservatory when the United States entered World War I. It was there that she first heard about the Army’s need for French-speaking women to serve overseas. Being fluent in French, she answered the call and joined the Army as a telephone operator. It was the first time the Army had employed women in any capacity besides nursing.

Shaw was sworn into military service in 1918. She received daily training and military drill. She was fitted for a uniform, given a rank, and subject to inspections. Shaw saw herself as a soldier. And when she arrived in France, she played a vital role in ensuring success on the front.

But when the war ended, the Army decided the women who served as telephone operators served as civilians, not soldiers.

After her discharge, Shaw returned home to Massachusetts and worked as a personal secretary to Congresswoman Edith Nourse Rogers. Shaw was never satisfied with the decision that the Army had made about her service during the war. For the next sixty years, she helped lead the battle for official recognition of military service.

It wasn’t until 1977 that Congress passed a Bill that would grant that recognition. Finally, in 1979, Shaw was given an official discharge from the military and granted Veteran benefits.

She died just a year later. She had made it known that she wished to be buried in the soon-to-be-opened Massachusetts National Cemetery. When the cemetery opened that October, she became the first burial there, a unique honor typically reserved for notable local Veterans. The recognition of her military service, which had been denied to her for almost the entirety of her life, is now forever remembered at her grave.

Massachusetts National Cemetery

Melina Olive Shaw history Veterans Legacy Program

Melina Olive Shaw Veterans Legacy Program

Thank you for your service and dedication.  It's and honor to have you be the first interment at Massachusetts National Cemetery.

MELINA OLIVE SHAW

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WORLD WAR I

US ARMY,

TELEPHONE OPERATOR

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