13 There was another factor that influenced the decision Gertrude was about to make regarding Henry Silver’s proposal to marry and to become the mother to his infant niece. Surprisingly, there was a growing movement to disband the WASPs.
From the beginning the WASPs were civilians and thus different from all other women’s branches of the military. They were formed under the army air force but were the only women’s military branch established during World War II that did not have congressional approval.
“I had expected militarization [becoming an official military branch] and looked forward to becoming part of the Air Corps,” said WASP Nadine Nagle, who joined in honor of her dead husband. WASP Clarice Bergemann said, “I thought I was in the military and I was surprised when I was told that it was civil service.” The women joined the air force expecting to receive air force pay; funds to cover hospitalization, housing, and living expenses; and the other benefits afforded to military service members.
WASP Louesa F. Thompson (43-W-6) preparing for flight in a swift twin-engined P-38. Courtesy of WASP Archive, Texas Woman’s University Libraries
The women were trained to meet and perform all the standards required of members of the military. WASPs had to follow military customs and procedures; they wore uniforms and were instructed in drill and military courtesy. In the expectation of being militarized, some were sent to the air force Officer Candidate School in Orlando, Florida.
There was at least one proposal to place the WASPs under the Women’s Army Corps, the WACs, headed by Oveta Culp Hobby, the woman Jackie Cochran had clashed with and said she “loved to hate.”
Both Nancy Harkness Love and Jackie Cochran had submitted proposals for militarization, but the proposals were turned down. By 1944 the conflict over militarization of the WASPs grew and intensified. By late summer of that year the American military had moved swiftly through France and was at Germany’s border. Many predicted the war in Europe would be over by Christmas (Germany actually would fight fanatically until May 8, 1945).
Many in Congress felt that it was acceptable for women to be in auxiliaries “as stenographers, telephone operators and stewardesses” but that women in the military might lead to women in combat. Several members of Congress were concerned that women in the military would “insult society women who were volunteering in the war effort because they would have attractive uniforms.”
Another congressman asked the army, “You are going to start a matrimonial agency, aren’t you?” The army replied that in World War I and so far in World War II there had never been a problem with nurses marrying soldiers. Another congressman was concerned that women officers might give orders to men in the regular army.
Some voices were raised in support of women in the military: “Are we to deny the patriotic, courageous women of America the opportunity of participating in this war?” asked one congressman.
Leading the push to disband the WASPs were many of the newer male pilots. Because of its vast training programs, America had more male pilots than airplanes by 1944. Some of these pilots were fearful of being assigned to the infantry as America advanced against Germany and Japan. The men’s lobbying resulted in a negative campaign against the WASPs in the media and Congress, a campaign that found many supporters because of the cultural belief of male superiority and privilege.
The columnist Drew Pearson had begun to make an issue of women pilots “taking the jobs of men pilots.” Pearson railed against “[General Hap] Arnold’s efforts to sidetrack law by continuing to use WASPs while more than 5,000 trained men pilots, each with an average of 1,250 flying hours, remain idle.”
A 1944 publicity shot of WASP pilots (from left) Gertrude Meserve, Celia Hunter, Ruth Anderson, and Jo Pitz. The P-47 Thunderbolt behind them was a third heavier than the P-51 Mustang but was also a high-performance World War II aircraft that performed admirably in combat. Courtesy of WASP Archives, Texas Woman’s University Libraries
The WASPs were furious at what they considered a conspiracy, led by Pearson, who continued to beat the anti-WASP drum in his newspaper columns. He complained, “The government has spent more than $21,000,000 training lady fliers at the behest of vivacious aviatrix Jacqueline Cochran, wife of financial magnate Floyd Odlum…. After almost two years of training and the expenditure of millions of dollars, only 11 WASPs are able to fly twin engine pursuit planes and only 3 are qualified to pilot 4 engine bombers.”
It was the last statement, especially, that infuriated Gertrude and the other WASPs. She knew the truth—that hundreds of women were performing flight duties across the country every day, sometimes at considerable risk. And they were flying every kind of plane in the US Army’s inventory.
Ladies Courageous, starring Loretta Young, was released in 1944. Loosely based on the story of the WASPs, the film was “embarrassing to women pilots, who squirm through seeing it,” reported WASP Byrd Howell Granger. A New York Times reviewer noted that the film “represents a very curious compliment to the [WASP] … and the Army Air Force, which sanctioned and participated in the making of the picture…. Such hysterics, such bickering and generally unladylike, nay unpatriotic, conduct on the part of a supposedly representative group of American women this reviewer has never before seen upon the screen.”
Gertrude sensed the growing desire of Congress to disband the WASPs and wondered if she had a future in the air. For several days her mind burned with conflict. Marrying Henry would mean giving up the WASPs to take care of a baby. Did she want to be a mother, and at what price? There was also her budding romance with Duncan Miller. He was cute; they had flying in common, and they could talk about aircraft characteristics and handling, weather conditions, and maneuvers for hours.
It was now clear to Gertrude that the war was going to be won by the Allies, but what would she do after it was over?
After sending his initial letter, Vreeland called his daughter, urging her to accept Henry’s offer. When her mother got on the phone, Gertrude felt like all her defenses were scrubbed away, that she was caught in a trap. Reluctantly she called Henry. She agreed to marry him and to raise his niece, Ann. The wedding date was set for September 22, and the ceremony would be held at the Tompkins family farmhouse in Bridgehampton, Long Island.
Andrew Russell “Drew” Pearson (1897–1969) was a popular and powerful muckraking journalist noted for his column Washington Merry-Go-Round, which attacked public figures. In addition to his newspaper column, he had radio programs and appeared in several movies. His one-time partner, Jack Anderson, said Pearson saw journalism as a weapon to be used against those he judged to be working against the public interest. Anderson said that Pearson frequently resorted to combining factual news items with fabricated or unsubstantiated details. His writing attacked both right- and left-wing politicians and causes.
The night before the wedding, Gertrude sat with her sister Elizabeth. “The atmosphere was heavy with resignation and not happiness,” recalled Elizabeth. Gertrude was crying and said she wanted to call the wedding off. Her father and mother entered the room and had a long talk with her, telling her she was just tired and overwrought.
“Obedience was the norm,” said Elizabeth. Gertrude loved her father so much she just couldn’t let him down. Gertrude understood that the engagement was not to be taken lightly. “She had made a promise, and that was her word,” said Laura Whittall-Scherfee, Elizabeth’s granddaughter and Gertrude’s grandniece.
The next day guests gathered for the wedding ceremony on Long Island. Gertrude and Henry were presented a wedding gift of two adjoining acres in Bridgehampton. Standing in their uniforms, they took their vows before an Episcopal priest. But Elizabeth noticed that Gertrude’s thoughts seemed far away, perhaps with her lost first love, Mike Kolendorski.
“I do,” Gertrude said. And a moment later she was being kissed by her new husband, Henry Silver.
She was to report back for duty in three days, but in another 60 days she would be through with the WASPs when they disbanded.
After her marriage, Gertrude wrote two letters that mention Henry. One was dated October 18, 1944, and was sent to his older sister, Helen. In this letter she first mentions delivering a P-51 to New York. In a reference to Henry, she wrote, “It won’t be long until we are a happily united family.” In a letter to Elizabeth dated October 20, 1944, she writes about remaining overnight at the Raleigh-Durham airfield and hitchhiking into town, only to get the last cot available at the YWCA. In this letter she tells Elizabeth that “Henry was very much pleased that you asked him out to B-hampton but he said the transportation from the northern part of [Long Island] is too difficult.”
From left: Vreeland Tompkins, Gertrude Tompkins, and Henry Silver on the day of the wedding in Bridgehampton, Long Island. Photo courtesy of the Whittall family
These brief references are all that exist regarding Gertrude’s thoughts about Henry Silver after their marriage. Elizabeth was adamant that her sister was unhappy at this time.
