The 6888th Central Postal Directory

The 6888th Central Postal Directory 

Battalion of World War II

South Carolina’s Hidden WWII Heroes

by Randy Langston

Many aren’t aware that women from South Carolina played a crucial role in sorting mail for soldiers, sailors and airmen during World War II as part of the 6888th, or “Six Triple Eight”—an all-African-American women’s unit that tackled a massive mail backlog. Thirty-three South Carolina women served in the 6888th Battalion.

The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion of the Women’s Army Corps, led by Columbia, South Carolina, native Maj. Charity Edna Adams, was responsible for sorting and delivering mail to U.S. service members and civilians in Europe. Their mission: clear a mail backlog that had built up over more than three years. In just three months, they sorted about 17 million pieces of mail in Birmingham, England, and later handled a similar pile in Rouen, France.

This group of 855 women was the only all-African-American Army Women’s Corps unit sent overseas during the war. Many performed postal clerk duties, but the battalion also included cooks, mechanics, and other essential support roles, making them a remarkably self-sufficient unit.

In 1944, educator and civil rights leader Mary McLeod Bethune worked with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt to advocate for African-American women’s inclusion in the war effort. The women trained in Georgia, learning to identify enemy aircraft, vessels and weaponry. Their training also included climbing ropes, jumping trenches, crawling under logs while wearing gas masks, boarding and evacuating ships, and marching long distances with rucksacks (the Army term for backpacks).

While in Europe, the 6888th faced harsh conditions: working in dim, unheated aircraft hangars infested with rats and broken windows, enduring air raids, and confronting sexism and racism from male officers and enlisted men. Despite this, they operated seven days a week in three distinct eight-hour shifts, processing an average of 65,000 pieces of mail per shift, and developed an innovative mail tracking system to efficiently eliminate the backlog.

After they completed their mission, the battalion returned to the United States in February 1946 and was disbanded at Fort Dix, New Jersey. They didn’t receive any public recognition at the time, but that has since changed. In 2019, the U.S. Army awarded them the Meritorious Unit Commendation for their service from February 1945 to March 1946. On March 14, 2022, President Joseph Biden signed the “Six Triple Eight” Congressional Gold Medal Act, awarding all members of the battalion with Congressional Gold Medals.

May we always remember the courage of these remarkable women, the prejudice and discrimination they faced while serving their nation, and how their contributions played a crucial role in transforming societal perceptions of African-American women in the military.

Randy Langston has lived in Irmo, South Carolina, for more than 35 years. A retired technical writer for the State of South Carolina, he’s also an award-winning songwriter, guitarist, U.S. Navy veteran, and devoted husband, father and grandfather. These days, Langston spends most of his time traveling and feeding his preoccupation with football by watching Kansas City Chiefs games.

MAJ Charity Edna Adams, from Columbia, SC

2LT Alice Elizabeth Edwards Taylor, born May 22, 1920, in Anderson, SC

SGT Marcell Geraldine Booker Stigger, born June 30, 1921, in Greenville, SC

SGT Vivian Alice Mazyck Dye, born June 21, 1916, in Seneca, SC

SGT Dona Mary Elizabeth Primus, born July 29, 1918, in Norway, SC

SGT Mattie Elsie Garrett Tucker, born November 5, 1920, in Laurens, SC

CPL Lucile McGhee Brooks, born 1905, in Saluda County, SC

CPL Louise Susan Heyward, born December 2, 1919, in Charleston, SC

CPL Louise Almenta Reid Lewis, born December 31, 1917, in Charleston, SC

CPL Jennie Ruth Turner, born February 19, 1921, in Anderson, SC

PFC Alva B. Bacote, born 1921, in Darlington, SC

PFC Julia McNeal Crowell, born September 24, 1921, in Buck Hall, Berkeley County, SC

PFC Naomi Davenport Green, born July 23, 1924, in Newberry, SC

PFC Bernice M. Grant, born April 21, 1923, in South Carolina

PFC Lucille Miller Hairston, born September 10, 1916, in Grove, Greenville County, SC

PFC Lillie Beatrice Harrison, born 1910, in South Carolina

PFC Hazel Stanford Jackson, born July 2, 1920, in Darlington, SC

PFC Novella Ernestine Jackson, born July 3, 1916, in Willington, McCormick County, SC

PFC Alease Eileen Johnson, born April 27, 1921, in Effingham Township, Florence County, SC

PFC Hessie Johnson Kollock, born April 22, 1921, in Columbia, SC

PFC Ruby L. Lipscomb, born June 22, 1920, in Spartanburg, SC

PFC Ann E. Smalls, born April 12, 1920, in Bamberg County, SC

PFC Evelyn Reed Thrice, born December 3, 1919, in Platt Spring Township, Lexington County, SC

PFC Hilda Elizabeth Wood, born February 15, 1924, in Chesterfield, SC

PVT Lucile McNeal Balloon, born August 1, 1923, in Anderson, SC

PVT Claudia Drucilla Allgood Braxton, born June 11, 1924, in Greenville, SC

PVT Sarah Belle Gary, born September 13, 1923, in Laurens, SC

PVT Wilhelmina Lorenza Holmes, born August 16, 1919, in Anderson, SC

PVT William Henrietta Lee, born 1918, in South Carolina

PVT Willie Mae Boatright Majett, born January 10, 1923, in Charleston, SC

PVT Annie Mae Walker Mason, born June 30, 1917, in Shaw Township, Aiken County, SC

PVT Ermane Sanata Faulk Patterson, born April 14, 1921, in Ehrhardt, SC

PVT Carolyn Blondell Poole, born April 12, 1920, in Bamberg County, SC