AUSTRALIA’S WRANS
Graham Caldwell describes the important contribution made by the Woman’s Royal Australian Naval Service during World War Two
What! Women in the Royal Australian Navy?” So begins the first chapter of WRANS published by the Naval Historical Society of Australia. “If women wanted to dress up and do something to help the war effort, they could work in a canteen or a factory, or stay in a women’s proper place: the home.”
Then came the twist: “…or so thought male officialdom. Fortunately, many women realised that sooner or later every able-bodied person would be needed if Australia was to keep her place in the sun.”
The official date for the establishment of the Women’s Royal Australian Naval Service (WRANS) was October 1, 1942. Unlike its more famous British counterpart, it was not formed for the previous war, but its origins nevertheless pre-date formal foundation.
Mrs Mac’s radio shop
Indeed, due to a desperate shortage of trained male ratings, work to provide female telephonists for the Royal Australian Navy had begun years before. Affectionately known as ‘Mrs Mac’, Florence Violet McKenzie OBE was Australia’s first female electrical engineer. She was also the founder of the Women’s…
