Mary Agnes Hallaren (May 4, 1907 – February 13, 2005) was an American soldier and the third director of the Women's Army Corps (WAC) at the time that it became a part of the United States Army. As the director of the WAC, she was the first woman to ''officially'' join the U.S. Army.

Early life

Born in Lowell, Massachusetts, the daughter of John Joseph Hallaren and Mary Kenney Hallaren. She graduated in 1925 from Lowell High School and attended Boston University and graduated from Lowell State Teachers College (now University of Massachusetts Lowell). She taught junior high school for 15 years in Lexington, Massachusetts, spending her summers on vigorous walking tours, which she called vagabonding throughout the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Europe.

Career

In 1942 Hallaren entered the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps, which later became the WAC. A recruiter asked the diminutive Hallaren (she barely stood five feet tall), how someone of her size could help the military. She replied, "You don't have to be six feet tall to have a brain that works." In 1943, as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, she commanded the first women's battalion to go overseas. She served as director of WAC personnel attached to the

8th 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...

and 9th Air Forces, and by 1945, as a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, she commanded all WAC personnel in the European theater. On 7 May 1947, Secretary of War Robert P. Patterson promoted Hallaren to full colonel and appointed her the third director of the WAC. On June 12, 1948, when the WAC was officially integrated into the Army, she became the first woman to serve as a regular Army officer (there had been female members of the Army Medical Corps since 1947). She received Army serial number L–1. Mary_Hallaren

By the end of 1952, Hallaren had completed almost six years as director of the WAC. She had led the effort to obtain Regular Army and Reserve status for WACs. She had directed the procedures for assimilating WACs into the regular and reserve components between 1948 and 1950; supervised the revival of WAC recruiting and the opening of the WAC Training Center; and led the Corps through most of the Korean War. After leaving the directorship, she served on active duty for another seven years before retiring in 1960 at age 53. She was awarded the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

, the Bronze Star, and the Army Commendation Medal. She served in the United States Department of Labor as director of the Women in Community Service division. She retired in 1978 but continued to serve in an advisory capacity.

Later life

In the 1990s, she was a leading proponent of the Women In Military Service For America Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery, which was dedicated in 1997. She was inducted into the

National Women's Hall of Fame The National Women's Hall of Fame (NWHF) is an American institution incorporated in 1969 by a group of men and women in Seneca Falls, New York, although it did not induct its first enshrinees until 1973. As of 2021, it had 303 inductees. Induc ...

in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1996 and was featured by Tom Brokaw in his book ''

The Greatest Generation The Greatest Generation, also known as the G.I. Generation and the World War II generation, is the Western demographic cohort following the Lost Generation and preceding the Silent Generation. The generation is generally defined as people born ...

''. She died at the Arleigh Burke Pavilion, an assisted living facility for retired military personnel in McLean, Virginia. She is buried in Saint Patrick Cemetery in Lowell, Massachusetts.Boston.com
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Awards

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

References

External links

National Women's Hall of Fame citationWomen in the U.S. Army
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hallaren, Mary 1907 births 2005 deaths United States Army personnel of World War II People from Lowell, Massachusetts Recipients of the Legion of Merit Women in the United States Army United States Army colonels Women's Army Corps soldiers 21st-century American women Military personnel from Massachusetts