Women as Brigadier Generals

Brig. Gen. Anna Mae Hays

Brig. Gen. Elizabeth P. Hoisington

On July 11, 1970, Brigadier General Anna Mae Hays became the first woman in the U.S. military to be given a general officer rank. On the same day, and directly after Hay’s promotion, Brigadier General Elizabeth P. Hoisington received the same rank. From 1967-1971, Hays was chief of the Army Nurse Corps while Hoisington was director of the Women’s Army Corps from 1966-1971.

In a 1988 interview, Hoisington was asked about the differences between male and female military branches. She stated the following:

We were always just as much officers as any other officer. To those who say we weren’t, hell to them. I wasn’t in the Salvation Army. The WAC was just like any other corps.

[Information - Anna Mae Hays (via the Army Nurse Corps Association) and Elizabeth P. Hoisington (via her Washington Post obituary). Photos found on the U.S. Army website.]