Many women have served in the United States Navy for over a century. As of 2020, there were 69,629 total women on active duty in the US Navy, with 11,076 serving as officers, and 58,553 enlisted. Of all the branches in the US military, the Navy has the second highest percentage of female active duty service members with women making up 20% of the US Navy in 2020.
In November 2023 Admiral Lisa Franchetti became the first female Chief of Naval Operations and, due to having that position, the first female member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Robin Braun, Commander, Navy Recruiting Command.
Image: Seving as a wave
Yeoman (F)
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Yeoman (F) was an enlisted rate for women in the U.S. Naval Reserve during World War I. The first Yeoman (F) was Loretta Perfectus Walsh. At the time, the women were popularly referred to as "yeomanettes" or even "yeowomen", although the official designation was Yeoman (F).
Joy Bright as a Reservist in 1918
Yeomen (F) being inspected by Rear Admiral Victor Blue (left center), Chief of the Bureau of Navigation, on the Washington Monument grounds, Washington, D.C., in 1918
Yeomen (F) attached to the Industrial Department, U.S. Naval Station, New Orleans, Louisiana, during World War I