The Women Who Built WWI Warships Are Honored in This National Historic Park

Rosie the Riveter National Historical Park

During World War Two, women traded aprons for coveralls and stepped into factory jobs that built America’s war machine.

The sounds of hammers and torches have long since faded, but their story lives on at Rosie the Riveter National Historical Park.

This is their legacy, written in steel and sweat.

When Richmond Transformed for War Production

Richmond exploded from 24,000 to 100,000 residents in 1941 as workers arrived from across America. Henry Kaiser, who had never built ships before, constructed four shipyards by 1942.

The first keel was laid in April 1941. Within months, Richmond hummed with activity as the largest shipbuilding center in the country.

Kaiser declared that ships were “just buildings that float.” His practical approach revolutionized production methods.

The city’s 55 war industries strained housing, schools, and community services. New neighborhoods sprang up overnight to accommodate the workforce.

Women Who Powered the Shipyards

One-third of Richmond’s 90,000 shipyard workers were women. They mastered skills previously considered men’s domain: welding, drafting, electrical work, and crane operation.

Phyllis Gould, among the first six women welders hired at Kaiser, remembered supervisors asking what such a small woman was doing there. She proved her abilities daily alongside two other women in her crew.

Women earned higher wages than ever before—though still less than men doing identical work. They came from diverse backgrounds: housewives, farm workers, office clerks, and recent high school graduates

Record-Breaking Shipbuilding Achievements

The four Richmond shipyards built 747 vessels during World War II—a record unmatched anywhere in world history. Kaiser’s mass production techniques slashed both construction time and costs.

The SS Robert E. Peary, a Liberty ship, took just four days and fifteen hours to assemble in November 1942. By 1944, workers routinely completed ships in about two weeks.

Kaiser borrowed ideas from automobile manufacturing. Workers pre-fabricated ship sections off-site, then welded them together at the yards.

Each Liberty ship required approximately 150,000 rivets, but Kaiser switched to welding, making ships lighter and faster to build.

The Ford Assembly Plant’s Military Conversion

The Ford Assembly Plant in Richmond, designed by architect Albert Kahn, became vital to the war effort in 1942. Its massive assembly lines switched from civilian cars to military vehicles overnight.

Workers assembled 49,000 jeeps and processed 91,000 other military vehicles during the war. The plant served as one of only three tank depots in the entire country.

Ford hired thousands of first-time industrial workers, including many women. They mastered complex assembly processes despite minimal training.

After victory in 1945, Ford resumed civilian car production until 1955, when operations moved to Milpitas.

Kaiser’s Revolutionary Healthcare System

Henry Kaiser needed healthy workers to meet shipbuilding deadlines. He opened the Kaiser Richmond Field Hospital on August 10, 1942.

Workers paid 50 cents weekly for comprehensive healthcare. By 1944, an unprecedented 92.2% of shipyard employees had enrolled.

The three-tier system included first aid stations at shipyards, a field hospital for serious cases, and the main Permanente Hospital in Oakland for critical conditions.

For many workers, this marked their first access to professional medical care. This wartime program evolved into Kaiser Permanente, fundamentally changing American healthcare.

The Birth of the Rosie the Riveter Memorial

Richmond City Councilwoman Donna Powers initiated the memorial project in 1997. Her mother-in-law taught at shipyard daycare centers and her great-aunt worked as a riveter.

Historian Donna Graves directed the project, collecting stories, photographs, and memorabilia from former shipyard workers. Community workshops gathered firsthand accounts of women’s wartime experiences.

A design competition in 1998 selected visual artist Susan Schwartzenberg and landscape architect Cheryl Barton. Their design connected shipbuilding with memory preservation.

The memorial dedication on October 14, 2000 brought together more than 100 former “Rosies,” making it the nation’s first tribute to women’s home front contributions.

From Memorial to National Park

The memorial project revealed Richmond’s forgotten wartime heritage. Historian Donna Graves found intact factories, housing projects, childcare centers, and medical facilities throughout the city.

Congressman George Miller sponsored legislation for a National Park Service feasibility study. The study concluded Richmond offered the perfect location for telling the home front story.

President Bill Clinton signed legislation establishing the national park on October 24, 2000—just ten days after the memorial dedication.

Community members formed the Rosie the Riveter Trust as the park’s nonprofit partner to fund preservation projects and educational programs.

The Historic SS Red Oak Victory Ship

The SS Red Oak Victory stands as the last surviving ship built at Richmond’s Kaiser Shipyards. Launched in 1944, this Victory ship carried ammunition and supplies to Pacific battle areas.

The Navy assigned this 455-foot vessel to the dangerous task of delivering explosives. Throughout its wartime service, the ship transported tons of ammunition without a single casualty.

After decades serving various purposes, the Red Oak Victory returned to Richmond in 1998. Now a floating museum anchored at Shipyard No. 3, visitors explore its engine rooms, crew quarters, and bridge.

Volunteer crews, including some former shipyard workers, maintain the vessel.

The Rosie the Riveter Memorial Design

The memorial takes the form of a Liberty ship under construction. A 441-foot walkway—the exact length of a ship’s keel—forms its backbone.

Visitors move from the stern at the water’s edge through a cylindrical smokestack structure toward the bow. This journey mirrors how ships took shape in the yards.

Thirty-nine panels display photographs, news clippings, and memorabilia from the 1940s. Twenty-five timeline panels along the Keel Walk trace wartime events from 1941-1945.

Porcelain enamel panels feature women’s firsthand accounts of working in defense industries, describing discrimination, dangerous conditions, and wartime sacrifices.

The Visitor Center Experience

The Visitor Center occupies the Oil House, where vats of oil once fueled the adjacent Ford Assembly Plant. This historic brick building opened to the public in 2012.

Exhibits recreate daily life in wartime Richmond. Videos feature interviews with actual home front workers describing their experiences.

Visitors operate a virtual cutting torch, explore a shipyard worker’s apartment, and examine wartime artifacts. Interactive displays show how civilian production supported military needs.

On Fridays, former shipyard workers share their stories with visitors. These “Rosie Meet and Greets” connect guests directly with living history.

Visiting Rosie the Riveter National Historical Park

The Visitor Center stands at 1414 Harbour Way South in Richmond.

Admission remains free for all visitors. The SS Red Oak Victory Ship maintains separate hours, generally open Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Start your visit at the Visitor Center for orientation before exploring other park sites throughout Richmond. The Rosie the Riveter Memorial sits at Marina Bay Park, a short drive away.

A self-guided tour connects multiple historic locations including Shipyard No. 3, the Ford Assembly Building, and Kaiser Field Hospital sites.

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