World War II home front history presentations

Emmy Lou Packard: Drawing new conclusions in the Kaiser shipyards

Part of exhibition at Rosie the Riveter National Park, Richmond, California, on display through 2015.

Two slideshow presentations which amplify the exhibition theme — the challenges of labor journalism during a time when the entire work force was changing. Packard’s illustrations in the weekly Kaiser Richmond shipyard newspaper Fore 'n' Aft were patriotic without resorting to racist jabs or stereotypes; she portrayed workers with dignity and character. She drew women’s experiences from a woman’s point of view — numerous vignettes show children (one of her regular subjects later in life), shopping, home life, and the challenges of survival and adjustment in a tempestuous time.

Exhibition review in Richmond Confidential.

More than war ships: Kaiser's WWII legacies in health care, child care, housing, and environment

Part of the Oregon Historical Society exhibition (Portland, Oregon).

"World War II: A world at war, a state transformed"

Kaiser Permanente historian Lincoln Cushing presented "Henry J. Kaiser's World War II Home Front Legacy," a slide show about the innovative support systems Kaiser built for wartime production workers, including child care centers, housing, transportation, and health care.

Although Henry J. Kaiser earned the sobriquet "Patriot in Pinstripes" for his industrial contributions to the Allied military effort during World War II, it can be argued that his most enduring legacy was his comprehensive suite of Home Front social benefit programs. 

Cushing co-presented with Dr. Jeffery Sanders, Washington State University.