Minnie Spotted-Wolf

Minnie Spotted-Wolf
Born	June 20, 1923 Heart Butte, Montana
Died	July 8, 1987(1987-07-08) (aged 64) Browning, Montana
Allegiance	United States
Service / branch	United States Marine Corps
Years of service	1943–1945
Rank	Private
Battles / wars	World War II
Alma mater	BS, Elementary Education, 1976
Other work	Teacher

Minnie Spotted-Wolf (1923–1987)[1] was one of the first Native American women to enlist in the United States Marine Corps.[2]

Biography

Minnie Spotted-Wolf enlisted in the Marine Corps Women's Reserve in July 1943.[3]

Spotted-Wolf, from Heart Butte, Montana, was a member of the Blackfoot tribe. Prior to joining the Marines, she had worked on her father's ranch doing such chores as cutting fence posts, driving a two-ton truck, and breaking horses.[4] Known for her skill for breaking horses, she described Marine boot camp as: "hard but not too hard."[5]

She served on military bases in California and Hawaii. She worked as a heavy equipment operator and a driver for general officers.[4]

Press coverage of her wartime service included headlines like Minnie, Pride of the Marines, Is Bronc-Busting Indian Queen.[6]

She was discharged in 1947.[2]

After her military service, she returned to Montana, married Robert England, earned a degree in Elementary Education, and spent 29 years as a teacher.[4]

According to her daughter, "she could outride guys into her early 50s."[6]

Tribute

In 2019, a section of US Highway 89 in Pondera County, MT was dedicated as "Minnie Spotted-Wolf Memorial Highway”.[2]

See also

• United States Marine Corps Women's Reserve

References

1. "Minnie England in the Montana, U.S., State Deaths, 1907-2018". Ancestry.com. November 20, 2024. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
2. ""Minnie Spotted-Wolf Memorial Highway" dedicated". 10 August 2019.
3. "History of the Women Marines". Women Marines Association. Archived from the original on 2006-06-16. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
4. White, Cody (25 July 2013). "Minnie Spotted Wolf and the Marine Corps". Prologue: Pieces of History. National Archives.
5. "WWII – First USMC Native American Minnie Spotted Wolf" Archived 2017-08-12 at the Wayback Machine. Armed Forces History Museum. 29 July 2013.
6. Montana Historical Society (26 August 2014). ""You Have to Take What They Send You Now Days": Montana Women's Service in World War II". Women's History Matters. Montana Historical Society

Sources

• "Circle of Honor". Native American Women with Military Service. Archived from the original on 2016-10-15. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
• Simpson, Peggy (May 26, 2003). "Native American Veterans Honored Today". Women's eNews. Retrieved 2006-10-08.
• Rae, Callum (29 December 2015). "Minnie Spotted Wolf". The Female Soldier.
• Holm, Tom (2007). Code Talkers and Warriors: Native Americans and World War II. New York: Chelsea House. pp. 34–35. ISBN 978-0-79-109340-5. OCLC 77270989.

Further reading

• "DoDLive Presents: Profiles in Heritage. National Native American Heritage Month: Minnie Spotted Wolf". United States Department of Defense (Video). 30 November 2011.

External links

• Photograph of Three Marine Corps Women Reservists, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina at the National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 208:Records of the Office of War Information, 1926 - 1951. Feature Story Photographs, 1942 - ca. 1945. 16 October 1943.