Personal Narrative Film, Video Manuscript/Mixed Material Photo, Print, Drawing Betty Tosti Leiding Collection
Veterans History Project Service Summary:
- War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
- Branch of Service: SPAR (Women's Coast Guard Reserve)
- Location of Service: Palm Beach, Florida; New York, New York
- Highest Rank: Storekeeper First Class
- Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/2546
A persuasive Coast Guard recruiter opened the door to a life of adventure for 20-year-old Betty Tosti of Framingham, Massachusetts. After training in Palm Beach, Florida, where she learned to swim, she was assigned to an office in lower Manhattan. A brief stint in the Finance Office led to an offer she couldn't refuse-since it was an order: becoming an assistant to a genial commander. Social life in New York included dating officers (a no-no for an enlisted woman) and meeting her future husband, a Merchant Mariner in training. Leiding admits that going off to war, even if it only meant office work in the States, offered her a different perspective on the world from that of her younger sisters, who stayed close to home all their lives.
Interview / Recording
Transcript
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PlayAfter graduating from business college at 20, coming upon a Coast Guard recruiting station and deciding to sign up; needed permission from her parents; father refused, mother agreed; trained in Palm Beach, Florida; given work similar to what she was used to, working in a bank; assigned to finance office and eventually came to New York City. 00:01:34.2 - 00:04:42.4
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PlayAssigned to New York finance office at 42 Broadway; commander asked her to work for him; she didn't realize she had no choice in the matter; taken back to her hotel every night by her boss's chauffeur; how she met her future husband, who was serving in the Merchant Marines. 00:05:45.6 - 00:07:49.3
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PlayAt times, experience seemed like a dream; married the month after she was discharged; description of her uniform; still has her Navy blue uniform; friends went into other branches of service, but the Coast Guard recruiter's pitch worked on her. 00:09:51.5 - 00:11:58.3
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PlayOnly in finance office briefly; worked with one other woman for the commander, so her daily contacts at work were limited, though she did some work for two other officers in an adjacent office; didn't regret not going into the bigger services; liked the modest size of the Coast Guard; training consisted mainly of marching and calisthenics; she did learn how to swim from a good instructor but has never overcome an aversion to water. 00:13:57.0 - 00:16:29.0
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PlayIgnored the rule that enlisted personnel could not mix with officers; she dated several; trained by women; experience broadened her, offered her a more adventurous life than if she had stayed in her hometown, as her younger sisters did. 00:19:20.0 - 00:21:42.0
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PlayShowing photos from her days in New York: her in a park in winter; her and her husband in Central Park; a group shot from her original Finance Office; her boss; her in her dress whites; her in uniform early in her career. 00:29:50.3 - 00:33:28.5
About this Item
Title
- Betty Tosti Leiding Collection
Names
- Venezio, Thomas
- Shaker High School/United States Coast Guard Auxiliary
- Ziff, Bonnie
- Leiding, Betty Tosti
Home State
- New Jersey
Headings
- - Leiding, Betty Tosti
- - World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
- - United States. SPAR (Women's Coast Guard Reserve).
Repository
- Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Gender
- Female
Status
- veteran
Service History
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World War, 1939-1945
- Branch of Service: SPAR (Women's Coast Guard Reserve)
- Location of Service: Palm Beach, Florida; New York, New York
- Highest Rank: Storekeeper First Class
- Dates of Service: 1943-1946
- Entrance into Service: Enlisted
- Military Status: veteran
Materials
- Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of video recording (collected 2011-06)
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2002-07-12; 1999-12-31)
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 2002-07-12; 2007-10-19)
Collection Number
- AFC/2001/001/2546
Cite as
- Betty Tosti Leiding Collection (AFC/2001/001/2546), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Online Format
- image
- online text
- video