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364:, each named after a U.S. state, and auxiliary buildings, including an infirmary and a recreation hall, covered approximately 28 acres of a 108-acre site. Six of the dorms housed civilians;four were designated for female members of the military. The dorms were "gray and extremely temporary in appearance", set on masonry foundations with exterior walls made of
65:
330:(GSA), awarded $ 4 million in contracts for the construction of dormitories at Arlington Farms. The contractors were Philadelphia's John McShain, Inc., and two Virginia-based companies, Doyle & Russell and the Wise Contracting Company. The three firms were also partnered on the nearby Pentagon construction.
516:
After the war ended in
September 1945, Arlington Farms continued to operate for the next five years. Occupancy rates began to decline in the late 1940s, and buildings were consolidated and some transferred to the military for enlisted and family housing. By early 1950, fewer than 1,800 girls remained
517:
at
Arlington Farms and the government began planning to shut down operations and transfer all the buildings and land over to the military as of July 31, 1950. The Army officially moved into the former “G-Girl Haven” in September 1950 and began using Arlington Farms as a draft center supporting the
521:. The military maintained control of the site and the dormitories remained in use until they began to be demolished in the mid-1960s. A couple of the auxiliary buildings remained intact until the mid-1970s. The Arlington Farms site is currently part of Arlington National Cemetery.
381:, proclaimed it “remarkable how much thoughtful architectural designing and planning, judicious use of color, and the introduction of cheerful fabrics in the interior furnishings have done to lighten the barracks-like effect of these dormitories.”
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429:. When they were not working, the women could be found engaged in a variety of recreational activities on the campus or around town with the many young servicemen stationed in the Capital area.
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played a role in the design and construction of the residential housing project. She toured the facilities when they first opened and presided over the formal dedication on
October 15, 1943.
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368:. Each dorm opened up into a lobby and various common areas, including game rooms, lounges, and a service shop, which sold food, drinks, cosmetics, and other sundry goods.
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and designated for select government workers with yearly salaries of $ 1,260 to $ 1,620. Four of the dorms housed military servicewomen, primarily Naval
Reserve
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407:(Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Services), and six were civilian. Single 8-foot Ă— 10-foot rooms rented for $ 24.50 and doubles for $ 16.50 a month.
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The federal government began planning for an influx of wartime workers years before the United States officially entered World War II. In late 1940,
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Off of the main lounge and common areas were ten two-story housing wings with single- and double-occupancy rooms. There were laundry areas and a
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who had recently escaped from a
Japanese prison camp came to Washington for debriefing, they made Arlington Farms one of their first stops.
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149:
903:
Online transcripts and video interviews of World War II veterans, including various service women stationed at or around
Arlington Farms.
146:
392:, floor lamp, ash tray, waste basket, and two pillows.” The girls could exchange their linen twice a week and had weekly maid service.
345:
Construction began almost immediately and on March 1, 1943, the first occupants of
Arlington Farms moved into their wartime homes.
46:
Aerial view of
Arlington Farms (outlined in yellow) circa 1949. Note: Pentagon on the left, Arlington Memorial Bridge on the right.
912:
327:
334:'s company was the most prominent in Washington at the time. Besides the Pentagon (1943), they were the primary contractor on
860:, ed. Richard David Wissolik and Barbara J. Wissolik, (Latrobe, PA: SVC Northern Appalachian Studies, 2007), pp. 89–94.
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During intermission at one of the bi-weekly "open house" dances held in the main lounge of Idaho Hall, Arlington Farms.
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The walls were brightly painted, furniture was "bamboo in the modern motif", and decorations were provided by
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selected numerous sites around the city for construction of temporary war housing. In addition to plans in
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or into the WAVES, to work in government jobs in and around D.C. at places such as the nearby
Pentagon,
257:
269:
224:
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access to intermittent, historic aerial photographs of the
Arlington Farms site, beginning in 1934.
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The "28 Acres of Girls" became famous, so much so that in early 1945 when a group of four American
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signed a law to move the Department of Agriculture's Experimental Farm from Arlington, adjacent to
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The women who lived at Arlington Farms came from all over the country, recruited by the
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on each floor. Rooms were “small, but pleasantly furnished, with bed, dresser, mirror,
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was a temporary housing complex for female civil servants and service members during
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Dorothea Andrews (July 23, 1950). "Arlington Farm Soon to be a Memory to G-Girls".
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216:
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Rear view of Idaho Hall, Arlington Farms, showing the windows of the main lounge.
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796:"50 Virginia, Maryland 24 and 25-Year-Olds Are Processed at Arlington Farms".
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415:
346:
273:
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103:
90:
894:
Additional Arlington Farms photographs as part of LOT 763 (M) [P&P].
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839:, (accessed June 10, 2011), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
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Ethel Standley Collection (AFC/2001/001/38211), Veterans History Project,
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Reading the Sunday comics in a single room in Idaho Hall, Arlington Farms.
830:
The Arlington Experimental Farm: A Handbook of Information for Visitors
365:
892:
U.S. Library of Congress - Prints & Photographs Online Catalog:
832:, (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1928), pp. 1–5.
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Jane Watson (May 23, 1943). "Critic Finds U.S. Housing Attractive".
190:
John McShain, Inc., Doyle & Russell, & Wise Contracting Co.
404:
319:, some 7,000 units were slated for Arlington Farms, just over the
913:
Magellan.co: GIS & Aerial Photos viewer for Arlington County
491:
The main street at Arlington Farms is lined with huge shade tree.
283:
The Arlington Farms land was originally considered for the new
874:, (Fort Valley, VA: Loft Press, Inc., 2005), pp. 71–72.
227:(FWA), Arlington Farms was located on the former site of the
899:
856:
Joan Baxter Dunlap, “Donʼt Cry, Honey. Heʼs Home Now,” in
553:"Arlington Housing Project Awards $ 4,268,000 Contracts".
326:
Five months later, the FWA, one of the forerunners of the
755:. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division.
737:. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division.
719:. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division.
701:. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division.
683:. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division.
908:
Arlington National Cemetery (official website – archive)
846:, (Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse, 2007), pp. 68–73.
937:
Buildings and structures in Arlington County, Virginia
646:"Room, Board to Cost Girls in U.S. Dorms Under $ 50".
816:
The Man Who Built Washington: A Life of John McShain
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began in 1941, it was on the nearby site of the old
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U.S. Library of Congress – Veterans History Project
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872:Zula Remembers: South Arlington in Earlier Times
844:All In A Lifetime: True Experiences and Miracles
568:"Residence Hall Ready For First 200 Occupants".
947:Demolished buildings and structures in Virginia
661:"Death March Survivor Finds ʻThe Girlʼ Here".
538:"Planning Unit Picks Sites For Dormitories".
297:National Capital Park and Planning Commission
8:
957:United States home front during World War II
16:WWII era temporary housing in Washington, DC
952:Former buildings and structures in Virginia
375:(WPA) artists. Jane Watson, art editor for
837:http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/bib/38211
395:The housing at Arlington Farms, which was
272:to allow for an expansion of the military
234:on the grounds of the historic 1,100-acre
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287:building. However, when construction of
229:United States Department of Agriculture's
781:"Army Moves Into G-GirlsĘĽ Haven Today".
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624:
583:"First Lady Creates Stir At Dormitory".
962:Residential buildings completed in 1943
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463:Waiting for the bus at Arlington Farms.
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64:
598:"Dormitories In Arlington Dedicated".
123:Temporary Wartime Housing (Historical)
7:
613:"Government Girls Occupy New Dorm".
150:United States Department of the Army
972:1960s disestablishments in Virginia
942:Public housing in the United States
147:United States Department of Defense
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967:1943 establishments in Virginia
932:Apartment buildings in Virginia
401:Public Buildings Administration
328:General Services Administration
1:
818:, (Wilmington, Hagley, 1996)
412:U.S. Civil Service Commission
373:Works Projects Administration
219:. Built in 1942–1943 by the
828:Edwina V. A. Avery, comp.,
427:Signal Intelligence Service
262:Arlington National Cemetery
232:Arlington Experimental Farm
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240:Arlington County, Virginia
29:Arlington County, Virginia
321:Arlington Memorial Bridge
293:Washington-Hoover Airport
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39:
26:
236:Custis-Lee family estate
221:United States Government
182:Fall 1942 to Spring 1943
137:United States Government
356:Life at Arlington Farms
295:. In April, 1942, the
557:. September 20, 1942.
399:, was managed by the
258:Franklin D. Roosevelt
977:New Deal in Virginia
785:. September 1, 1950.
572:. February 20, 1943.
270:Beltsville, Maryland
225:Federal Works Agency
798:The Washington Post
783:The Washington Post
768:The Washington Post
663:The Washington Post
648:The Washington Post
633:The Washington Post
615:The Washington Post
602:. October 16, 1943.
600:The Washington Post
585:The Washington Post
570:The Washington Post
555:The Washington Post
540:The Washington Post
378:The Washington Post
311:, near present-day
104:38.8792°N 77.0616°W
100: /
753:FSA/OWI Collection
749:"LC-USW3-029050-E"
735:FSA/OWI Collection
731:"LC-USW3-028271-E"
717:FSA/OWI Collection
713:"LC-USW3-025745-E"
699:FSA/OWI Collection
681:FSA/OWI Collection
677:"LC-USW3-025729-E"
340:Jefferson Memorial
317:Suitland, Maryland
143:Controlled by
880:978-1-893846-63-0
866:978-1-885851-20-8
858:An Honor To Serve
852:978-1-4259-4271-7
824:978-0-914650-31-7
665:. March 19, 1945.
542:. April 17, 1942.
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492:
478:
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350:Eleanor Roosevelt
301:West Potomac Park
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109:38.8792; -77.0616
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814:Carl M. Brauer,
802:
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800:. July 26, 1950.
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617:. April 2, 1943.
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336:National Airport
305:Lincoln Memorial
266:current location
244:Washington, D.C.
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128:Site information
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650:. May 21, 1942.
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587:. May 19, 1943.
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338:(1941) and the
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332:John McShain
325:
309:Capitol Hill
289:the Pentagon
282:
252:
249:Construction
217:World War II
212:
211:
174:Site history
156:Open to
512:Postwar use
386:kitchenette
362:dormitories
313:RFK Stadium
303:, near the
195:In use
107: /
83:Coordinates
926:Categories
809:References
519:Korean War
416:Navy Annex
397:segregated
347:First Lady
274:cantonment
242:, outside
169:Demolished
95:77°03′42″W
92:38°52′45″N
315:, and in
278:Fort Myer
264:, to its
255:President
166:Condition
360:The ten
342:(1943).
366:cemesto
206:–1960s?
200: (
878:
864:
850:
822:
424:Army's
525:Notes
418:, or
405:WAVES
307:, on
179:Built
133:Owner
876:ISBN
862:ISBN
848:ISBN
820:ISBN
202:1943
198:1943
120:Type
276:at
268:in
238:in
223:'s
161:Yes
928::
915:—
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733:.
715:.
697:.
679:.
623:^
323:.
280:.
31:,
770:.
635:.
204:)
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