Complete WAVE uniform from World War II worn by Nancy E. Bailey (Bon Cogsdale).
Nancy E. Bailey (b. 1922) , sister of Lt. John A. Bailey (b. 1917), graduated from Madison College in Harrisonburg, VA in 1941 and was on the faculty at Norview High School in Norfolk, until January 1941 when she went to Smith College in Northampton, MA in January 1943, where she was in an officer candidate school in the WAVES, the Naval women's auxiliary. She served as an officer in the Women's Reserve of the US Naval Reserve from November 1943 to August 1946. She served as coding officer and communications watch officer in the Headquarters Communication Center. WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) was established on 30 July 1942 as a World War II division of the U.S. Navy, consisting entirely of women. Nancy Bailey Bon married Thomas N. Cogsdale in 1970.