About 50 women, fresh from training at Hunter College arrived at Union Station in Dayton, Ohio on April 22, 1943. They had no idea what their duties would entail. Guards were at the station to meet them, and escort them to Sugar Camp, where 60 cabins, built as housing for NCR training camps, would serve as their home.

The wooden cabins held 4 bunks in two rooms, separated by a central hall with bathroom facilities, including a shower.

Take a trip back in time: read the WAVES' Sugar Camp Regulations

Who was stationed at Sugar Camp? You can find some names on the Rosters or in the growing Personnel database.

The WAVES adapted to a strenuous schedule built around Sugar Camp and NCR Building 26. They marched to work, down Main Street (Route 48). During their time here they worked at least 2 shifts a day, and at one time 3 shifts: 8 am to 4 pm, 4 pm to midnight, midnight to 8 am.

The cabins were spartan, but the WAVES seem to quickly adapt and settled into a routine. "Sugar Camp's thrity-one acres also contained a dining hall, recreation building, baseball diamond and a large outdoor swimming pool. 'We were delighted with Sugar Camp,' says Sue Eskey. 'It felt like a little country club. We were more or less like a bunch of overgrown Girl Scouts. We loved it.'" (Home Sweet Home Front, Curt Dalton)