Roise The Riveter
In 1943 Norman Rockwell created his painting of Rosie the Riveter, which appeared on the cover of the Memorial Day issue of the Saturday Evening Post. In this image a muscular Rosie takes a sandwich break, with her feet resting on a copy of Hitler's Mein Kampf, while her riveting gun is temporarily idle.
This painting became integral part of the Women in War Jobs campaign.
The campaign targeted several groups of women. First, Women already in the workplace were encouraged to upgrade to factory jobs with better wages. Next, girls barely out of high school were recruited. After it became obvious that still more workers were necessary, the campaign went after married women with children who didn't really need to work.
Several persuasive messages permeated the campaign, especially the importance of patriotism and the idea that the war would end sooner if women at home filled the shoes of absent male workers. These efforts were wildly successful. By 1945, more than 18 million women were in the workforce -- up from 12 million in 1940. Many of these women were employed in traditionally male-dominated roles, such as aerodynamic engineers, railroad workers, streetcar drivers and lumber and steel mill employees.