A "Y" Girl in France: Letters of Katherine Shortall

These letters share a young American woman's wartime experience with the Y.M.C.A., giving a vivid, day‑by‑day account of a transport ship sailing for France in late 1918. She writes in pencil and colored ink, describing bustling decks, waving handkerchiefs, and the Statue of Liberty slipping into the mist. The tone shifts from buoyant optimism—boys chanting on rigging, winter skies turned June‑like—to quiet fatigue as the ship's crew and hundreds of “Y” girls settle into cramped berths. The narrative feels like a living postcard, pulling listeners onto the deck.

She also paints portraits of the eclectic shipmates—an athletic Miss S., a Southern‑accented Miss A., a quiet Miss C., and a mix of English, Japanese and Italian sailors—each adding texture to the crowded staterooms. A brief fever becomes a shared lullaby as hymns drift through the hull, hinting at the deeper hardships and camaraderie she will face in France.