Mary E. Clarke

Berlin Airlift crisis.^[3]

commissioned officer as a second lieutenant.^[4] Then she went to Tokyo to become a commanding officer at a WAC unit and was there for two years before leaving to go to the United States. She held officer's positions in Texas, Alabama, Maryland, California and Washington, D.C. from 1958 through 1971.^[3]

military academies, since it was then allowed for women to attend these academies which came about through a federal directive of President Gerald Ford.^[9]

two-star general and promoted to major general in November 1978. She then immediately became commander of the United States Army Military Police School and Training Center. During her tenure, in 1979 she oversaw the return of the United States Army Chemical School from the Aberdeen Proving Ground near Edgewood, Maryland to its former home at Fort McClellan by the city of Anniston, Alabama.^[12][13] Now with three major missions, a basic Training Brigade, the Army Military Police School and the Army Chemical School, she became commander of the United States Army Military Police and Chemical Schools, Training Center, Fort McClellan, Alabama.^[1][7][14] It was the first time a woman commanded a major military installation.^[15][16] Clarke was the first woman to achieve the class of major general in the United States Army in 1978.^[17][18] In 1980 she was the first woman to complete 35 years of continuous active military service in the United States.^[13] She served in the army for a total thirty six years, retiring in 1981.^[6][7] This is the longest service ever served for a woman.^[1][19]

San Antonio, Texas and is buried at the Ft Sam Houston National Cemetery in Bexar County, Texas.^[4][22]

Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, and Meritorious Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster. Her uniform was exhibited in a Pentagon display commemorating vital contributions of Army women pioneers.^[21]