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Staff Sergeant Marguerite Hall Clifford Ross

A young woman wearing a skirt and sweater.
  • Unit: 2nd Headquarters Battalion, Company C
  • Date of Birth: November 22, 1921
  • Entered the Military: August 24, 1943
  • Date of Death: November 9, 1973
  • Hometown: Salem, Massachusetts
  • Place of Death: Pascagoula, Mississippi
  • Cemetery: Section 29, row 2, site 13. Biloxi National Cemetery, Biloxi, Mississippi
Contributed by Katelyn Smith and Gamaliel Ruiz Diaz
Mentored by Mrs. Elizabeth Green
College Career Technical Institute and Pascagoula High School
2025/2026

Early Life

Marguerite Hall was born in Salem, Massachusetts, on November 22, 1921. She was the only child of Gertrude E. Hall and Roger A. Hall, neither of whom pursued education past high school. Her particular home was part of a community of English-style townhomes built in 1916 and very different from the rest of the city.

Marguerite graduated from Abbot Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, in June 1940 and played multiple sports, including track and basketball. She was also the president of the Athletic Association at her school. Here, she received the title “Best Dancer.” She then attended Erskine School, a two-year program that prepared students for university. There is also evidence that indicates she spent a short season in an education program. At Eriskine, she gravitated toward secretarial training in her first year and typing/shorthand in her second year. She later worked at Boston Woven Hose and Rubber in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in a secretarial/clerical position. 

Hall grew up in a unique part of Boston with an old, traditional feel. This home still exists today, 2026. Google Maps.
Hall was known for being very athletic. This was a picture of the basketball team on which she played varsity as a tenth grader. Abbot Academy.
Hall and other classmates were recognized for different traits. She was chosen as the “Best Dancer” (first person in the second row). Abbot Academy.

Homefront

Hall spent most of her time before the service between the communities of Salem and Boston. Salem had several factories, including a particularly interesting one called the Pequot Mills. This plant was one of the first steam-operated cotton mills in the nation. Its initial employment of 600 more than quadrupled during World War II. Fabrics made would be sent to other areas to be made into finished goods for both the military and consumers. 

Like many other communities, the women of Salem worked to make up for war shortages. Ladies from 17 churches came together during the war to produce over 20,000 cans of fruit and vegetables from the local hospital patients. 

Food shortages affected citizens, including a well-documented butter shortage. Over 1,000 women waited in line at the store to make sure they could get this household essential on January 23, 1944.  There was also an event on November 10, 1943, when two Civil War cannons, which had been historical pieces in Salem, were sent to the scrap pile for salvage and used as war materials.

Salem also boasted an Air Station built in 1935 by the U.S. Coast Guard, located on Winter Island, named Fort Pickering. It included both a shipyard close by and a tavern. This location became the second-largest station on the East Coast and brought Coast Guard personnel to Essex County. Often, the Salem Canteen would hold weekly parties for servicemen. Although small, many of the units stationed there focused on search-and-rescue operations. During World War II, the air station increased its ships to 37. By 1944, the station gained the designation as the eastern seaboard’s first Air Sea Rescue station.  

The Pequot Mill in Salem, Massachusetts, was a staple for men and women in Essex County and contributed to the war effort. Salem Links and Lore.
Butter was a rationed product during World War II. Salem and Boston both struggled with a butter shortage during the war. North Adams Transcript, September 28, 1944.
The U.S. Coast Guard station in Salem, 1938. Many of the locals would hold events to support the troops stationed there. United States Coast Guard.

Military Experience

Marguerite  Hall enlisted in the military after World War II had already commenced. She reported for duty in Boston, where she joined the U.S. Marine Corps on August 24, 1943. She went through her training at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.  

From there, she was stationed at Arlington, Virginia, as a noncommissioned officer. Her job title was clerk typist. Her responsibilities included typing invoices and orders, acting as a messenger, answering phones, and filing documents. With a massive two-front war involving over 16 million men and women in the service, there was a need for administrative assistants to ensure clear communication. Sending and receiving orders, supplies, and rationing scarce materials required all hands on deck. She spent over two years working in Virginia as support personnel. 

For her service to her country, Hall received both the American Theater Ribbon and the World War II Victory Ribbon. Ross was honorably discharged on November 9, 1945, at Henderson Hall in Arlington, Virginia.

This photograph of Marguerite Hall Ross was included in her Official Military Personnel File, dated September 8, 1943. National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.
Abbot Academy Principal Hearsey wrote a recommendation letter for the Marine Corps Women’s Reserve, noting Hall’s athleticism and respect on her campus, April 19, 1943. Official Military Personnel File, National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.
Marguerite Hall’s Report of Separation verifies her time of service and job held in the Marine Corps, November 9, 1945. National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.

Veteran Experience

Although much of Margeurite Hall’s life after the military is unknown. She married Mr. Clifford after her military service. His first name is not among the records found, and it is unclear how long this marriage lasted.

She later married James Paul Ross. John and Marguerite Ross lived in Denver, Colorado, for some time before moving to Pascagoula, Mississippi. The Ross family home in Pascagoula still exists today on Frederic Street. While here, Ross and her husband had financial trouble and defaulted on some of their debts. 

This is the location of Ross’s home in Pascagoula, Mississippi, March 15, 2026. Courtesy of Katelynn Smith.

Commemoration

Marguerite Hall Clifford Ross passed away on July 8, 1973, at her home in Pascagoula, Mississippi. She was buried in Biloxi National Cemetery. Her courage in joining the U.S. Marine Corps and helping break glass ceilings with her military title for women will always be her legacy. 

When Marguerite Hall Ross died on July 8, 1973, a VA Medical Officer requested her burial at Biloxi National Cemetery. Portions have been redacted for privacy reasons. National Archives and Records Administration.
Staff Sergeant Marguerite Hall Ross’s grave at Biloxi National Cemetery in Biloxi, Mississippi, March 12, 2026. Courtesy of Elizabeth Green.

Bibliography

Primary Sources

1938 Yearbook. Abbott Academy. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

1940 Yearbook. Abbott Academy. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

1942 Yearbook. Atlantic Union College. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

Bell, Jefferson G. “Butter Lines Form as Scarcity Grows.” The New York Times.[New York, NY], October 3, 1944. https://www.nytimes.com/1944/10/03/archives/butter-lines-form-as-scarcity-grows-philadelphia-consumers-stand-in.html. 

“Creamery Butter Is Upped to 20 Points.” North Adams Transcript [North Adams, MA], September 28, 1944. Newspapers.com (545091275).

Erskine School collection related to alumnae and class reunions, MS.SC.0024. Boston Public Library. https://archives.bpl.org/repositories/2/resources/73. 

Marguerite H. Clifford, Official Military Personnel File, Department of the Navy, National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.

Marguerite H. Clifford, Report of Separation, Department of the Navy, National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.

“Marguerite H. Ross.” The Daily Herald [Biloxi, Mississippi], July 9, 1973. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/107286205/marguerite-h-ross#view-photo=264049769. 

Marguerite H. Ross. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2020. https://ancestry.com.

Marguerite H. Ross. U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1861-1985. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

“Marguerite H. Ross.” Veterans Legacy Memorial, National Cemetery Administration. Accessed March 24, 2026. https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/MARGUERITEHROSS/68AB90A. 

Military/Home Front Photograph Collection. Nelson Dionne Salem History Collection,  Salem State Archives. https://www.flickr.com/photos/salemstatearchives/albums/72157706310372941/. 

Pequot Mills. Drawing. Salem Links and Lore. https://salempl.org/wiki/index.php?title=File:PequotMills.jpg. 

Robert Appleton Hall. World War II Draft Card Young Men, 1940-1947. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

Salem. Essex County. 1910 U.S. Census. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

Salem. Essex County. 1920 U.S. Census. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

 Salem. Essex County. 1930 U.S. Census. Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

Salem. Essex County. 1940 U.S. Census.Digital images. https://ancestry.com.

“Substituted Trustee’s Notice of Sale. No 10027.” The Mississippi Press [Pascagoula, Mississippi], April 3, 1973. Newspapers.com (1157766804).

Secondary Sources

“Air Station Salem, Massachusetts.” United States Coach Guard. Accessed March 12, 2026. https://www.history.uscg.mil/Browse-by-Topic/Assets/Air/All/Air-Stations/Article/3062106/air-station-salem-massachusetts/. 

Edwards, Susan. “HyGrade-Sylvania.”  Blog. April 4, 2023. Salem State University. https://libguides.salemstate.edu/home/archives/blog/Hygrade-Sylvania.

Foss, Alden S. “Boston Woven Hose and Rubber Company: Eighty Four Years in Cambridge (Part 2).” History of Cambridge. Accessed February 2, 2026. https://historycambridge.org/articles/boston-woven-hose-part-2/. 

“History At a Glance: Women in World War II.” The National WWII Museum. Accessed March 1, 2026. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/students-teachers/student-resources/research-starters/women-wwii. 

“Marguerite H. Ross.” Find a Grave. Updated March 25, 2013. Accessed March 12, 2026. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/107286205/marguerite-h-ross. 

“Marguerite H. Ross.” Veterans Legacy Memorial, National Cemetery Administration. Accessed March 12, 2026. https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/MARGUERITEHROSS/68AB90A. 

“Orne Square – An interesting little street set in 1916 England.” Komoot. Accessed March 24, 2026. https://www.komoot.com/highlight/6753937. 

“Salem during World War II.” Preserving Salem. Accessed November 11, 2025. https://www.preservingsalem.com/world-war-ii

“Spring Break-Away.” Streets of Salem. Updated May 5, 2020. Accessed January 5, 2026. https://streetsofsalem.com/2020/05/05/spring-break-away/. 

“Winter Island Park.” City of Salem, Massachusetts. Accessed November 5, 2025. https://www.salemma.gov/526/Winter-Island-Park. 

This profile was funded by a grant from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. The opinions, findings, and conclusions stated herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.