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Corporal Ruth Daria Franz Hummel

A young woman with short curly hair.
  • Unit: Headquarters Marine Corps, 5th Reserve District, General Service Unit
  • Date of Birth: October 25, 1919
  • Entered the Military: April 16, 1943
  • Date of Death: January 10, 2009
  • Hometown: Baltimore, Maryland
  • Place of Death: Lutherville, Maryland
  • Cemetery: Section P, Grave 44. Baltimore National Cemetery, Catonsville, Maryland
Contributed by Margaret Gosselin, Elizabeth Harvey, Cassidy Tucker
Mentored by Mrs. Amie Dryer
The Calverton School
2025/2026

Early Life

Ruth Daria Franz was born on October 25, 1919, in Baltimore, Maryland, to German-American parents, John Benedict Franz, a carpenter in house building, and Mary Barbara Franz. She had two brothers, George and Lawrence. 

She graduated from Seton High School as a straight-A student in 1937. After high school, she worked as a bookkeeper for O’Neill’s Department Store in downtown Baltimore. Her mentors described her as reliable, accurate, and intellectual, qualities that would benefit her during her time in the Marine Corps.

Franz was baptized at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Baltimore, Maryland, on November 2, 1919. Official Military Personnel File, National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.
Ruth Daria Franz’s Seton High School transcript, 1937. Portions have been redacted for privacy reasons. Official Military Personnel File,  National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.
A 1940 census record shows Ruth, the youngest sibling, working as a stenographer at a department store in Baltimore, Maryland. National Archives and Records Administration.

Homefront

Before the start of World War II, East Baltimore County was already a center of industry for the Atlantic Coast. The Glenn L. Martin Aviation Plant in Middle River and the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard in Baltimore City were particularly influential facilities. The Glenn L. Martin plant built military aircraft, specifically B-26 Marauders, and the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard built ships for the U.S. Maritime Commission’s Emergency Shipbuilding Program. 

The Johns Hopkins Hospital and the University of Maryland School of Medicine organized hospital units assigned to England and the Pacific theater, saving thousands of lives. 

Local community members also organized and participated in small but effective ways, such as rationing, blood drives, metal and rubber drives, and paper salvage efforts.

Workers at Bethlehem Steel Company, Sparrows Point, Maryland, showed their support by participating in a blood drive, 1942. National Park Service.
Launching ceremony at Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, May 1943. This was one of the 384 Liberty ships built between 1941 and 1945. Library of Congress (2017851200).
During wartime, the rationing of goods such as shoes was common in the United States, April 1943. Library of Congress (2017849684).

Military Experience

On February 13, 1943, the United States Marine Corps Women’s Reserve (USMCWR) was established. This reserve was created to release officers and men for combat, and to replace them with women in U.S. shore stations. It was the first time women could join the Marines.

In April of 1943, Franz voluntarily enlisted in the USMCWR. As one of the many women eager to serve, Franz reported for training at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. From August 1943 to June 1944, she was stationed in California. The remainder of her service was spent in Washington, D.C., as administrative support in the Quartermaster department. She helped manage logistics and ensure supplies, uniforms, and equipment were available and functional for military operations. 

Although Franz never saw the battlefield, she played a significant role in the war effort. She was promoted to corporal before being honorably discharged in 1944 to help financially support her ailing parents.

The U.S. Marine Corps Women’s Reserve used posters such as this to encourage young women to join the war effort, 1943. Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum (MO 2005.13.17.7.2).
Franz’s employers and schools wrote letters of recommendation when she applied to the Marine Corps, April 6, 1943. Official Military Personnel File,  National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.

Veteran Experience

After her discharge, Corporal Ruth Daria Franz returned to her hometown of Baltimore. She found work as a cost accountant at Rheem Manufacturing and married Paul Frederick William Hummel. They had four children, Patricia, Rosemary, Mark, and John. 

Ambitious and committed to learning, Hummel entered college on the G.I. Bill and earned her bachelor’s degree in general studies from Johns Hopkins University in 1969 at 50 years old. Ruth returned to bookkeeping for the architectural firm, Cochran, Stephenson & Donkervoet. In 1976, her husband of 30 years passed. She retired in 1984. 

Hummel loved to travel, garden, and cheer for the Baltimore Orioles. Her family recalls her Sunday dinners with fondness.  After living a long and fulfilling life, she moved into the Brightwood retirement community in Lutherville, Maryland, in 2005.

Commemoration

Ruth Daria Franz Hummel passed away on January 10, 2009, at the age of 89 from complications with Alzheimer’s disease. She is buried in the Baltimore National Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland, with her husband, Paul. 

A proud World War II veteran of the Marine Corps Women’s Reserve, Ruth was a Silent Hero. Her legacy is measured not in words but in the enduring impact of her actions.

Ruth D. Hummel’s obituary from the Baltimore Sun, January 18, 2009.
Students gathering at Ruth Hummel’s grave to read a eulogy honoring her, March 23, 2026. Courtesy of Amie Dryer.

Bibliography

Primary Sources

Advertisement for Food Stamp Plan. Advertisement. 1941. Digital Maryland, Enoch Pratt Free Library (mdww001_001). https://collections.digitalmaryland.org/digital/collection/mdww/id/0/rec/4.

Collins, Marjory. Baltimore, Maryland. Shoe repair shop. Photograph. 1943. Library of Congress (2017849684) http://www.loc.gov/item/2017849684.

Franz, Ruth D. Muster Roll of Officers and Enlisted Men of the U.S. Marine Corps. Digital Images. https://ancestryclassroom.com. 

Maryland. Baltimore City. 1920 U.S. Census. Digital Images. http://ancestryclassroom.com.

Maryland. Baltimore City. 1930 U.S. Census. Digital Images. http://ancestryclassroom.com.

Maryland. Baltimore City. 1940 U.S. Census. Digital Images. http://ancestryclassroom.com.

Maryland. Baltimore City. 1950 U.S. Census. Digital Images. http://ancestryclassroom.com.

Rasmussen, Frederick. N. “Ruth D. Hummel, Retired Bookkeeper.” The Baltimore Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], January 18, 2009. Newspapers.com (252329346).

Reckord, Milton A. Maryland’s Contribution to the War Effort. Address delivered at the Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, January 11, 1943. Congressional Record, January 18, 1943. U.S. Government Printing Office, 1943. https://collections.digitalmaryland.org/digital/collection/mdww/id/11/rec/2.

Rosener, Ann. “Holabird ordnance depot, Baltimore, Maryland.” 1943. Library of Congress (2017852766). https://www.loc.gov/item/2017852766/.

Ruth Daria Franz. Official Military Personnel File, Department of the United States Marine Corps. National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.

Siegel, Arthur S. Bethlehem-Fairfield shipyards, Baltimore, Maryland. Launching ceremony. Photograph. May 1943. Library of Congress (2017851202). https://www.loc.gov/item/2017851202/.

Siegel, Arthur S. Bethlehem-Fairfield shipyards, Baltimore, Maryland. Two girl welders. Photograph. 1943. Library of Congress (2017853262). https://www.loc.gov/item/2017853262/.

Siegel, Arthur S. Bethlehem-Fairfield shipyards, Baltimore, Maryland. A girl arc welder. Photograph. 1943. Library of Congress (2017852926).  https://www.loc.gov/item/2017852926/.

Secondary Sources

Armstrong, William. Baltimore in World War II. Arcadia Publishing, 2005.

“Baltimore County, Maryland.” National Park Service. Updated December 28, 2023. Accessed April 8, 2026. https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/baltimore-county-maryland.htm. 

Ellis, Robert. “Getting the Message Out: The Poster Boys of World War II.” Prologue Magazine 37, no. 2 (Summer 2005). National Archives and Records Administration. https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2005/summer/posters?_ga=2.243902662.236372523.1765914760-705433389.1765914760.

“Maryland Supported World War II at Home and Abroad.” Catholic Review, January 12, 2012. https://www.archbalt.org/maryland-supported-world-war-ii-at-home-and-abroad/. 

McCardell, Paul. “World War II Victory Gardens in Maryland.” The Baltimore Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], April 14, 2009. https://www.baltimoresun.com/2009/04/14/world-war-ii-victory-gardens-in-maryland/.

Minami, Captain Wayde. “Logan Field Was Home of First Maryland Flying Unit.” 175th Wing Public Affairs. Updated April 29, 2010. Accessed December 10, 2025. https://www.175wg.ang.af.mil/News/Features/Display/Article/448506/logan-field-was-home-of-first-maryland-flying-unit/. 

Race, Gender, & War: Manufacturing in Maryland During WWII. Maryland Center for History and Culture, 2022. https://www.mdhistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Fleet-Week_Teachers-Resource-Guide_6.24-1.pdf. 

“Paul F. W. Hummel.” Veterans Legacy Memorial, National Cemetery Administration. Accessed April 8, 2026. https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/PAULFWHUMMEL/776CC02. 

“Paul Frederick William Hummel.” Find a Grave. Updated February 25, 2000. Accessed October 20, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/814189/paul-frederick_william-hummel.

“Ruth D. Hummel.” Veterans Legacy Memorial, National Cemetery Administration. Accessed April 8, 2026. https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/RUTHDHUMMEL/A7B2EEB. 

“Ruth Daria Franz Hummel.” Find a Grave. Updated June 30, 2011. Accessed April 8, 2026. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/72322068/ruth_daria-hummel. 

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.