Grace Brown was born in November 1921 in a farm in Texas. Growing up on a farm was tough, but she enjoyed it. She liked to play with her brother. The farm grew 120 acres of cotton. When she was six, her and her younger brother began picking the cotton. Her brother hit her with a rock, scaring her head. She had older brothers as well. Brown's chores were watering the garden and harvesting food. There was a well outside of the home that provided water for the house. Brown slept in a room with her sister, some of her brothers slept in an enclosed porch and another slept in the living room. The Great Depression was bad, but there was always food to eat. Her mother made clothes out of flour and feed sacks. People received a dish when they bought a box of oatmeal. She attended school in a small schoolhouse three miles from her home. Sometimes she got a ride to school from a neighbor, but she also had to walk there. All the kids at the school were from other farms. Brown wanted to attend college, but the family could not afford it. While in high school, she stayed at her sister's house. High school was difficult for her because she had to work in the school's cafeteria so she could eat. Brown had a few close friends in school. After high school, she moved to Austin, Texas to work at a department store. People told her she could be a model, which is why she wanted to work at a department store. She did not like working there because she did not want to be a sales person. After working as a waitress, she started working at the University of Texas serving tea, making food, and other odd jobs. She lived in a one bedroom apartment owned by an older lady. She told herself life would get better.

Grace Brown was at her sister's home when she heard about the attack on Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on 7 December 1941]. She heard about it over the radio. She heard President Roosevelt [Annotator's Note: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States] discuss the attack and declare war. Her father got upset and cried over his son's going to war. She did not believe in war, so she was not happy. Everything changed after war was declared. The Naval Academy took over the tea room, and Brown lost her job. She worked for a bank for a brief time, but decided she wanted to work in the war effort. She had three brothers in the service. The National Youth Association [Annotator's Note: National Youth Administration] offered training for various jobs, so she decided to become a machinist. She wanted to stay close to home, so she did not join any of the women's military services. Brown enjoyed math and building things, which is why she chose to become a machinist. She took her classes in Wako [Annotator's Note: Wako, Texas]. She thought it was similar to being in the military. She wore a uniform, exercised every morning, and slept in a barracks. Brown enjoyed what she was doing. She would go out on weekends to meet guys or hang out with friends. She liked the training she went through. The shop manager asked her to tidy up the shop. Brown did not do well on the written exam, but passed because she could do the actual work.

After finishing school, Grace Brown was told she had a job at Consolidated [Annotator's Note: Consolidated Aircraft Corporation] in Fort Worth, Texas. All of the living quarters were ready for the workers when they arrived. She wore a blue uniform. Brown had her own bedroom and bathroom. She worked an eight hour day, getting off work at five in the evening. She was given a break for dinner and lunch. As a machinist, she made engine parts for B-17s [Annotator's Note: Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomber]. She had to be very precise when making her parts. Brown liked her supervisors. She became friends with one supervisor and his wife. The male supervisors treated the women decently. Brown felt good about the role she played in the war. All of her brothers served in the Air Force, but none of them were pilots. One served as a tail gunner in a bomber in the Philippines. Another transferred POWs [Annotator's Note: prisoners of war] across the United States. She wrote all of her brothers letters. Having all of their children spread out was difficult on Brown's parents. Her father had to quit farming because he had no help. Brown spent many weekends with her parents. They did not discuss her work. Her father did not like her doing a man's job, but eventually he changed his mind. Her mother was fine with her working. Brown was photographed by a local newspaper and was put in the news. She did not know the picture was taken, but it did not bother her. The women did not talk about the pictures. Brown's parents got a copy of the paper. She was proud to be in the newspaper.

Grace Brown and some friends liked to go out after work. They would meet up with the different soldiers that came into town. Brown enjoyed going to the summer musicals that played in Dallas [Annotator's Note: Dallas, Texas]. She met a glider pilot and would go dancing with him. The pilot died in an airplane accident. His death was sad for Brown. The women she worked with did not talk about the deaths of people they knew. Brown worked as a machinist for two years. After the Japanese surrendered, the women were sent home. The company shut down the factory because it could not make parts for bigger airplanes. Brown was happy about the surrender. She went home and started working at a bank. She did not mind losing her job as a machinist. She took extra training, and started operating a screw machine. Brown attended engineering school to design parts for the screw machine. She did not want to continue doing machinist work. A union contacted Brown and asked her to join the union, but she decided not to join. She was asked to strike, but she did not do it.

Grace Brown thought the war would end and she would go back to her normal life. She did not think her life changed much during the war. Once the war ended, she started doing more traditionally women's work. She was happy to go back to her old life. Brown's most memorable moment during the war was the end. Brown did not get to celebrate the end of the war, she just went home to her family. She believes she tried during the war. She married a soldier after the war. She moved to Washington state with him, but they moved back to Texas. She worked as a bank teller. Brown thinks the country is happy it won the war. She believes The National WWII Museum [Annotator's Note: in New Orleans, Louisiana] is important and thinks it is important for future generations not to forget about the war. Everyone worked or did something to end the war.