Rosie The Riveter Honored with the Conversion of Willow Run Plant Into Aviation Museum: A Tribute to Real Icon of Empowered Women

It’s a night for ghouls and goblins, but for some, a time to show their Michigan pride. Earlier this week, we shared some ideas for Michigan-themed Halloween costumes and asked for any photos of costumes you've worn. We have received some submissions of Michigan costumes, including Rosie the Riveter and one boy who dressed up as “Pure Michigan.” See their photos in the gallery above.

Maybe, a lot of women today do not know much about Rosie the Riveter. She is the iconic American woman during the 1940s who, together with 40,000 women, toiled day and night in Willow Run Plant in Georgia, Michigan to manufacture the B-24 Liberator bombs used during Second World War. She will be honored for posterity with a part of the original Willow Run plant converted into an aviation museum. This was made possible when Ray Hunter, Board Chairman of the Yankee Air Museum decided to relocate the aviation museum by getting a fraction of the 332-acre Ford Motor Company facility, that is, 144,000sq ft. to house the museum He signed the ownership papers Thursday, October 23, which also signals the beginning of an intense fundraising campaign to raise $8 million to gain full rights to the space.

In spearheading the Save the Willow Run Bomber Plant campaign where the many women of Rosie the Riveter character worked, Ray Hunter, along with fundraising consultant Michael Montgomery and associates said, "The building is truly saved.We're very proud that we played a part in preserving" the plant, which "contributed so much to our victory in World War II," Hunter added. Dedicating the efforts to all the Rosie the Riveter will also save the memories and genuine meaning of what female empowerment is about. This is timely to correct the modern-day notion of women empowerment as baring one's nipples or breast to the public.

The name Rosie came from Rose Will Monroe, one of the women who fabricated the bombs for World War II. Her name became a symbol of courage and hardwork, when she acted herself in the film produced by the American government after the war to show their efforts and contribution during the period. An article by The Guardian said the Willow Run factory was able to produce one B-24 explosive every hour, producing about 9,000 bombs total. The factory was built by Ford Motors and featured a mile-long assembly line. After the war, it shifted to car and car parts manufacturing for about 50 years under the General Motors name.