Lily H. Gridley

Lily Gridley was the first woman to be appointed a judge advocate in the U.S. Marine Corps. Born in Canada, Gridley received her law degree from Golden Gate College and practiced law in San Francisco, California, in the 1930s. She enlisted in the WAVES in 1942 and was commissioned as an officer in the Marine Corps the following year. Gridley returned to civilian life in the late 1940s but was recalled to active duty at Headquarters Marine Corps in 1949. She retired from the Marines as a lieutenant colonel in 1965.