Charity Adams Earley

Charity Adams Earley
Charity Adams Earley
Birth name	Charity Edna Adams
Born	December 5, 1918; Kittrell, North Carolina, U.S.
Died	January 13, 2002 (aged 83); Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
Buried	Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum
Allegiance	United States
Branch	Women's Army Auxiliary Corps; United States Army;
Service years	1942 − 1946
Rank	Lieutenant colonel
Unit	3rd Company, 3rd Training Regiment WAAC, Fort Des Moines
Commands	6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion
Awards	Ohio Women's Hall of Fame; The Smithsonian Institution's 100 Most Important Black Women in History; South Carolina Black Hall of Fame; Service to the Community Award; Senior Citizens' Gold Watch Award; Ohio Veterans' Hall of Fame; Honorary doctorates from Wilberforce University and the University of Dayton;
Monuments	Namesake of Fort Gregg-Adams
Spouse	Stanley A. Earley (m. 1949)

Charity Adams Earley (née Adams; December 5, 1918 – January 13, 2002) was a United States Army officer. She was the first African-American woman to become an officer in the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (later WACs) and was the commanding officer of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, the only African-American and multi-ethnic US Women’s Army Corps (WAC) unit sent overseas during World War II. Adams was the highest-ranking African-American woman in the army by the completion of the war.

A monument honoring her was dedicated at Fort Lee, Virginia, on November 30, 2018. In 2023, the base was renamed Fort Gregg-Adams in honor of Earley and Lieutenant General Arthur J. Gregg, becoming the first U.S. military base to bear the names of African Americans. The base was again renamed in 2025, following Donald Trump's campaign promise to restore the base's Confederate name.

Adams is portrayed by Kerry Washington as a lead character in 2024 film The Six Triple Eight showing the experience of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion during their service in Europe.