Another Intersection of Harlem Hospital, Military Service, and Numismatics

Casabrown

As some of you may know, I am a Vietnam veteran and physician trained in internal medicine at Harlem hospital in NYC. Because of my role on the federal Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC), which advises the Treasury Secretary on US circulating and commemorative coin and medal designs, I learn of new and fascinating circumstances of the intersection of Harlem Hospital, military service, and numismatics. In this post, I will provide the short version.

Stanley Armstead Earley, born on February 12, 1919 in Wellsville, OH, was a member of the first graduating class of Paul Laurence Dunbar High School and completed his undergraduate degree at Ohio State University. When the United States entered WWII, Stanley enlisted in the U.S. Army and was trained as a French and German translator. In the European Theater and after the war, he helped German POWs reunite with their families. After his military service, he returned to Europe to attend the University of Zurich Medical School, taking all of his classes in German. He completed his residency at Harlem Hospital and returned to Dayton, Ohio to begin private practice in general medicine.

Additional military intersecting is through his wife, Major Charity Adams (prior to marriage with Dr. Earley), who was the first African American commanding officer of the first battalion of African American women to serve overseas during World War II, the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, known as the “Six Triple Eight” battalion. Adams, who was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, was the highest-ranking African-American woman in the army by the completion of the war. So where is the connection to coin collecting?

On April 18, 2023, the CCAC will convene a Public Meeting. During this meeting, the CCAC will review and discuss candidate designs for a Congressional Gold Medal to the members of the "Six Triple Eight", whose motto was "No Mail, Low Morale," reflecting the critical contributions made by the unit to increase the morale of all United States personnel stationed in the European Theater of Operations during WWII. Working in austere wartime conditions, and segregated by gender and race, Major Adams devised an efficient 24-hour mail processing system to route approximately 65,000 pieces of mail per eight-hour shift. Based on processing approximately 195,000 pieces of mail per day, the unit cleared the over-17,000,000 mail and package backlog in three months, well ahead of the Army’s six-month goal.
Thus, another connection between a husband and wife with military service, the husband’s post-military medical training at Harlem Hospital, and Congressional Gold medal commemoration of the battalion whose success was due to the wife’s military leadership. The Treasury Secretary is authorized to produce bronze replicas of the medal that are likely to include a depiction of Major Adams Earley.

For more information about this famous American, please see Charity Adams Earley - Wikipedia.

For more information about the role of the CCAC in this Congressional Gold Medal or its role in the design of US coins and medals, please contact Info@CCAC.gov.

Obviously, feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I am interested in your comments