Rosie the Riveter, one of the nation’s most recognizable feminist images, celebrates her 70th birthday this week. To celebrate this important milestone, a new website featuring news, stories, video, and collectibles featuring Rosie has been launched.

Seventy years ago today, on May 29, 1943, Norman Rockwell’s version of Rosie the Riveter was distributed to the masses. Featured on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post was a brawny woman on her lunch break, a rivet gun in her lap and Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf under her Penny loafer. Her lunch pail read “Rosie,” presumably a reference to the popular Four Vagabonds song, “Rosie the Riveter”.

Rosie’s cover turned out to be incredibly popular, so much that the publication loaned it to the U.S. Treasury Department to use in war bond drives for the remainder of World War II.

Amanda Buel, archivist at a nationally known Washington D.C. museum, believes that celebrating Rosie as a piece of Americana is instrumental in preserving and passing on her legacy.

"It’s hard to believe Rosie is turning 70," said Buel. "She has always seemed pertinent and ageless. The historian in me has always admired Rosie’s place in telling the American story, but as a woman, "the Rosie ideal" was more personal. Her determination was something I’ve always aspired to. Rosie is the embodiment of the "can do" attitude, and I'm so glad that attitude followed me throughout the course of my life—both personally and professionally."

In 1942, artist J. Howard Miller was hired by the Westinghouse Company’s War Production Coordinating Committee to create a series of posters to rally American women in support of World War II. From this, the famous “We Can Do It!” poster was born—the “other” Rosie. Miller’s image of Rosie was inspired by Geraldine Hoff Doyle, a 17-year-old metal stamping machine operator in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Although the image is well known today, the original poster was only circulated for a two-week period in February 1943 before disappearing for nearly four decades.

When Rosie reappeared in the early 1980’s, she became a powerful and mainstream symbol for feminism.

Miller’s “We Can Do It!” is popularly referred to as “Rosie the Riveter,” although the original “Rosie the Riveter” was created by Norman Rockwell. Despite this common misconception, both are powerful, unique, and highly inspirational after all of these years.

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About the Website

RosietheRiveterWeCanDoIt.com is committed to providing its readers the highest quality content about Rosie the Riveter on the web. The site is devoted to publishing news, trivia, and educational articles so that this vital piece of American history will always be remembered.

For more information about Rosie the Riveter and “We Can Do It!” please visit: http://www.rosietheriveterwecandoit.com

RosietheRiveterWeCanDoIt.com features a full line of apparel, collectibles, and other gifts for the history lover or aspiring feminist in your life. Rosie t-shirts are an especially popular way to show your pride this summer! Visit to customize your own Rosie the Riveter “We Can Do It!” t-shirt: http://rosietheriveterwecandoit.com/store/t-shirts

Rosie the Riveter "We Can Do It!" posters look great in dorm rooms, rec rooms, and offices: http://rosietheriveterwecandoit.com/store/posters