Did married women serve in TOS era Starfleet?

[tafkats]

Which century? In the 24th, we've got Picard/Crusher, Riker/Troi, and Paris/Torres. In the 23rd, there's Robert and Sarah April, but I can't recall if the books that use them depict them as being married while they served together.

Also Geordi's parents ... though, again, 24th century. And the Crushers would presumably have been a Starfleet couple if Jack had lived.

As far as the 23rd-century Novelverse goes, the Lost Years books show failed or failing marriages between Kirk and Vice Admiral Lori Ciana, and Kevin Riley and a security officer named Anab Saed.

 

[Shawnster]

At the moment, the only married officer of either gender I can think of is Ben Finney.

It's never stated onscreen that Finney is married. And, given his sorry state in this episode, it seems unlikely that he is. (Jamie's mother is never mentioned or referred to at all, IIRC.)

Hm ... Jame's mother is referred to, and in that mention Jame says that Ben wrote letters to "Mother and me," but you're right, it's never specified that he's married to her.

But given that we're talking about a show made in the 60s by writers with 60s era morals, the intent probably was for Finney to be married prior to Jamie's birth. Jamie was named after Jim Kirk and Kirk and Finney served together in Starfleet prior to Jamie's birth.

I had the impression Jamie's mother had died prior to the episode, since Jamie shows up but her mother doesn't.

 

[Melakon]

For what it's worth, the book The Making of Star Trek has the following comment:

"Birth control would be mandatory for unmarried females, voluntary for married females. In keeping with the advanced state of the medical arts, as practiced aboard the Enterprise, a single monthly injection would be administered. A woman found to be pregnant would be given her choice of a medical discharge or rotation to a shore base for the remainder of her pregnancy."

So evidently it was contemplated that married females could be serving on starships, could become pregnant, and could be transferred to a shore base for the duration of their pregnancy.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Starfleet males don't seem to be subject to compulsory birth control, so they seem free to make as many half-breed humans as they like.

I think that line in "Adonais" is just a stray 1960s artifact that's best forgotten and quietly slipped under the rug . . . .

Oh, no doubt, and this was neither the first nor only time 1960s sexism was injected into TOS. The line in "The Cage" about Pike not being used to having a woman on the bridge comes to mind.

Another oddity in "The Cage" is the Talosians seem to suggest Pike can choose either Vina, Number One, or Colt to be the mother of a slave race. Why wouldn't they think to let him mate with all three?

 

[Ssosmcin]

In "Balance of Terror," there's a line from Tomlinson that can suggest that someone is leaving. Maybe both are...

ANGELA: You won't get off my hook this easily. I'm going to marry you, Mister, battle or phaser weapons notwithstanding.
ROBERT: Well, meanwhile, temporarily at least, I am still your superior officer. So get with it, Mister.

Or it's a sly joke that she'll be the boss as soon as he puts a ring on it.

 

[Shawnster]

In "Balance of Terror," there's a line from Tomlinson that can suggest that someone is leaving. Maybe both are...

ANGELA: You won't get off my hook this easily. I'm going to marry you, Mister, battle or phaser weapons notwithstanding.
ROBERT: Well, meanwhile, temporarily at least, I am still your superior officer. So get with it, Mister.

Or it's a sly joke that she'll be the boss as soon as he puts a ring on it.

Wasn't there another topic somewhere discussing the whole calling women "mister?"

 

[Melakon]

Or it's a sly joke that she'll be the boss as soon as he puts a ring on it.

I've always read it that way.

 

[GNDN18]

The only alternative would be chastity, and enforcing that would be a hell of a lot more fascist.

"My oath of celibacy is on record."

Well, not my oath. I mean…. Oh, never mind.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Or it's a sly joke that she'll be the boss as soon as he puts a ring on it.

I've always read it that way.

Me too.

They may have been able to remain on the ship, but just not in the same department.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I would say that the "Balance of Terror" example answers the OP question positively. There was no talk whatsoever of either Martine or Tomlinson leaving the ship, and they were both in uniform for the wedding ceremony that was about to occur in the teaser. I think we can safely assume that they were both going to continue to serve aboard the ship after they were married.

And this meshes perfectly with the passage from TMoST that GSchnitzer quoted upthread.

 

[Avro Arrow]

They may have been able to remain on the ship, but just not in the same department.

This makes sense to me. The last two companies I've worked for have had rules preventing a person reporting to their spouse (or other close relation), so it wouldn't surprise me for Starfleet to have similar regulations.

 

[Greg Cox]

Even in "Adonais," nothing in the dialogue implies that there's any sort of official Starfleet policy involving married crew members. And I sorely doubt that any such reading was intended. Again, Kirk and Co. are just assuming that she'll quit to become a full-time homemaker once she's married, which is how the average 1960's viewer would have interpreted that dialogue. For better or for worse, it wouldn't have even raised an eyebrow when the episode first aired.

Any confusion arises from our attempts to somehow rationalize a common 1960s attitude from the viewpoint of 2015 . . . .

 

[uniderth]

Another oddity in "The Cage" is the Talosians seem to suggest Pike can choose either Vina, Number One, or Colt to be the mother of a slave race. Why wouldn't they think to let him mate with all three?

Every time I watch that episode that's my choice. Maybe beam a few more women down from the ship.

 

[Christopher]

Maybe the Talosians' scans of Pike's mind indicated that he was monogamous by nature, and their scans of the ship's data banks suggested that was normal for the human culture to which their captives belonged. As responsible zookeepers, they wanted to allow their specimens to behave in the way that was most comfortable for them.

 

[Mytran]

Maybe it was a well known fact on board ship that Palamis was only biding her time in the Star Service until she could find the right man.
Who knows, she may have come from a very very traditional family background!!!

 

[Timo]

Families weren't permitted on Starfleet ships at the time

Dunno about that. Pike's ship had those two kids in civilian clothing, oblivious to the commanding officer. Basically, they could have been young enough to be the offspring of some onboard personnel. Or then random civilians. Or then crew on shipboard leave, but the fact that they so totally ignore Pike is rather odd.

It didn't look as if Kirk's ship was critically short on personnel space, or as if all of Kirk's crew were critically needed workers. But considering how there seemed to be a bit of trouble accommodating 114 diplomats in "Journey to Babel", or even one in "Elaan of Troyius", Starfleet probably has strong disincentives against the bringing along of "idle" spouses or offspring or parents or cousins or whatnot...

Yet accidents no doubt happen, and the crew was supposed to be out there for five years. Or was it?

Timo Saloniemi

 

[FormerLurker]

^I have always interpreted those two in mufti to be off-duty personnel who changed out of their uniforms for their little tryst. Probably going to the rec deck to bask under a sunlamp.

 

[Greg Cox]

^I have always interpreted those two in mufti to be off-duty personnel who changed out of their uniforms for their little tryst. Probably going to the rec deck to bask under a sunlamp.

That's what I thought, too.

 

[Jedi_Master]

I never thought it was a matter of Starfleet policy. Just an old-fashioned attitude that crept into the script for "Adonais."

One cringes today, but back in 1960s it was more or less expected that women would quit work once they settled down and got married.

Oh for sure, I just was curious if there were any examples that proved Starfleet of that era did not conform to what is now considered an anachronism.

For what it's worth, the book The Making of Star Trek has the following comment:

"Birth control would be mandatory for unmarried females, voluntary for married females. In keeping with the advanced state of the medical arts, as practiced aboard the Enterprise, a single monthly injection would be administered. A woman found to be pregnant would be given her choice of a medical discharge or rotation to a shore base for the remainder of her pregnancy."

So evidently it was contemplated that married females could be serving on starships, could become pregnant, and could be transferred to a shore base for the duration of their pregnancy.

Very interesting, and considering the considerable risks of being on a starship, a worthy idea.

I would say that the "Balance of Terror" example answers the OP question positively. There was no talk whatsoever of either Martine or Tomlinson leaving the ship, and they were both in uniform for the wedding ceremony that was about to occur in the teaser. I think we can safely assume that they were both going to continue to serve aboard the ship after they were married.

And this meshes perfectly with the passage from TMoST that GSchnitzer quoted upthread.

I agree.

Even in "Adonais," nothing in the dialogue implies that there's any sort of official Starfleet policy involving married crew members. And I sorely doubt that any such reading was intended. Again, Kirk and Co. are just assuming that she'll quit to become a full-time homemaker once she's married, which is how the average 1960's viewer would have interpreted that dialogue. For better or for worse, it wouldn't have even raised an eyebrow when the episode first aired.

Any confusion arises from our attempts to somehow rationalize a common 1960s attitude from the viewpoint of 2015 . . . .

I watch lots of 60's era movies, and that is the common understanding. The attractive smart lady with the good career will gladly give that up to raise the children that are always conceived very quickly.

 

[Lance]

I never thought it was a matter of Starfleet policy. Just an old-fashioned attitude that crept into the script for "Adonais."

One cringes today, but back in 1960s it was more or less expected that women would quit work once they settled down and got married.

To be fair, it's only the "leave the service" bit which pins it down as old-fashioned. If the interpretation were to instead be that Kirk was thinking that somebody who marries will want to start a family, and to facilitate that he/she would need to take a job away from a starship (because starships of this era do not carry families on board), then the entire premise could still stand up to scrutiny.

But yeah, the line about leaving the service does sound slightly off. Realistically she shouldn't need to leave 'the service' (Starfleet) as a whole, she'd simply be taking another assignment.

 

[Christopher]

I watch lots of 60's era movies, and that is the common understanding. The attractive smart lady with the good career will gladly give that up to raise the children that are always conceived very quickly.

Yes -- and usually it was assumed that women were only using their careers as a means toward the end of meeting/attracting prospective husbands. E.g. you became a nurse in hopes of snagging a doctor as a husband, became a secretary to snag an executive, etc.