Hidden Figures Chapters 1-8 Summaries

President Roosevelt urges the aircraft industry to boost production in anticipation of potential war.
NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics) provides governmental support and oversight.
Langley Field in Virginia houses the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory, which is rapidly expanding.
Human mathematicians, referred to as "computers," are employed to support engineers, with women filling these roles due to lower pay.
Segregated workspaces are established for Black workers by Butler, due to racial policies.

Dorothy Vaughn, a mother of four, earns more working in a camp laundry than as a high school math teacher.
A gifted student, she graduated valedictorian and studied math in college before teaching to support her family during the Great Depression.
In 1943, she applies for a job at Langley after seeing an advertisement seeking women with math skills.

Dorothy returns to teaching in Farmville but receives a job offer from Langley to work through the war.
Accepting the position in November, she faces lengthy separations from her family due to distance.
Dorothy's husband, Howard, works at luxury hotels, often traveling for seasonal jobs, leaving their children in the care of relatives.

The area around Langley has transformed from farmland to a hub for war industries with prefabricated housing for civilians.
Dorothy rents a room in Newsome Park, a development for Black workers.
Black Americans express frustration over poor living conditions, advocating for equality with the Double V campaign for victory against oppression at home and abroad.

Melvin Butler establishes a workspace for Black women in Langley's West Area, utilizing graduates from the Hampton Institute.
Malcolm MacLean promotes racial equality among his students, hosting racially mixed events that draw criticism.
Despite segregationist policies, White engineers generally maintain cordial working relationships with Black computers.
Miriam Mann takes initiative to remove segregation signs at lunchtime, challenging racial boundaries in the workplace.

The Tuskegee Airmen, noted for their bravery, gain recognition in 1944, with their P-51 Mustang praised for performance.
Employees at Langley keep the details of their work confidential from the public.
Langley's aircraft tests involve both free air flight tests and wind tunnel testing, contributing to new designs for military aircraft.
Dorothy and her peers study engineering physics and aerodynamics to aid in aircraft production, directly influencing the war effort.

In summer 1944, Dorothy leases an apartment in Newsome Park to reunite with her children, increasing family emotional distance from Howard.
The end of World War II in August 1945 brings celebration but also uncertainty about job security for women and minorities as industries shift back to peacetime.
Dorothy is determined to make Newport News their home despite the risks associated with her lease commitment.

Katherine Coleman hails from a less tense racial climate in White Sulphur Springs, where her father worked at the Greenbrier resort.
Demonstrating exceptional academic talent, Katherine skips from second to fifth grade and attends college at fifteen.
After graduating West Virginia State College, she teaches in Marion, where she marries Jimmy Goble discreetly due to employment norms against hiring married women.
Katherine is offered a chance to integrate West Virginia University for graduate studies, but leaves when she becomes pregnant, later returning to teaching in 1944.