Elizebeth Smith Friedman had no intention of becoming a master code breaker when she finished college and took a job working for an eccentric tycoon at his compound near Chicago. There she met William Friedman, the man who would be her husband. She also got her first taste of working on codes when the tycoon made a deal with the government to provide help during World War I. After the war ended Elizebeth worked for the Treasury Department and Coast Guard breaking coded messages of smugglers transporting illegal alcohol during prohibition. When the Second World War began, Elizebeth worked on cracking codes used by Hitler's Reich while William worked on the "Purple" code of the Japanese. Because of her sex, she was not given the credit for much of what she accomplished and had to watch while J. Edgar Hoover claimed it was the F.B.I. that had broken the codes that allowed them to catch spies. While dedicating herself to her work, Elizebeth raised two children and cared for her husband who, because of the stress of the work, was frequently hospitalized for depression. Much has been made public about Bletchley Park but little about its American equivalent which was run by Elizebeth Friedman. This is an interesting and little known piece of history.
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