Female Soldiers in the American Revolution

 In January of this year the United States Department of Defense began a six-month review on the “effectiveness” of women being in ground combat positions in the U.S. military. While this may be a heavily politicized issue today, women have been fighting on the front lines for America for over 250 years.  Numerous women served in direct combat positions during the Revolutionary War.  Some disguised themselves as men to get into the Continental Army, while others fought alongside their husbands in their dresses and caps. These women were revolutionary in their commitment to their country and their defiance of gender norms to do what they thought was right.

In elementary school many of us heard the story of “Molly Pitcher,” the fearless woman who brought water to soldiers during battle.  While countless women served in this capacity, it is likely that the real “Molly Pitcher” is an amalgam of two women, Mary Ludwig Hayes and Margaret Corbin.

Mary Ludwig Hayes was born in New Jersey in 1754.  She likely had a modest upbringing with little to no formal education. She married barber and staunch patriot John Hayes around 1770. John soon enlisted in the 4th Pennsylvania Artillery and served in the Continental Army.

 Like other soldiers’ wives, Mary followed her husband on campaign, typically performing tasks like washing clothes and sheets. This is likely where the name “Molly Pitcher” originated, as “Molly” was a common nickname for women named Mary, and “Pitcher” referred to the buckets of water the women would carry for cleaning.

One historic source states that, “Mary was described by the men in her company as a twenty-two-year-old illiterate pregnant woman who smoked and chewed tobacco and swore as well as any of the male soldiers.”  In short, Mary was no wallflower.

On June 28, 1778, the 4^th Pennsylvania Artillery was engaged in the Battle of Monmouth. The temperature that day reached close to 100 degrees, with many of the soldiers passing out from heat stroke.  Mary tirelessly carried water to them on the battlefield, hoping the hydration would help them continue to fight.  However, when her husband was debilitated by either heat or injury as he operated a cannon, Mary put down the water and took his place.

Soldier and diarist Joseph Plumb Martin who was at the battle wrote,

 “a cannon shot from the enemy passed directly between her legs without doing any other damage than carrying away all the lower part of her petticoat. Looking at it with apparent unconcern, she observed that it was lucky it did not pass a little higher, for in that case it might have carried away something else, and continued her occupation."

John died in 1786. Many years later, Mary applied for a pension as a soldier’s widow. The State of Pennsylvania instead approved a sum of $40 annually to Mary “for services rendered,” an apparent recognition of her contributions to the war.

Margaret Corbin was born on November 12, 1751, to immigrant parents in western Pennsylvania. The area was rural and dangerous, and before Margaret turned five her parents sent their children to live with their uncle for safety. She never saw them again.

At the age of 21, Margaret married John Corbin.  Three years later, in 1775, John joined the Pennsylvania militia.  Margaret originally served as a camp follower, earning money cooking and doing laundry for soldiers. She also helped take care of the sick and wounded.

On November 16, 1776, over 8,000 Hessians descended on northern Manhattan and attacked Fort Washington, where John Corbin’s unit was stationed. John was in charge of firing a small cannon at the top of the ridge, but when he was killed in battle it looked as though his cannon would be left unmanned. Margaret, dressed as a soldier, had been aiding him the whole time. She instantly took over operating the cannon and continued to fight until she too was hit by enemy fire, which nearly severed her left arm and severely wounded her jaw and left breast. The British eventually won the battle, with Margaret numbered among the prisoners of war who were paroled and released back to the care of Revolutionary hospitals.

Margaret struggled for the rest of her life.  Her wounds were debilitating, and she lost complete use of her left arm. She also had no money and relied on the charity of others to survive. In 1779 officers from her regiment successfully petitioned the Continental Congress on her behalf. It was resolved that she receive compensation for her service, making her the first woman to be awarded a lifelong pension from the United States for her military service. Her compensation was half of what male soldiers received.

Margaret died in 1800 at the age of 48 and is buried at an unknown location in Orange County, NY.  A monument in her honor was erected at West Point in 1926.  It is currently the only monument to a female veteran at the site.

Another revolutionary heroine of note is Deborah Sampson. She is the only woman, other than Margaret Corbin, to receive a pension for military service during the Revolution.

Deborah was born in Massachusetts in 1760. She spent most of her childhood working as an indentured servant due to her family’s extreme poverty.  At eighteen, she worked as a teacher and itinerant weaver.

In 1782 Deborah joined a military unit in Massachusetts under the name Timothy Thayer. However, when it was time to meet her unit she failed to show up. Inquiries by the company commander revealed that Sampson had been recognized by a local resident at the time she signed her enlistment papers. Corporal Abner Weston wrote in his diary about the incident on January 23, 1782.  In the entry he described the “uncommon affair” of fellow Middleborough, Massachusetts resident Deborah Sampson attempting to disguise herself as a man in order to join the army.  This is the earliest surviving account of Deborah’s enlistment.

In May of that year, she tried to enlist again.  This time she was successful.  Enlisting under the name Robert Shirtliff, Deborah was assigned to the Light Infantry Company of the 4th Massachusetts Regiment.

Deborah’s appearance is often brought up when discussing how she could have posed as a man for a year and a half in the Continental Army. Deborah was said to have been approximately 5’8” in height; light infantry troops had to be at least 5’5”.  Her face was described as “regular” and her skin “naturally clear.”  She bound her breasts and tried to minimize her feminine features. Biographer Herman Mann wrote, “ Her aspect is rather masculine and serene, then effeminate and silly jocose. Ladies of taste considered them handsome, when in the masculine garb.”

Deborah spent most of her time in the army in the Neutral Ground of Westchester County. This area was unstable, unoccupied by either military force. In June or July 1782, she was participating in combat near Tarrytown, New York with about 30 infantrymen from her unit. Deborah was shot in her thigh and sustained a sword cut to her forehead. She refused to be seen by a doctor for her leg wound, and removed much of the ball herself with a penknife and sewing needle.  Some of the ball would remain in her leg for the rest of her life.

Deborah was reassigned and spent several months in Philadelphia. She became ill in June of 1783 and eventually passed out from a high fever. In order to treat her the doctor removed her clothes, and it was only then that her identity as a woman was discovered. Upon discovering this Dr. Barnabas Binney had Deborah moved to his house where his wife and daughters cared for her.  She stayed with them until September when she was sent to her commander with a letter from Dr. Binney.

As expected, the letter she delivered to General Paterson did reveal her sex.  However, Paterson did not reprimand her.  He provided her with a discharge note and enough money to return to New York. Deborah was honorably discharged at West Point on October 25, 1783.

After the war Deborah married and had children. Her family struggled economically.  In 1802 she began doing speaking engagements that involved military drills and maneuvers  as a way to earn money to support her family. She also wanted to show that a woman was capable of doing the same drills as men.  Despite the success of her performances, she still had to borrow money often from extended family and from friend Paul Revere. In 1804, Revere wrote to a member of Congress requesting that Deborah be awarded the pension she deserved as a soldier. Congress approved the request and placed Sampson on the Massachusetts Invalid Pension Roll at the rate of four dollars a month. Deborah died in 1827.

Four years after Deborah’s death, her husband Benjamin Gannett petitioned Congress for a pension as the spouse of a veteran. In 1837, the committee overseeing his petition decreed that the history of the Revolution "furnished no other example of female heroism, fidelity and courage." While he was awarded the pension, Gannett died before he could receive it.

 Though unable to officially join the Army until after World War II, women have played a key role in every war the United States has fought. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of women served in the Revolution not only as ammunition wives, manning and firing the guns, but also in the army and colonial militia.  Many of their names have been lost to history, but their contributions have not.  These remarkable women reached beyond the domestic sphere to which they had been relegated and did what they thought was right and patriotic.