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These authors, one a Civil War re-enactor and the other a
military archivist, spent ten years researching National Archives
records and found documentation to verify that over 250 women
fought in the Civil War. Some
were wives and mothers, some not; some were discovered, some
not; and some even applied for and received pensions for their
service. But most
were never recognized for their service, until now.
It is hard to believe, at first. Why
would women enlist? How
did they keep from being discovered? What
kind of soldiers were they? Why
didn't we know about this before? This
book tells it like it was.
The authors' first revelation is that women fought for the
same reasons men did--because they were patriotic or because
they wanted to be with their brothers, fathers, or husbands. Some
joined the army for the money. At
a time when a housemaid earned 50 cents per week, the $11 per
month private pay was a way out of poverty and dependency. Some women enlisted to get away from a poor home life or the
hard physical labor of family farming. More
than one young woman gladly exchanged the prospect of life-long
drudgery for the risk of being shot at.
They weren't immediately discovered for many reasons. On
enlisting, physical exams were required but usually consisted
of a hearty handshake and a check to ensure the enlistee had
enough teeth to tear a cartridge box. Young
women's sizes and voices were comparable to the teenage boys
serving in the ranks. So unless they were wounded or gave birth (as sometimes happened)
many weren't discovered at all, which is another reason it
will not be possible to know how many women actually fought
in the Civil War.
This was the Victorian age, and people did not customarily
undress, even for bed. Baths
were an infrequent occurrence. And,
it wasn't unusual for a soldier to seek more privacy and cleanliness
in the woods instead of using the communal "sinks" in camp. The
ill-fitting "shoddy" uniforms enabled women to hide their shapes,
as well as pregnancies until they delivered. This
is documented many times, notably in a reprimand from General
Rosecrans to a subordinate who allowed his orderly sergeant
to have a baby "in violation of all military law and army regulations."
A soldier who suspected his comrade tossed her an apple that
she tried to catch with her apron-but of course, the female
soldier wasn't wearing one. Some
were suspected because of how they put on their shoes or the
way they laughed. Once
found, the women were discharged for "congenital peculiarities" or "the
unmistakable evidence of being a woman." But
most were undiscovered for the duration of the war.
What is most surprising is why this hasn't been taught in
modern history books. Stories
of women soldiers had long been part of military lore. Pulp
fiction of the era was filled with titles like Justina
the Avenger, The
Lady Lieutenant and, Minnie
Ball, Vivandiere at Bull Run. In
each of these novels, women fought bravely, won the man of
their dreams, and went home to be the wives and mothers they
really wanted to be in the first place. (To
repeat, this was popular fiction.) So
why didn't we learn about this in school? Based on contemporary sources, it seems every town newspaper
had articles about a local lady who enlisted or returned from
the war. Some
women published memoirs detailing their experiences. Letters
show that several women even met with hometown friends in other
camps, but continued to serve as soldiers even though their
sex was known.
The fact there were women soldiers was part of the national
consciousness it seems, until the Freudian age, when anyone
acting in other than customary sexual roles was deemed abnormal
or depraved. With
few exceptions these women's stories were minimized and eventually
forgotten, until now. This
book shows that female soldiers did not faint at the sight
of blood and they did not swoon in the heat. They
endured the same physical hardships as their comrades; they
didn't cry when they were tired; and, they fought bravely,
and were even promoted. Many
died in battle and from disease. "They
fought like demons," just like the men did, even if they tried
to catch apples with their aprons.
For the first time this book makes the stories of these women
soldiers credible by explaining how the truth fell from our
national memory. Now
that we know that normal, average Victorian women served, don't
be surprised to see the limited edition Civil
War Barbie in stores in time for next Christmas.
They Fought Like Demons, Women Soldiers in
the American Civil War, by DeAnne
Blanton and Lauren M. Cook, Louisiana State University Press,
Baton Rouge, 2002.
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