Most people will remember Ulysses Grant, Abraham Lincoln, Stonewall Jackson, or Jefferson Davis when thinking about the American Civil War. While these are all important historical figures, many women also contributed to the fight on both sides, whether it was as nurses, spies, or even disguised soldiers. Below are ten of the most influential women in the American Civil War, and their roles during the conflict.
10. Kate Cumming
Our tenth woman in the Civil War effort was Kate Cumming, a Confederate nurse. While most nurses only served in the war temporarily, Cumming was one of the few that remained a nurse through the duration of the war, spurred on by her strong sense of patriotism. As the medical effort became more organized, Cumming traveled with the mobile hospitals of Dr. Samuel Stout, later becoming the head of food and housekeeping in several Georgia hospitals.
9. Loreta Velázquez
Women appeared in battle in the Civil War but had to disguise their true sex. One of these soldiers was Loreta Velázquez, who wrote a book about her experiences masquerading as a male Confederate soldier. After her husband’s death, she enrolled, fighting in several battles including Bull Run, Fort Donelson, and Shiloh, but was discovered twice. Later she delved into the world of spies, hiding beneath male and female disguises to get information for the Confederates.
8. Sarah Edmonds
Our eighth woman in the Civil War fought on the Union side. Sarah Edmonds claimed to have served as a man with the Union Army as a nurse and spy during the war. She was later recognized for her service by the United States government, though some historians doubt the validity of her claims as some of the details are uncorroborated.
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7. Elizabeth VanLew
Elizabeth Van Lew may have started caring for Union wounded soldiers with her mother, but she quickly became a mastermind in both spying and aiding Union prisoners to escape. When Libby Prison was opened in Richmond, Van Lew brought supplies to the Union soldiers trapped there, including ways to escape the prison. Later she created a spy ring which included African American members, and became official agents for the Union.
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6. Maria Isabella Boyd
Maria Isabella Boyd, commonly known as Belle Boyd, and receiving other names such as the Cleopatra of the Secession, Siren of the Shenandoah, and the Confederate Mata Hari, was a Confederate spy in the war. Boyd operated out of her father’s hotel in Front Royal, providing valuable information to Confederate General Stonewall Jackson in 1862.
5. Sarah Rosetta Wakeman
Diving back into the world of soldiers is our fifth selection Sarah Rosetta Wakeman, who served in the Union Army during the war under the male name Lyons Wakeman. She served with Company H, 153rd New York Volunteer Infantry, noting her experiences in unread letters for nearly a century because they were stored in a relative’s attic.
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4. Rose O’Neal Greenhow
One of the more impactful Confederate spies in the Civil War was Rose O’Neal Greenhow, due to her placement as a socialite in Washington D.C. She cultivated friendships and connections with presidents, generals, senators, and military officers to pass along key information to the Confederacy at the start of the war. She was even credited by Jefferson Davis, the Confederate president, for ensuring the South’s victory at the First Battle of Bull Run in July 1861.
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3. Dorothea Dix
Our last three women in the American Civil War are some of the most memorable, like Dorothea Dix. An American advocate for the indigent mentally ill, Dix went through a vigorous process of lobbying state legislatures and the U.S. Congress to create the first generation of American mental asylums. Along with this groundbreaking work, Dix served as a Superintendent of Army Nurses and helped improve hospital situations.
2. Harriet Tubman
You may remember our second woman from history textbooks. Harriet Tubman was an American abolitionist and social activist who saved 70 enslaved people after escaping slavery herself. Tubman used the Underground Railroad network to save her family and friends, alongside hundreds of other antislavery activists. Tubman served as an armed scout and spy for the Union Army during the Civil War.
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1. Clara Barton
Not only was Clara Barton one of the most influential women in the American Civil War, but she also is one of the most important women in American history. Barton served as a hospital nurse during the war, providing self-taught nursing care due to the lack of formal nursing education. She is most known for her humanitarian work and civil rights advocacy, later introducing the American Red Cross which is still prevalent today.
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