Re: Women Warriors

Date: March 21, 2004

"Hannah Duston, Molly Pitcher start America's long list
Women in the military

Majorie Stinson (1896-1975) was the ninth woman in the United States to earn her pilot's license. With her brothers (one was the famous test pilot/designer Eddie Stinson, founder of Stinson Aviation Co.) and a sister, Katherine (the fourth woman to earn a pilot's license) she ran the Stinson Airfield in San Antonio, Texas. During WWI the business was expanded to include a flight school where Stinson became the first woman inducted into the U. S. Aviation Reserve Corps, training American and Canadian pilots. During this period she earned her famous nickname, "the Flying Schoolmarm." After the war, she was a barnstormer, airmail pilot, and became a draftsman with the Aeronautical Division of the Navy.

Today women are clearly visible in the military, serving side by side in some capacity with men in Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea, Haiti, and virtually anywhere you find our troops deployed. What most people don't know is the long history of women in the military since most documentation covers only the role of men in combat. Since women were not officially included in the military, their roles were often un-credited, un-documented, or downplayed. In this, the first of a two-part article, we will explore the contributions made by women throughout the history of American conflicts.

One of the earliest mentions of a woman in war in North America is the story of Hannah Duston who, after being taken captive by a band of Indians in 1697 and enduring a 100-mile march, avenged the death of her newborn baby by seizing a hatchet and killing nine of her captors. Carrying their nine scalps, she then returned to her home near Haverhill, New Hampshire, where, nearly two centuries later, she was ultimately honored by two monuments, becoming the first Colonial woman to be so honored.

Women are known to have served in the Revolutionary War as couriers, nurses, cannon firers, bullet molders, as well as in other roles. Since most battles were local, small-scale skirmishes, women didn't have to officially join the Army. They literally were defending themselves and their families. One of the most widely known stories is that of Mary Ludwig Hays McCauley of Carlisle, Pa., who followed her husband onto the battlefield. She is better known under her legendary nickname, Molly Pitcher, supposedly derived from her habit of bringing pitchers of water to injured and exhausted soldiers. During the battle of Monmouth Courthouse, N.J., in June 1778, Mary's husband collapsed from the heat and "Molly Pitcher" took his place and fought the rest of the battle. History records that a "Molly McKolly" of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was awarded a pension in 1822. Historians have speculated for years that "McColly" was really McCauley, the "Molly Pitcher" of legend. Others argue that "Molly McKolly" was really Margaret Cochran Corbin, who was wounded and disabled in 1776. Either way, the fact is that women were on the battlefield with the Continental Army.

Skipping ahead to the Civil War Years, 1861 - 1865, the roles of women are better documented. Clearly the most well known woman who was involved with the military was Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross. Barton single-handedly organized supply depots to minister to the suffering at the front caused by a lack of supplies.

Many other women started out as "camp-followers," following husbands, fathers, or brothers to war. They became unpaid volunteers who were expected to follow military orders and were punished for not doing so. Women soon were serving as saboteurs, scouts, smugglers and couriers. The most famous female spy was Isabelle "Belle" Boyd who spied for the Confederacy. After risking her life numerous times, Boyd was caught and imprisoned for 17 months.

Several stories document women from the North and the South who donned male clothing and went to battle as men. Loreta Janeta Velasquez bought a Confederate uniform, glued on a mustache and beard, and led a troop of soldiers through several battles. When injuries sustained in battled revealed her gender, she was forced to give up her position. However, she later enlisted in the infantry as a man and eventually secured a commission in the cavalry. After again being wounded, she left the army and headed west to look for gold.

Undoubtedly the most important contribution made by women in the Civil War was medical care. More than 10,000 women served as nurses. In large part Dorothea Dix is credited for the resulting improvements in patient care. Dix, as superintendent of Women Nurses, recruited and trained more than 6,000 Union nurses. Dr. Mary Edwards Walker also stands out as a unique individual. An activist who insisted on wearing pants because they were more adaptable to her work, Walker urged all women to wear more comfortable clothing.

Walker was unable to join the Union Army as a doctor because females were not accepted in the service, so she joined as a nurse and served for three years. In 1864 she was commissioned as a lieutenant and appointed assistant surgeon of the Medical Corps, becoming the first female doctor in the Army. Walker was captured and held prisoner of war by the Confederate Army for four months. In 1866 she received the Medal of Honor. However, in 1917 the Army decided noncombatants were not eligible for that award and it was withdrawn. (Some believed her medal was rescinded because of her involvement in the women's suffrage movement, but 909 other medals awarded to men were also rescinded.) Walker refused to return the medal and wore it every day until her death. In 1976 Congress restored her medal and she remains the only woman to have received that decoration.

During the last half of the 19th century women served as nurses under contract, but not as part of the military. This continued until Congress approved the formation of the Army Nurse Corps under the Army Reorganization Act of 1901. The Navy Nurse Corps joined them in 1908. Unfortunately these women in the Army and Navy Nurse Corps were not given military rank, equal pay, retirement, disability, or veteran's benefits. They are however considered to be the first military women with permanent status.

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