The Birth of Freedom.....Literally

The birth of freedom of this country takes on many forms.  Boston Harbor and the fields of Concord are easily recognized and accepted.  But, for many women, that birth took place in the guise of men during the Civil War.  Indeed, these women seemed to have become "reborn" as they were free to  seize new opportunities previously closed to them.  While these women experienced a birth of freedom, some also experienced........the birth of children........while serving as soldiers.  So on this Mother's Day, I am going to share the brief stories of these extraordinary women.


There are accounts of at least six women who bore children while serving in the ranks, two of whom were reported to have done so while prisoners of war.  Perhaps the most amazing case was that of an unidentified woman from New Jersey who fought during the Seven Days during her first trimester of pregnancy and Sharpsburg her second.  There, she was wounded, recovered, somehow remained undiscovered, and promoted to corporal.  She went on to fight at Fredericksburg, and was then promoted to sergeant.  That winter or spring, she gave birth to a child, the event prompting a flurry of letter writing among the soldiers.

Colonel Adrian Root of the 94th New York wrote his mother on April 5th, 1863:

"When I was last on duty as General Officer of the Day I came across a very singular case of illness out on the picket line...A corporal of a New Jersey regiment who was on duty with the pickets complained of being unwell, but little notice was given his complaints at first.  His pain and other symptoms of severe indisposition increased, becoming so evident that his officers had him carried to a nearby farmhouse.  There the worthy corporal was safely delivered of a find, fat little recruit for the...regiment!" (Blanton and Cook, They Fought Like Demons, p. 103; original letter is in a private collection)

 Another colonel, Elijah H.C. Cavins of the 14th Indiana, quipped in a letter home,

 "...a corporal was promoted to sergeant for gallant conduct at the battle of Fredericksburg--since which time the sergeant has become the mother of a child.  What use have we for women, if soldiers in the army can give birth to children? " (Lauren Burgess, Uncommon Soldier, p. 15 as quoted from The Letters of Col. H.C. Cavins 14th Indiana)

 There is much more to write about this unidentified woman, and I will perhaps return to her story at a later date.  Meanwhile, about the same time this woman gave birth along the Rappahannock, another sergeant followed suit in Murfreesboro.  Sergeant McLain Montgomery of the 33rd Ohio wrote on April 19th, 1863:

"A night or two since on picket, a sergeant of one of our volunteer regiments gave birth to a child, but I have not learned whether the little stranger is a boy or girl.  As the sergeant has been in the service over a year it is reasonable to suppose that the little pledge of love was gotten in true military style.  It had ought to be a hero and very fond of martial music."  (Lois J. Lambert, Treasured Memories of a Civil War Widow, p. 90-91)

Having received a report of the birth from his medical director, General William S. Rosecrans ordered General Alexander McCook to "...apply a proper punishment...and a remedy, to prevent a repetetion (sic) of the act." (U.S. Army Continental Commands, part 1, entry 916, 17 April 1863, National Archives)

Whatever that means.....  There is no record of what exactly the punishment or the remedy were.

Courtesy Audrey Scanlan-Teller

By the way, this woman fought in the battle of Murfreesboro (or Stones River) while five months pregnant.

Two years later at Bermuda Hundred another woman gave birth while on picket.  Sergeant Hermann Weiss of the 6th New York Heavy Artillery wrote in a letter to his wife on March 28th, 1865:

"What was our surprise when....we heard that the corporal had been taken very sick...and relieved of a very nice boy..." (Blanton and Cook, They Fought Like Demons, p. 105)

I bet Adeline Weiss was just as surprised to learn that her husband had been away serving with a woman who eventually had a baby.

Another child was brought into the world in Virginia about the same time as the previous one.  On March 2nd, 1865, Sergeant Joseph Cross of the 29th Connecticut Infantry (colored) wrote his wife, "Did you Ever hear of a Man having a child[?] there is such a case in our regiment..."

Connecticut Historical Society

The child was born on February 28th, 1865.

While it's difficult to fathom a woman giving birth in the filth and horrid conditions of Civil War  trenches, it's even harder to imagine a child being born in a POW camp.  There are accounts of this event happening twice.

Captain Griffin Frost, of the 2nd Missouri Infantry (Confederate) and a prisoner held in Gratiot Street Prison in St. Louis, wrote in his journal on April 26th, 1864, that he learned that "a portly young fellow in Confederate grey, was lately delivered of a fine boy-a new recruit for Uncle Jeff."  The story was a "scrap of gossip" from Rock Island and proved to be just that: gossip.  As it turns out, the "baby" turned out to be a puppy born of a dog kept by a POW at Rock Island.

Gratiot Street Prison

(Image and Griffin Frost journal from http://civilwarstlouis.com)

The other account of a birth occurring at a POW camp comes the Sandusky Commercial Register.  In an article entitled "Strange Birth" from December 12th, 1864, the writer notes the event at Johnson's Island:

"one of the rebel officers...gave birth to a 'bouncing boy'...This is the first instance of the father giving birth to a child we...have heard."

Something you may have noticed is that some of these accounts refer to these women as "he," a "man," or even a "father." Obviously, they knew that males could not have children.  But it is a good glimpse into the Victorian mindset when it comes to the strict separation of gender roles.  They never thought a woman would want to be a soldier, much less try it.  And so when these women warriors were discovered, especially after giving birth, the men couldn't wrap their heads around the event and had no idea how to deal with the situation or with the women themselves.

Something else you may have noticed if you've been keeping score is that three out of the six mothers mentioned gave birth while on picket, which leaves a reader to ponder what it is about that particular duty that induces labor!

With so many common threads running through these accounts, it brings up the question as to whether at least some of them were the products of hoaxes.  Click [HERE] to read more. As mentioned, the one from Rock Island definitely was.

While these women are purported to have become mothers during their service to their respective country, there were at least two women who already had children when they enlisted.  Like their former lives, they left their children behind as they marched to war.

Mary Ann Clark of Kentucky left her two children, Gideon P. and Caroline E. Walker, in the care of a priest, Father Brady, while she sought refuge in the Confederate army, which provided her as a means to escape a bad marriage and the despair and depression the murder of her brother-in-law brought.

A letter written in 1862 by Mary Ann Clark and one by her mother, E.A.W. Burbage, are housed in the Kentucky Historical Society Museum, copies of which can be viewed online at their website www.kyhistory.com.  

Martha Lindley of Pennsylvania enlisted in Co. D, 6th U.S. Cavalry (Regulars) using the alias, "Jim Smith" in order to avoid being separated from her husband, William.  She said, "I was frightened half to death but I was so anxious to be with my husband that I resolved to see the thing through if it killed me."  In order to be with her husband, away fighting for his country, that meant that she had to leave her two children behind, which she did so with her sister.  (The 6th United States Cavalry, A History and Roster, Donald C. Caughey and Jimmy J. Jones, p. 18)

Mary Ann Clark returned home from the war and remarried.  Beyond that, she disappears from history with no word as to the fate her children, Martha Lindley returned home after mustering out in 1864 and resumed her life of motherhood to her children.  She and William added two more after the war.

Until next formation....rest.  And hopefully your mama will get some rest as well.  She deserves it.