Books about the civil war, including fiction and nonfiction selections. Two of the most important collections for the study of formerly enslaved african american women are the civil war. As stephanie mccurry points out in this gem of a book, many historians who view the american civil war as a peoples war nevertheless. Some worked as nurses or spies, while others were abolitionists, authors or preachers. This exhibit demonstrates the importance of viewing american civil war history through the lens of women s and gender history. Louisa may alcott, renowned 19thcentury author of little women. A narrative of the exploits, adventures, and travels of madame loreta janeta.
The national archives holds rich collections of records on nineteenthcentury southern african american women. Children of the civil war american battlefield trust. It created the great generations of americans who helped build the greatest constitutional republic the world has ever witnessed and recorded. Except for those named harriettubman and beecher stowe, to be precise, women are invisible in civil war history. The civil war has constituted an important pillar of dialogue and debate over the meaning of freedom, free labor, and citizenship. Jul 11, 2019 fundamentally, the book is about the impact of women as a category on the civil war specifically and rules of warfare generally. Vann woodward, hospital sketches by louisa may alcott, my w. There were many women playing important roles in the civil war, including nurses, spies, soldiers, abolitionists, civil rights advocates and promoters of womens suffrage. Women acknowledged as spies were typically young, white welltodo, and unmarried, as well as attractive, charming, intelligent, and quickwitted desirable characteristics when eliciting information from soldiers. Women in the civil war massey, mary elizabeth, berlin, jean v. Munitions workers in the great war by angela woollacott. The diaries, letters, and memoirs of civil war women present a collage. Little women by louisa may alcott, mary chesnuts civil war by c.
It explodes the fiction that men fight wars while women. Female soldiers in the civil war american battlefield trust. But whatever their job, these women fought for what they believed in. Women soldiers in the civil war, which tells the stories of some of these women. Stephanie mccurry shows that women were indispensable to the unfolding of the civil war. The brief book offers many first hand accounts, from women who experienced the war. There were some civil war women who wanted more excitement, and therefore became spies for their respective governments. Other famous spies include mary bowser and rose oneal greenhow. Item 5 of 15 in the primary source set women in the civil war.
Women in the civil war in last several years, three solid treatments of women who served in nontraditional roles during the civil war have been published. Thousands of women in the north and south joined volunteer brigades and signed up to. The burial detail had stumbled upon one of the most intriguing stories of the civil war. Since the persian gulf war, debate has raged over whether women are fit for combat, and the issue is still unresolved. Along with a few earlier efforts, these follow on richard halls and my articles in minerva.
The new manly responsibilities both black and white men had thrust upon them as soldiers. Readers will learn how the civil war became a vehicle for expanding the role of women in society. In last several years, three solid treatments of women who served in nontraditional roles during the civil war have been published. On this page, i will try to bring together as many of those as i can for your enjoyment. Southern women tell how they survived the desperate last days of the confederacy in the civil war. Sep 22, 2017 within the academy, social and cultural historians have now shifted the focus of the civil war away from military battles to what the war meant for soldiers, white women and enslaved men and women. Harriet beecher stowes widely successful novel, uncle toms cabin, first published in 1852, demonstrated american womens fullscale entry into the worlds of publishing and political.
Feb 28, 2011 from the field and slave cabin to the confederate white house, black women took an active role in assisting the union military in winning the civil war. One of the bestdocumented female soldiers is sarah edmonds. Prior to the founding of the second republic, women. In conjunction with this exhibition, recent efforts have been made to digitize the university libraries civil war related rare books and manuscripts. Fighting and surviving the american civil war, she. Women who spied for the confederacy during the civil war. The american civil war also known by other names was a civil war in the united states from 1861 to 1865, fought between the northern united states loyal to the union and the southern united states that had seceded from the union and formed the confederacy. Civil war women reference book titles american civil war. Great women of the civil war by molly kolpin nook book. During the battle of antietam on september 17, 1862, the union battery came under fire from confederate infantrymen in the west woods. The women soldiers of the civil war were capable fighters. Women on the nationalist side of the spanish civil war.
Entries from over 50 diaries of southern women, and slave women. They went to war strictly by choice, knowing the risks involved. This and other similar books i bought on here are great reads and tell some. I spoke with the san franciscobased writer about her research. This is probably the best book ever written on any single battle of the civil war. Quarterly report on women and the military in the early 1990s. The women who fought in the civil war history smithsonian. This book centers around a woman who, according to historians, created the most productive espionage. Consider not just what women suffered during the civil warbad. I didnt know that louisa may alcott was a nurse during the civil war and worked herself nearly to death. Learn about the efforts of these brave women, and open your eyes to the impact women made in the civil war. Edited by independent scholar frank and including the work of more than 100 other scholars, this twovolume set seeksas its introduction statesto illuminate how women. John cook enlisted in the union army in cincinnati, ohio as a bugler for the 4th u.
The book outlined more than 30 different women who left a legacy after the civil war. In august 1642 the country descended into civil war. Thirty carefully rendered illustrations depict these and 27 other remarkable women. Two of the most famous civil war spies were belle boyd above left and elizabeth van lew above right.
An advertisement for the 1876 book the woman in battle by loreta juaneta velasquez, who fought for the confederacy as harry t. My mother is on a kick about women who played parts in civil and revolutionary wars. An advertisement for the 1876 book the woman in battle by loreta juaneta. From james mcphersons definitive history to tony horwitzs adventures among obsessives, here are the 11 best books on the civil war in time for.
She was a union soldier and worked during the civil war as a nurse. In a study that will radically shift our understanding of civil war literature, elizabeth young shows that american women writers have been profoundly influenced by the civil war and that, in turn, their works have contributed powerfully to conceptions of the war and its aftermath. Women acknowledged as spies were typically young, white welltodo, and unmarried, as. Stephen currie explores the impact of the civil war on women s lives, as well as the many roles played by women on and off the battlefields. But battlefield realities soon challenged this simplistic understanding of women s place in war. Although the inherently clandestine nature of the activity makes an accurate count impossible, conservative estimates of female soldiers in the civil war puts the number somewhere between 400 and 750. The digital public library of america brings together the riches of americas libraries, archives, and museums, and makes them freely available to the world. According to the book women in the civil war, so many women eagerly volunteered for the job, they earned a nickname from the press. Women and the english civil wars the national archives. This book fills a needed gap in the story of civil.
Although many of the women had the aforementioned domestic responsibilities, there were also numerous amounts of women who had more active roles. There are many interesting stories involving civil war women, and each one had a unique impact on the conflict. The kitchen house by kathleen grissom, the killer angels by michael shaara, the underground railroad by colson whiteh. Harriet tubman, a former slave, who led hundreds of fellow slaves to freedom on the underground railroad four hundred women who were seized in.
Women in the civil war demonstrates their enterprise. Two brave women by josephine crump, an excerpt from the book confederate women of arkansas in the civil war, 1907. Unfortunately, the majority of them left little or no written evidence of their sacrifice in the war. The suffering was sometimes beyond description in the south that many women in the north never experienced. Representing the work of more than 100 scholars, this book treats in depth all aspects of the previously untold story of women in the civil war.
May 31, 2012 according to the book they fought like demons. About 20,000 women volunteered in military hospitals during the civil war. Life and death in hitlers concentration camp for women by sarah helm. Women soldiers of the civil war, part 3 national archives. Find the top 100 most popular items in amazon books best sellers. The civil war is remembered as a war of brother against brother, with women standing innocently on the sidelines.
Although the books on this list certainly do not represent all women, it is my hope that they cover a. Sep 26, 2012 according to the book women in the american civil war, most women spies fit a certain description. Women in civil war texas is an excellent survey of the lives of the women in the lone star state who encountered a wide range of problems during the four years of war. Kari a cornell this title explores the many roles women played during the civil war as nurses, community organizers, and even soldiers on the front lines.
Women soldiers in the american civil war, about five women fought at gettysburg. The press soon dubbed them the florence nightingales. Harriet tubman, a former slave, who led hundreds of fellow slaves to freedom on the underground. The women soldiers of the civil war engaged in combat, were wounded and taken prisoner, and were killed in action. Female soldiers at the battle of gettysburg civil war saga. Another book, women in the civil war indicates two additional women fought on the side of the confederacy at the battle. Although the inherently clandestine nature of the activity makes an accurate count impossible, conservative estimates of female soldiers in the civil war. Women from both the north and the south played a wide range of roles during the war.
Women in the american civil war satisfies a growing interest in this topic. Cook show in their remarkable new study, that conventional picture does not tell the entire story. Women in the civil warthe civil war had a greater effect on american women than any other conflict in the nations history. Most women were engaged in supplying the troops with food, clothing, medical supplies, and even money through fundraising. When war broke out in ireland in 1641 an army was needed to subdue it, but the mistrust had grown so great that neither trusted the other in charge of armed forces. This book focuses only on women of the slaveholding south, those women who were brought up to be dependent on their men, women unused to hard physical work, and how the war affected them. In this revealing social history, massey focuses on many famous women. This list of novels about the civil war is sponsored by the cassandra, the new novel by sharma shields, winner of the washington state book award. Following a chronology from january 1831 to september 1894 are 14 contextual essays, beginning with abolitionists and northern reformers and ending with wartime literature. There were many women playing important roles in the civil war, including nurses, spies, soldiers, abolitionists, civil rights advocates and promoters of women s suffrage. Loreta janeta velazquez june 26, 1842 1923, was a woman who claimed to have masqueraded as a male confederate soldier during the american civil war, though her story has been brought into question by recent scholarship. Miss masseys book is one of the most original contributions we have had to the literature.
Robert hicks, widow of the south 2005 a war novel and an aftermath novelthe opening chapters feature the senseless and bloody battle of franklinthis sensitive portrayal of the ways in which death. The best estimate of female combatants in the civil war has been provided in john a. The civil war wrought cataclysmic changes in the lives of american women on both sides of the conflict. Although many of the women had the aforementioned domestic responsibilities, there were also numerous amounts of women. A true story of love, race, and war in the nineteenth century, 2007. An incredible story, as well as excellent historical detailing and insight into the eastern theatre of the war in virginia. Most americans can name famous generals and notable battles from the civil war. According to the book women in the american civil war, most women spies fit a certain description. Women in the civil war demonstrates their enterprise, fortitude, and fierceness.
And it is estimated that 300 women fought on the battlefields, usually disguised as men. Fundamentally, the book is about the impact of women as a category on the civil war specifically and rules of warfare generally. Women mobilized soup kitchens and relief societies. Popular images of women during the american civil war include selfsacrificing nurses, romantic spies, and brave ladies maintaining hearth and home in the absence of their men. This is a guide to important primary and secondary sources on the topic of women and the american civil war with a focus on women in maryland. Women did these things and more during the american civil war. The best civil war books of all time analysis civil. Womens war stephanie mccurry harvard university press.
Bonnie tsui is the author of she went to the field. Garrison and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. In the years before the civil war, the lives of american women were shaped by a set of ideals that historians call the cult of true womanhood. Offering fascinating reassessments of works by white writers such as harriet beecher stowe, louisa may alcott. Book overview introducing readers to women whose civil war experiences have long been ignored, judith giesberg examines the lives of workingclass women in the north, for whom the home front was a battlefield of its own. Contemporaries recognized their service, and on the occasion of the upcoming 150th anniversary of the start of the war april 12 and the close of black history month today, its a good time for us to recall and recognize it as well. Aug 28, 2019 women s service in the military is socially accepted today, yet modern women soldiers are still officially barred from direct combat. In this revealing social history, massey focuses on many famous women, including nurses dorothea dix, clara barton, and mother bickerdyke. Soldiers, spies, medics, and more women of action 97816732007. Famous women of the civil war coloring book dover history coloring book by copeland, peter f. The role women played in the civil war is receiving more serious consideration, as demonstrated by this encyclopedia. During the civil war, however, american women turned their attention to the world outside the home.
A fascinating history of women s contributions to the civil war, including a discussion of female contributions to nursing, hospital administration, and supply gathering for the war. The two chapters on slave women are particularly impressive, because so little is known about the lives of female slaves. New york times bestselling author karen abbott shares the story of how four unlikely women an abolitionist, a farm girl, a widow, and a socialite became spies during the civil war. Some, like budwin and hook, wished to be by the sides of their loved ones. Women on the nationalist side of the spanish civil war came from a culture and historical background that traditionally saw the role of women being defined by the catholic church. Alan lewis of ground zero books in silver spring, maryland for instance, allan pinkerton was a chief of the united states secret service during the civil war. How women impacted the civil war and changed the rules of warfare. Fascinating true stories of women who made a difference by webb b. Try searching on jstor for other items related to this book. Originally titled bonnet brigades, this volume presents a comprehensive yet readable account of a longneglected aspect of american history lj 866. Elizabeth van lew is one of the most fascinating female figures in american history. Linus pierpont brockett, published after the war in 1867, was an obvious attempt to give women acknowledgment for their contributions to the war effort.
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