Women's Spies In The Civil War

Male and female spies were essential sources of information during the Civil War. The best spies were people you would never suspect. Spies were brave, faceless and they knew the environment very well. Their presence was incredibly excepted. Whether they dressed as men and joined the army, posed as mindless slaves, or just kept their ears opens in collective circles, spies provided necessary information. It was even a woman spy who provided Union battle plans to Confederate Army, which allowed them to win the First Battle of Manassass (First Bull Run). Throughout history, men have been spies and the American Civil War was no exception. The finest spies are people you would never suspect. Spencer Kellogg Brown, George Curtis and Philip

They opened up their homes to the wounded, raised money for and provided food and clothing to the Army. There are even several recorded instances of women serving as spies or soldiers in disguise. Most of the active participants however, were in the form of what was called "camp followers". While some of these were women were prostitutes, many others were wives, daughters and mothers of soldiers who followed the Army because they were unable to support themselves after their men left for war. They served the Continental Army as nurses, cooks, laundresses, and water bearers. These women became the earliest American examples of women who supported the military to "free a man to fight" as they performed jobs usually done by male soldiers.

The Bureau of Military Information (BMI), founded by General Hooker in 1863, was directed by George Sharpe. A vast collection of reports from the BMI were discovered at the National Archives in 1959 by Edwin Fishel. These reports disclosed that, in contrast to Pinkerton’s system, Sharpe’s unit used a host of sources in gathering intelligence, including cavalry, spies, balloonists, Signal Corps observers, scouts, and interrogations of prisoners and deserters. By merging the information gathered from all of his sources, Sharpe was able to provide Hooker with a comprehensive description of enemy standing. General Grant, who initially placed minimal importance upon intelligence gathering, came to view intelligence as a vital tool and depended upon Sharpe’s reports and the activity of the BMI to provide him with secret information. In fact, “the BMI became an integral part of Grant’s successful campaign to neutralize the Shenandoah Valley and to stretch Lee’s manpower to the brink of collapse.”

Each woman faced their own set of problems depending on their race, social class and gender. These same issues also allowed for them to excel as spies during the Civil War. Lincoln’s legacy is preserving the nation that his predecessors had created and maintained. The Confederacy was fighting to preserve the Southern way of life which depended upon slavery. The system of slavery was all that most of them knew and change can be frightening. In the end, the lack of industry was a major factor that killed the South’s possibility of victory. The South also was more conservative with new strategies and weaponry. This caused the South to fall behind in a period of immense technological development. Lincoln was praised for his new integration of the

Women in the Civil War were important because they played important roles. They played as nurses, spies, and some even disguised themselves as soldiers. The women could only play one of these roles. For example they can only be either a spy or nurse or a soldier. They can’t be two like a spy and a nurse.

With over a half million deaths the most gruesome war in American history drove citizens to action. The suffering during this era was so great many were inspired by nationalism to act. For those who were unable to join the fight upon the battlefield, espionage represented a chance for personal involvement. Although it is believed that many agents never sought recognition for their service, especially Confederate scouts, documentation depicts the espionage present during the American Civil War to be surprisingly sophisticated. By examining the recorded history involving active female intelligence agents in the American Civil War, we can see the roles of female scouts were severely underestimated, frequently encouraged, and generally

Women in the Confederacy had a great impact on the Civil War. They were thrown into totally different lifestyles--ones that did not include men taking care of the land and other businesses. Women had more control of their lives than ever before. Some took it upon themselves to get involved directly with the war while others just kept the home fires burning. Whatever roles they played, women contributed a multitude of skills to the Civil War effort.

As most of us know the women of the Civil War were a lot different I believe than the

If the women’s secret had been discovered, the soldiers did not do much except send the women back home. Some women treated soldiers who were wounded or sick coming from the battlefield, and they supplied the men with the equipment and other necessities they would need on the field. During the Civil War, Columbus, Mississippi became a well-known hospital town, taking in hundreds of the wounded. Women offered to become spies for the Confederacy to help the military gain useful information about the opposing side, and men did not commonly consider women, such as Rose O’Neal Greenhow capable of doing acts such as spying. Some Southern Democratically-involved women turned their noses from the Northern women in disgust, thinking it unbecoming to be around Republicans, and they continued this attitude for quite some time. But not all Southern women wanted the war, and they did not want to be rude to the “enemy”. One woman, Sarah Morgan, who had been treated well by the enemy said, “Fine, noble-looking men they were. One cannot help but admire such foes! . . .” In these cases where the enemy showed such acts of kindness, many Southern women felt respect and sympathy towards the Union soldiers. Though many of these opportunities for new roles for women opened up during the war, most women stayed at home and took care of their house and children.

Women played an important role during the American Civil War but it wasn't until 100 years afterwards that they received recognition. Even today history books skip over the important roles women had during the Civil War. Wives, mothers, daughters, and grandmothers impacted the War both at home and on the battlefield. Their lives changed in many ways with the onset of the Civil War. Women took on many different roles that helped their side during the Civil War.

Have you ever wondered who helped the Union beat the Confederacy? Of course there were many people, but one group of them were spies. There were many spies involved in the war and they did various types of jobs and ultimately helped preserve the Union. The spies helped beat the Confederacy by performing gathering information, creating agencies, and going undercover. First of all, a major way that the spies helped defeat the Confederacy, is by gathering intelligence on their army.

One such woman was Harriet Tubman, who was a female war spy. She was a former slave, and the head of the Underground Railroad, which freed more than 300 enslaved people. Before being a spy, she worked as a cook for the Union army until they decided to recruit her. She was a very active woman in the war. Harriet Tubman “became the first woman in the country’s history to lead a military expedition when she helped Col. James Montgomery plan a night raid to free slaves from rice plantations along the Combahee River”(smithsonian). There were also memorable women on the confederate side of the war. A famous confederate woman, who went by the name of Rebel Rose, played a significant role during the war. Her birth name was Rose O’Neal and she used her outstanding social fluidity to get intel and pass it down the right channels to the confederate army. Even under house arrest, Rebel Rose still got her messages out. Women spies were sneaky during the war, usually using their charm to gain information for their side. Sometimes, they would even sneak weapons and supplies to the troops “To smuggle goods such as morphine, ammunition or weapons, they often attached them to the frame of their hoop skirts or hid them in baskets, packages and even inside dolls.””(civilwarsaga). Women in the civil war were not just useful in hospitals, but also excelled with undercover assignments as

There were many famous names from the Civil War, some of the more notable names were: Ulysses S. Grant, Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, and George Custer. These names are synonymous with great generals who fought great battles during the war, but what about Sarah Emma Edmonds, Clara Burton, Dorthea Dix, Rose O’Neal Greenhow, and Loreta Janeta Velazquez? These names are not as known as their male counterparts, but these ladies of the Civil War Era did their part to aide their respective sides in the war. What these and other women did during the civil war may not seem as important, but without their skills, knowledge, and actions some of the great battles might have gone the other way.

Spies, you may think that spies just dress up in all black and listen to other people's conversations and tell their bosses, but there is way more to it. In the Civil War, spies would work in the enemy's white house for example. Mary Bowser and her sister Elizabeth Van Lew were spies for the union. They would work in the confederate’s white house and while they would be cleaning, they would look through the documents and find out information. They would get this information to the North, using their friend who would work in the bakery and bring bread to the white house. Now you needed to have connections with people so you could travel the news. Just like Mary and Elizabeth had the bakery man, if you were a spy, you need someone that you could

The Civil War was a fight between the unity of one country and equality for all its citizens, against the independence of a divided nation. This war is one of the most impactful events in United States’ history and it brought immense changes to the country. It’s most remembered for the fight against slavery in the United States and the Emancipation Proclamation as its result. The Civil War, also referred to as the War of Rebellion and the War to Make Men Free, did not just unify the country and end slavery, but it also transformed the image of women during the 1860’s. This was not just the War to Make Men Free, but the War to Make Women Free as well. Women during the 1800’s had a notable influence on the Civil War through off-battlefield efforts