Each year on November 11, we cele- brate Veteran’s Day to honor the men – and women – who served our country during wartime. In this column, we focus on women veterans from the Revolution- ary War forward. As we did our research for our book: Her Story: A Timeline of the Women Who Changed America, we learned about many of these women— some for the first time. We’ll share in- formation about Deb- orah Sampson, Belle Boyd, Annie Oakley, the WASPs, Jackie Cochran, Jeanne Holm, and Wilma Vaught.


In 1782, Deborah Sampson disguised herself as a man,


16 Kalon Women Magazine


enlisted in the Continental Army, and fought in the Revolutionary War.


Sampson was not the only woman to do this! There were a number of others; un- fortunately many of their stories are lost to history. Sampson was wounded more than once; she treated her wounds her- self to avoid discovery. However, when she came down with a fever that ren- dered her unconscious, she was taken to a hospital and her secret was revealed. Honorably discharged in 1873, Sampson later was the subject of a book and went on a speaking tour. She eventually re- ceived a pension for her military service. This was an extraordinary moment; pen- sions had never before been granted to a woman. After her death, in another un- usual move, a pension was awarded to her husband based on her military ser- vice.


Oct/Dec 2014


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