CHILDREN GENDER ROLES DURING THE CIVIL WAR

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June 4, 2020
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CHILDRENGENDER ROLES DURING THE CIVIL WAR

Subject

ChildrenGender Roles During the Civil War

Skimin,Robert, and Nacho Garcia. 2006. JohnnyClem.Las Cruces, NM: Barbed Wire Pub.

TheAmerican Civil War was a 19th-century conflict that happened intoday’s United States of America. It took place from 1861 to 1865.There were various key players in the war, but as illustrated bySkimin,Robert, and Nacho,childrenalso did play a huge role. This book talks about the greatest hero ofthem all, a 10 year old boy called Johnny Clem.^¹He had run away from home and joined the second Michigan Regiment asa soldier. He is credited for shooting a Confederate colonel. Clemrepresents the role that children played as soldiers.

Hall,Dennis. &quotCivil War reenactors and the postmodern sense ofhistory.&quot TheJournal of American Culture17, no. 3 (1994): 7-11.

Inthe history of America, camp followers played a huge role. These werethe children and wives of soldiers who followed them. In the CivilWar, children who were camp followers serviced and supplied the army.Girls would help their mothers and serve as nurses while the boyscarried the weapons.^²

Isserman,Maurice, and Michael Kazin. Americadivided: The civil war of the 1960s. Oxford University Press, 1999

Bothboys and girls played an important role of being spies during theCivil War. Some of the children recognized to have spied for theirrespective armies include Nathan Hale, Benjamin Tallmadge, Austin Roeand Anna Strong.^³

Stover,Allan C. 2014. Underageand under fire: accounts of the youngest Americans in militaryservice.

Thenumbers of the children who participated in the war as soldiers isaccounted for in this document. According to it, there were at least100,000 union fighter under 15 years. About 20% of the total CivilWar soldiers were below 18 years.^⁴

Johnson,Karen A. &quotTopsy-Turvy: How the Civil War Turned the World UpsideDown for Southern Children.&quot TheJournal of African American History100, no. 2 (2015): 321- 322.

Inher accounts, Anya Jabour, just like James Marten, illustrates thesame vigor and zeal that children, especially boys, had for havingfront row seats in the war. They wanted to experience the warup-close.^⁵This account illustrates how the children went to see the soldiers atSudley Ford as they made their war to the Battle of Bull Run. Here,the children take on the role of witnesses in the war.

Haris,Joel Chandler, Eric Metaxas, and Henrik Drescher. Thestory of Brer Rabbit and the wonderful tar baby.Saxonville, Mass: Rabbit Ears Books, 1990.

Thisaccount by Joel Chandler Harris is a major force that shapes theracial imagery in literature during the American Civil War. The storyis about the ordeals of Brer Rabbit regarding the separatistphilosophy during America’s slavery and reconstruction in the CivilWar. It focuses on Uncle Remus and a white slave boy. The story givesthe plight of children who had been turned into survivors by thewar.^⁶

DukeUniversity. AliceWilliamson Diary: an on-line archival collection.[Durham, NC]: Duke University,1996.

Thisis a 36-page diary written by a 16-year-old girl during thisparticular period of the American Civil War. Alice Williamson, theyoung girl, gives an account of how the war affected her life. Shewas forced to quit education as the war led to the closure of herschool. However, the school reopened after the war, and she graduatedin 1866.^⁷ The story explains the plight of young girls when the Union armiesof General Eleazer A. Paine occupied Gallatin.

Hays,Will. S. Thedrummer boy of Shiloh: a beautiful ballad.Louisville, Ky: D.P. Faulds, 1865.

Duringthe war, some young boys seeking the glory of battle enlisted assoldiers. One of these boys was Robert Hendershot. After the fall ofFort Sumter in 1861, Robert was gripped by war fever. His soldierlysacrifice and selfless virtue in battle are well documented in thisaccount. The ‘drummer boy of Shiloh’ is a good representation ofthe role of children as soldiers in the American Civil War.^⁸

Burwell,Letitia M. Girl`sLife in Virginia before the War – The Original Classic Edition.Emereo Publishing, 2013.

Inthis primary document, Letita M. Burwell gives a personal account oflife before and during the war. She gives an account of her familyand their relationship to their slaves. Her family was wealthy andlived on a plantation in rural Virginia.^⁹In her document, she talks about how life in the south was good foreven the slaves. However, in this aspect, she details the role ofchildren in rich slave-owning families. After the war, however, thegood life ended, and even rich people were negatively impacted by thewar.

Marten,James. &quotReview of Union Heartland: The Midwestern Home Frontduring the Civil War.&quot IndianaMagazine of History(2014).

JamesMarten gives a detailed account of how the American Civil Warimpacted the lives of the American children, especially thesoutherners. He illustrates this by telling the story from theperspective of a mother and her two oldest sons. The children hadbeen begging their mother to allow them to go on an adventure towitness the war beforehand. They wanted to investigate a battle thatwas happening near their home.^¹⁰However, the mother later regretted allowing her children to witnessthe war because when they returned home, they were not the same youngboys who had left in the morning. This document is proof that the warchanged the children’s lives as they took on different roles.

Burton,Annie L. Memoriesof childhood`s slavery days.Hardpress Publishing,2012.

Thisis another primary document that illustrates the role of youngAmerican girls as slaves during the American Civil War. Annie Burtongives a personal account of her life in slavery on a plantation. Thesetting is in Alabama. She worked as a nanny for her owner, Mrs. E.M. Williams.^¹¹It was during her time as a slave that she was taught how to read andwrite. Annie also took care of her three siblings after theirmother’s death in the war. In this perspective, she depicts herselfin her role as the family’s caretaker.

Douglas,Frederick, and Houston A. Jr Baker. FrederickDouglas: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an AmericanSlave.New York, NY: Penguin Books,1900.

Anotherclear illustration of the role of boys as slaves in America isdepicted by the personal account of Frederick Douglas. As a youngblack slave, he was considered the property of his master. Duringthis time, even seeing family members required permission from themasters. This was the role that slaves were resigned to.^¹²

Pennington,James W. C. TheFugitive Blacksmith or, Events in the History of James W.C. Pennington.Project Gutenberg, 2005.

JamesW. C. Pennington details his life in slavery during the AmericanCivil War. He was a former blacksmith in Maryland.^¹³His account details the role of slave boys in making metallic weaponsthat would be used in the war.

Peterborough,NH: Childrenin the Civil War.CobblestonePub. Co,1999.

Accordingto Peterborough, children played a role in the war, both on the homefront and on the battleground. Since they made up nearly half thepopulation, some served as soldiers and others as regimentalmusicians. This secondary document states that around 48 soldiersunder the age of 18 won the congressional medal of honor for theirbravery and exceptional services in the war.^¹⁴

Wroble,Lisa A. Kidsduring the American Civil War.New York: PowerKids Press,1997.

Thisdocument highlights another role of children in the war. They alsoacted as messengers and informers to support the war. Others servedin army camps as cleaners and cooks. ^¹⁵Others,mostly girls, took care of their homes when the males were awayfighting.

Murphy,Jim. Theboys of war. NewYork: Clarion Books, 1990.

Murphyclaims that the number of children killed is unknown. Thousands arethought to have died as a result of their role as soldiers in thewar.^¹⁶

Werner,Emmy E. Reluctantwitnesses: Children`s voices from the civil war.Basic Books (AZ), 1998.

Accordingto this document, the youngest soldier killed during the Americancivil war was thirteen year old Charles King^¹⁷.He was enlisted in the 49^thvolunteer infantry of Pennsylvania.

Bibliography

Primarydocuments

Burton,Annie L. Memoriesof childhood`s slavery days.[Place of publication not identified]: Hardpress Publishing, 2012.

Burwell,Letitia M. Girl`sLife in Virginia before the War – The Original Classic Edition. Emereo Publishing, 2013. http://www.myilibrary.com?id=467086

Douglas,Frederick, and Houston A. Jr Baker. Frederick Douglas: Narrativeof the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave.New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1900.

DukeUniversity. Alice Williamson Diary: an on-line archival collection.[Durham, NC]: Duke University, 1996.

Haris,Joel Chandler, Eric Metaxas, and Henrik Drescher. The story of BrerRabbit and the wonderful tar baby. Saxonville, Mass: Rabbit EarsBooks, 1990.

Hays,Will. S. The drummer boy of Shiloh: a beautiful ballad. Louisville,Ky: D.P. Faulds, 1865.

Johnson,Karen A. &quotTopsy-Turvy: How the Civil War Turned the World UpsideDown for Southern Children.&quot TheJournal of African American History100, no. 2 (2015): 321- 322.

Marten,James. &quotReview of Union Heartland: The Midwestern Home Frontduring the Civil War.&quotIndianaMagazine of History(2014).

Pennington,James W. C. TheFugitive Blacksmith or, Events in the History of James W.C. Pennington.Project Gutenberg, 2005. http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/15130.

Stover,Allan C. 2014. Underageand under fire: accounts of the youngest Americans in militaryservice.

Secondarydocuments

Hall,Dennis. &quotCivil War reenactors and the postmodern sense ofhistory.&quot TheJournal of American Culture17, no. 3 (1994): 7-11.

Isserman,Maurice, and Michael Kazin. Americadivided: The civil war of the 1960s.Oxford University Press, 1999.^¹⁸

Murphy,Jim. Theboys of war.New York: Clarion Books, 1990.

Peterborough,NH.Children in the Civil War:Cobblestone Pub. Co, 1999.

Skimin,Robert, and Nacho Garcia. 2006. JohnnyClem.Las Cruces, NM: Barbed Wire Pub.

Werner,Emmy E. Reluctantwitnesses: Children`s voices from the civil war.Basic Books (AZ), 1998.

Wroble,Lisa A. Kidsduring the American Civil War.New York: PowerKids Press, 1997.

1 Skimin, Robert, and Nacho Garcia. 2006. Johnny Clem. Las Cruces, NM: Barbed Wire Pub.

2 Hall, Dennis. &quotCivil War reenactors and the postmodern sense of history.&quot The Journal of American Culture 17, no. 3 (1994): 7-11.

3 Isserman, Maurice, and Michael Kazin. America divided: The civil war of the 1960s. Oxford University Press, 1999.

4Stover, Allan C. 2014. Underage and under fire: accounts of the youngest Americans in military service

5⁵ Johnson, Karen A. &quotTopsy-Turvy: How the Civil War Turned the World Upside Down for Southern Children.&quot The Journal of African American History 100, no. 2 (2015): 321-322.

6 Haris, Joel Chandler, Eric Metaxas, and Henrik Drescher. The story of Brer Rabbit and the wonderful tar baby. Saxonville, Mass: Rabbit Ears Books, 1990.

7 Duke University. Alice Williamson Diary: an on-line archival collection. [Durham, NC]: Duke University, 1996.

8 Hays, Will. S. The drummer boy of Shiloh: a beautiful ballad. Louisville, Ky: D.P. Faulds, 1865.

⁹ Burwell, Letitia M. Girl`s Life in Virginia before the War – The Original Classic Edition. Emereo Publishing, 2013. http://www.myilibrary.com?id=467086

10Marten, James. &quotReview of Union Heartland: The Midwestern Home Front during theCivil War.&quot Indiana Magazine of History (2014).

11 Burton, Annie L. Memories of childhood`s slavery days. Hardpress Publishing, 2012.

12 Douglas, Frederick, and Houston A. Jr Baker. Frederick Douglas: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1900.

13 Pennington, James W. C. The Fugitive Blacksmith or, Events in the History of James W.C. Pennington. Project Gutenberg, 2005. http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/15130.

14 Peterborough, NH: Children in the Civil War. Cobblestone Pub. Co, 1999.

15 Wroble, Lisa A. Kids during the American Civil War. New York: PowerKids Press, 1997.

16 Murphy, Jim. The boys of war. New York: Clarion Books, 1990.

17 Werner, Emmy E. Reluctant witnesses: Children`s voices from the civil war. Basic Books (AZ), 1998.

Children Gender Roles during the Civil War

admin
April 3, 2020
Uncategorized

ChildrenGender Roles during the Civil War

Nameof Student

Institution,State

SecondarySources

Baker,Sarah Schoonmaker.&nbspCharliethe Drummer-boy.American Tract Society, 150 Nassau-Street, New York., 1861.

Thisis a pamphlet with 16 pages with a narrative poem that is remarkablylight-hearted on the faith and courage of a drummer boy.^¹Despite being badly injured, he comforted a wounded soldier. Thisshows that boys helped in nursing and comforting soldiers injuredduring the civil war.

Hakala,Laura. &quotThe Girl`s Cause: Confederate Girlhood in Uncle Buddy`sGift Book for the Holidays and Ellen Hunter: A Story of theWar.&quot&nbspChildren`sLiterature&nbsp43,no. 1 (2015): 22-50.

Thisstudy examines the role of boys in participating in the civil war byfighting at the homes. Home front experiences are contextualizedusing historical sources.^²The essay shows that the success of the Confederate was significantlydue to the participation of both boys and girls fighting from thehome front.

McMillen,Sally G., James Marten, and Emmy E. Werner. &quotThe Children`sCivil War. Civil War America Series.&quot (1998): 897-899.

Childrenparticipated in demonstrating their loyalty boys tracked themovement of the troops, fought imaginary battles, as well as playingwar games. At school, they were taught special wartime techniquesthat they could use for defending homes.^³Tracking troops later helped them as they supplied troops with basicnecessities.

Pickering,Sam. &quotA Boy`s Own War.&quot&nbspNewEngland Quarterly&nbsp(1975):362-377.^⁴

Thisis poetic in nature. It shows how boys were praised by their parentsand neighbors as they joined the fight. They helped in the success ofthe civil war as they were recruited as teenage soldiers, bringingjoy and peace to the society.

Liskey,Amanda C. &quotThe Effect of the American Civil War on itsChildren.&quot (2014).

Historicalstudies, memoirs, and diaries were used in compiling this study. Itshows that boys were left to take charge of families on the death oftheir parents during their civil war.^⁵They also endured other experiences such as loss of property, familylife disruption, and fear. Some of them also dropped out of school aseducation was disrupted.

Bibliography

Baker,Sarah Schoonmaker.&nbspCharliethe Drummer-boy.American Tract Society, 150 Nassau-Street, New York., 1861.

DredScott v. Sanford,. 1856. &quotDred Scott V. Sanford&quot.Civilwar.Org.http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/dred-scott-v-sanford.html

Hakala,Laura. &quotThe Girl`s Cause: Confederate Girlhood in Uncle Buddy`sGift Book for the Holidays and Ellen Hunter: A Story of theWar.&quot&nbspChildren`sLiterature&nbsp43,no. 1 (2015): 22-50.

Liskey,Amanda C. &quotThe Effect of the American Civil War on itsChildren.&quot (2014).

McMillen,Sally G., James Marten, and Emmy E. Werner. &quotThe Children`sCivil War. Civil War America Series.&quot (1998): 897-899.

Pickering,Sam. &quotA Boy`s Own War.&quot&nbspNewEngland Quarterly&nbsp(1975):362-377.

Scott,Newton and Hannah Scott. 1864. &quotLetters Home From An IowaSoldier In The American Civil War&quot. Civilwarletters.Com.http://www.civilwarletters.com/

PrimarySources

Damon,Duane.&nbspGrowingUp in the Civil War 1861 to 1865.Lerner Publications, 2002.

Despitebeing published in 2002, this study contains a notice written byPrivate Elisha Stockwell during the civil war.^⁶From the notice, it could established that boys were involved infighting. Some had joined the military without the consent of theirparents. Some died, and other got troubled due to the intensity ofthe civil war.

DredScott v. Sanford,. 1856. &quotDred Scott V. Sanford&quot.Civilwar.Org.http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/dred-scott-v-sanford.html

Thecivil war sparked conflicts due to the manner in which boys and othersoldiers were handled. Some boys had been enslaved and enrolled intomilitary to fight. They were mistreated, leading to court cases suchas Dread Scott v. John F.A Sandford.^⁷The ruling clearly favored enslaving of boys and enrolling them intomilitary as it declared that slaves were not citizens.

Scott,Newton and Hannah Scott. 1864. &quotLetters Home From An IowaSoldier In The American Civil War&quot. Civilwarletters.Com.http://www.civilwarletters.com/

Theseare letters written during the civil war. Scott, Hannah Scott, andNewton wrote these letters to their friend, Hannah Cone.^⁸The three had been volunteers at Iowa. They expressed theirexperiences of being misused during the civil war. They were enrolledas underage soldiers. The final letter they wrote to their parentswere on how they longed to muster out, implying the experience ofparticipating in the civil war was harsh.

Bleser,Carol K., and Lesley J. Gordon, eds.&nbspIntimateStrategies of the Civil War: Military Commanders and Their Wives.Oxford University Press, 2001.

Thisstudy was published in 2001. However, it contains a conversationbetween Elizabeth Keckley and Mary following the decline of RobertLincoln’s mother for him to join the army. It shows that boysvolunteered to participate in fighting during the war.^⁹They volunteered to provide service as teenage soldiers. RobertLincoln, oldest son to Abraham Lincoln, offered to quit studies andjoin the army.

Nichols,James L., John G. Barrett, and Robert K. Turner. &quotLetters of aNew Market Cadet: Beverly Stanard.&quot (1961): 572-573.

Thiswas only published outside the required time frame. However, itcontains a letter written by Beverly Stanard during the war. In thelater, he explained to his sister why he thought it was the best timefor him to join the army.^¹⁰He was eager to be enrolled, implying that boys volunteered to fightduring the war by enrolling to strengthen the army.

LouisaMay Alcott. Hospital Sketches. Boston: Applewood Books, 1986. p. 47.

Thisstudy also draws from one of the excerpts of the events of the civilwar. The narration is done in firs person, implying it is aninterview.^¹¹It explains that Billy sustained injuries and succumbed while Kit washurt but survived. Both of them sustained injuries at the battlefield. Kit had tended to Billy this shows that boys were tasked withtaking care of and nursing those who sustained injuries. They werealso tasked with transporting them to the hospital.

Watkins,Samuel. 1882. &quotRecollections Of The Battle Of Perryville&quot.Civilwar.Org.http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/recollections-of-the-battle.html.

Samuelnarrates his experience as a boy. He claims that he was deployed toparticipate in all battles, skirmishes, and march as required by theFirst Tennessee Regiment. He also claims that he participated in thewar, finding it harder than he thought boys were deployed to warregardless of the intensity of the war.^¹²This also looked for food (honey) for the troops during the night.

Capt.Addeman,. 1883. &quotReminiscences Of Two Years With The ColoredTroops&quot. Civilwar.Org.http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/reminiscences-of-two-years.html.

Capt.Addeman also narrates his experience during his younger days. Heclaims that they were tasked with defending the State and fightingfor it.^¹³They also made voyages during the night as they sought to establishthe exact location of their enemies. Boys were also tasked withguarding the state.

Taylor,Sussie. 1864. &quot&quotOn St. Simon`s Island – 1862&quot&quot.Civilwar.Org.http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/chapter-iii-st-simons.html.

Boyswho had gone to school were tasked with teaching children. They wereissued with books other testaments from the North.^¹⁴They taught both children and adults.

Beyer,Walter Frederick, and Oscar Frederick Keydel.&nbspDeedsof Valor: How America`s Heroes Won the Medal of Honor.Vol. 2. Perrien-Keydel Company, 1902.

Mosttroops lost over half their men during the war, especially whenengaged in a bloody charge. As such, boys were recruited to replacethem.^¹⁵Boys provided a backup plan and helped in fighting enemies.

Trowbridge,Colonel. 1866. &quotGeneral Orders No. 1&quot. Civilwar.Org.http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/general-orders-no-1-33rd-usct.html.

Accordingto the Colonel, it was the role of the boys to fight for their stateand ensure that its rightful significance was restored.^¹⁶They were tasked with restoring and protecting the culture, security,and authority of their people. They fought to keep the boundary oftheir zones free from invaders.

Cabble,Samuel. 1861. &quotSamuel Cabble Letter&quot. Civilwar.Org.http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/samuel-cabble-letter.html?referrer=http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/primarysources/.^¹⁷

Thiswas a letter written by Samuel to his wife. It shows that some boyswere first enslaved before they were recruited into the army. Theywere then tasked with fighting enemies and recovering theirterritories. Their patriotism drove them to fighting invaders duringrebellions and ensuring that their cities were safe.