"Some in rags and some in jags,' but none 'in velvet gowns.

"
Insights on Clothing Worn by Female Followers of the Armies
During the American War for Independence

John U. Rees

(Published in the ALHFAM Bulletin (Association of Living History, Farm and Agricultural
Museums), vol. XXVIII, no. 4 (Winter 1999), 18-21.)

“Market Girl,” 1776 (detail), Henry Walton, artist

Yale Center of British Art

1
British and German Women with the Army. Though women were commonly seen with armies
in the 18th century, there are few descriptions of individuals. No matter what country they came
from, the wives, children, and consorts of common soldiers can be grouped together as being of the
poorer classes of society. The following documents illustrate some of the clothing worn by females
who followed the British and American armies, and the contingent of German troops serving the
Crown.
First, we will look at the wife of a British soldier who, through misfortune, comes to our attention
more than two hundred and twenty years later. As a follower attached to a British regiment, Ann
Miller was present only at the pleasure of unit commanders and would have been required to live
under military law, making herself useful to the regiment. Although her regiment was in a stationary
situation she had to be prepared to travel at a moment’s notice. Assuming that Ann Miller was
telling the truth about her losses, the inventory below is interesting as it shows what was probably a
large portion of the personal goods belonging to a largely unpropertied and itinerant woman.
A "List of Cloaths taken from Ann Miller of the Roy. Fuzileers at La Parara in Canada,"
Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 13 February 1776:1

£ s d
2 Gounds Value ----------- 2- 0-0
1 Black Cloke ------------ 1- 0-0
1 Silk Hatt -------------- 0- 8-0
1 Peticote --------------- 0- 7-6
4 Aprons ----------------- 0 - 12 - 0
1 Pair of Stays ---------- 0 - 12 - 0
3 Shifts ----------------- 0 - 12 - 0
Childrens Cloaths -------- 2- 0-0
1 Bead Tick & 2 Pillows -- 0 - 11 - 0

To provide some context, a detachment of the 7th Regiment, Royal Fusiliers (eighty-eight
officers and men, thirty women, and fifty-one children), had been captured at Chambly on 17
October 1775, and eventually sent south to the barracks at Trenton, New Jersey.2
Also submitted about the same time as Mrs. Miller's list was a "Return of Cloathing Necessarys
&ca that was lost belonging to the Prisoners of His Majestys 7th Regt or Royal Fuzileers at
Trenton." This document contains the names of nineteen soldiers who lost among them numbers of
gaiters, hats, "Fir Gloves," coats, breeches, shirts, neck "Stocks or Rollers," shoes, hose and "Winter
Capps," these last probably Canadian caps. Private Jonathan Miller, probably Ann’s husband, lost
his coat, neck stock, and a pair of breeches and hose. The list includes the cost of the missing
apparel which "were Valued by the Serjeants there is likewise a Whole Years Cloathing lost."3

2
 By comparison the belongings of Mrs. McQueen of the 84th Regiment, Royal Highland
Emigrants, were inventoried after her death, circa 1780, and included,

2 blankets, 4 paticoats, 4 shifts, 3 short gown, 1 pair stockings, 1 pair shoes, 1 apron, 1 coat,
1 waistcoat, 2 shirts.

Mrs. McQueen died in Halifax, Nova Scotia, or somewhere in the southern states, elements of the
regiment serving in both places at the time. The man's coat and waistcoat she owned are notable;
soldiers' families in the 84th at Quebec in 1777 were given "suits of clothing complete, hatts,
mocasins, legging cloth, linen yards, Canadian shoes, [and] stockings." Some of this clothing was
obviously men's apparel, implying that female followers occasionally wore items of male clothing.4
Next we have two narratives concerning camp followers with German troops under General John
Burgoyne in 1777 as they appeared after their surrender at Saratoga, New York. Militia private
Daniel Granger described the Convention troops immediately after the surrender, including one
distinctive (to him) part of the women's apparel: "... soon the Van of the Prisoners made their
appearance, The Hesson Troops came first with their baggage on Horses... These Troops had some
Women, who wore short Petty coats, bare footed, & bare Leged, with huge Packs on their backs,
some carrying a child & leading an other or two, They were silent, civil, and looked quite
subdued."5
A woman in Boston gave this description, interesting as much for the information corroborating
Granger's account as for additional details. "As the German prisoners marched through Cambridge,
Massachusetts they were accompanied by 'great numbers of women, who seemed to be the beasts of
burthen, having a bushel basket on their back, by which they were bent double, the contents seemed
to be Pots and Kettles, various sorts of Furniture, children peeping thro' gridirons and other utensils,
some very young Infants who were born on the road, the women bare feet, cloathed in dirty rags
...'"6

3
While painted some ten years before the American War for Independence, this rare realistic period
portrayal of a British Army female follower nicely personifies the many women who served.
Edward Penny, R.A. (1714-1791), “An Officer Giving Alms to a Sick Soldier” (circa 1765, oil on
canvas). The painting depicts an officer of the 3rd Irish Horse (now the Scots Dragoons Guards)
extending charity to an infantryman and his family. It is a variant of the Marquis of Granby
relieving a sick soldier, which was exhibited by Penny at the Society of Artists in 1765 and which
was presented to the Bodleian by the artist in 1787. The 3rd Irish Horse fought under Granby at
the battle of Warburg in 1760 during the Seven Years War, and it is probable that this painting
may have been commissioned from the artist at the same date.

4
Women with the Continental Army. What kind of women were these who would choose, or be
forced by circumstances, to follow the army under very trying conditions? There are also few first-
hand descriptions of American camp followers available, but with what little we do have it seems
that they were a mixed lot indeed. Maria Cronkite was the wife of a musician in the 1st New York
Regiment and seems to have been quite well respected. She was thirty-two years old when she
followed her husband into the army in 1777. Mrs. Cronkite served “in the capacity of washerwoman
for the officers until the close of the war where her husband was duly discharged ... [and] had while
in said service several children ...”7 As might be expected in an army where black soldiers were a
substantial minority, camp followers included at least a few women of color. Here are a few
examples from runaway and other advertisements.

[Pennsylvania Gazette, 7 August 1776] In Mens Clothes. Run away the 30th of July last, from the
Jerseys to Philadelphia or New York, a Mulattoe Woman Slave, named Maria; had on a white or
red and white jacket, white ticken breeches, white stockings, old mens shoes, and an old beaver
hat; she is hardly discernable from a white woman, is rather thinish visage, middle size, thick
legs, long black hair, and about 35 years old; she hath left behind her three young children, a
good master and mistress, and is going towards New York after a married white man, who is a
soldier in the Continental service there. Whoever secures the said Mulattoe in goal, and will
immediately advertise the same in this paper, shall have Four Dollars reward.

[The Pennsylvania Evening Post, February 27, 1777] STOLEN, the 20th instant, eight shirts, four
cambrick stocks, two pair of stockings, one feather bed and bolster, two blankets, one bed tick, an
old sheet, and one pair of shoes. The person who stole the above things, goes by the name of
Polly Welsh, otherwise Polly Cambell. She is a well faced woman, brown hair, black eyes, and
commonly wears a roul in her hair, has a very comely carriage when in her airs, takes a great deal
of snuff, and will get groggy if she can get liquor. She wears a dirty pale green short gown, and
sometimes a blue skirt very much worn, a high crown bonnet, and an old white cloak which she
borrowed of her neighbour.. Any person who apprehends the said Mary, shall have Six Dollars
reward by applying to Michael Welsh, Serjeant in the Tenth battalion of Pennsylvania regulars; or
to Capt. Lewis Farmer in Second-street, between Vine and Race streets.

[The Pennsylvania Evening Post, 15 July 1777] Ran away from the subscriber the 14th of June last, a
Scotch servant girl named JENNET STEVENSON, or may call herself STEINSON; she is short and
chunky, has a small cast with one eye, light brown hair, fresh colour, and full faced. She had on,
when she went away, a striped homespun blue and white short gown, red and blue striped linsey
petticoat, the colours dim. She took with her a long calico gown with a pompadour ground, stamped
in a lace pattern with small flowers, one white, one check, and two homespun aprons, flax and tow,
blue stays with white stomacher, and a plain black mode bonnet with a broad paduasoy riband puffed
on it. She was seen with one Thomas Cook going to camp, and was seen coming into town this day
with Proctor’s artillery, very dirty, in a short gown and petticoat, and barefoot.

5
[The Pennsylvania Packet, August 15 1778] SIX DOLLARS REWARD Ran away from the
subscriber, a servant girl named Mary Cann, short and thick, with brown hair and pretty round
face, has lost one tooth before and wears a pretty large round roller, speaks broad English, was
born in Devonshire and took shipping in Bristol; ‘tis thought she is gone to the Valley Forge to
nurse the sick at the Hospital; she commonly wears a short gown and linsey petticoat. Whoever
takes up said girl and brings her to the subscriber, or confines her in goal, shall have the above
reward. Mary Nuttle. [Courtesy of Cat Schirf]

[New Jersey Gazette, 28 October 1778] Fifty Dollars Reward. Ran away on the evening of the 7th
inst. from Trenton ferry, a likely Mulatto slave, named Sarah, but since calls herself Rachael; She
took her son with her, a Mulatto boy named Bob, about six years old, has a remarkable fair
complexion, with flaxen hair: She is a lusty wench, about 34 years of age, big with child; had on a
striped linsey petticoat, linen jacket, flat shoes, a large white cloth cloak, and a blanket, but may
change her dress, as she has other cloathes with her. She was lately apprehended in the first
Maryland regiment, where she pretends to have a husband, with whom she has been the principal
part of this campaign, and passed herself as a free woman. Whoever apprehends said woman and
boy, and will secure them in any gaol, so that their master may get them again, shall receive the
above reward, by applying to Mr. Blair M’Clenachan, of Philadephia, Capt. Benjamin Brooks, of
the third Maryland regiment, at camp, or to Mr. James Sterret, in Baltimore. Mordecai Gist.

[The Pennsylvania Packet, July 15 1779] One Hundred Dollars Reward. Ran away from the
subscriber, on the 26th day of June last, a Negro Woman names Sue; she is about thirty years of
age, about five feet two or three inches high, is big with child she is more darkly coloured than a
Mulatto, though not so black as Negroes are in general. She wears high caps, and was dressed in a
blue and white short gown and petticoat. It is suspected she went to camp with a white woman
commonly called Captain Molly, who has a husband in the 4th regiment of Light Dragoons.
Whoever apprehends the said Negro woman and secures her so that the owner may have her
again, shall have the above reward and reasonable charges, paid by Edward Hand [brigadier
general, Continental Army] [Courtesy of Cat Schirf]

[The Freeman's Journal or The North-American Intelligencer, January 9 1782]

Was put into a waggon, in the town of Reading [Pennsylvania] (the waggoners name not known)
to be taken to Philadelphia, the following clothing, viz. A soldier’s regimental coat and jacket, a
pair of breeches, one shirt, a stock, a pair of stockings and a pair of mittens. Likewise a woman’s
long gown, a large cloth cloak, three short gowns, two check aprons, a white apron, two
Pettecoats, a blanket, a rug, a calico bed-quilt, - with several other articles, all rolled up in a
bedtick, and put into the waggon by the subscriber who after travelling a little way with the
waggon, was obliged to return back, and was never after able to come up with it. She will
therefore be much obliged to the waggoner, besides paying him generously for his trouble, to
return them to her at William Moore’s, merchant in Reading, if he has them yet in his possession,
or to advertise her where she may find them. Mary Demsay. [Courtesy of Cat Schirf]

6
 The Pennsylvania Packet, August 15 1778

The Pennsylvania Packet, July 15 1779

The Freeman's Journal or The North-American Intelligencer, January 9 1782

7
 Camp follower in marching order.
Illustration by John R. Wright, courtesy of the artist.
______________________

For an unflattering view of the army's followers, this time on the move in 1780, we turn to Joseph
Plumb Martin. Although women are not specifically mentioned in his account their presence is
inferred. After being separated from his unit Martin

had an opportunity to see the baggage of the army pass. When that of the middle states passed us, it
was truly amusing to see the number and habiliments of those attending it; of all specimens of human
beings, this group capped the whole. A caravan of wild beasts could bear no comparison with it.
There was "Tag, Rag and Bobtail"; "some in rags and some in jags," but none "in velvet gowns."
[author's emphasis] Some with two eyes, some with one, and some, I believe, with none at all ... their
dialect, too, was as confused as their bodily appearance was odd and disgusting. There was the Irish
and Scotch brogue, murdered English, flat insipid Dutch and some lingoes which would puzzle a
philosopher ... I was glad to see the tail end of the train ...8

8
 Some insight into how camp followers replaced worn-out clothing may be useful. Several
attempts were made by the government or army to procure clothing for the women. In autumn 1778
the U.S. Board of War recommended that when a shipment of new clothes was issued, the soldiers'
old clothing be collected and a part given to "the followers of the Army." This plan was never
realized as George Washington decided to "let the matter drop" when he learned the troops "looked
upon it as an unjustifiable attempt to deprive them of what they had earned by their years service ..."
Two years later, attempting to mollify Pennsylvania soldiers after their January 1781 mutiny, Joseph
Reed recommended that the Council of Pennsylvania, "take some notice of their women and
children by providing some decent clothing, which they have not at present. There are about 100 of
them, and, like ourselves, they have their attachments and affections. A new gown, silk
handkerchief, and a pair of shoes, &c., would be but little expense, and I think as a present from the
State would have more effect than ten times the same laid out in articles for the men." The clothing
was to be "given only to those soldiers' wives who continue in the service."9
Female followers likely made their own clothing when materials were available. This can be
inferred from knowledge that common soldiers occasionally found time, and had the expertise, to
sew clothing for themselves. Sergeant Jeremiah Greenman writing between 6-11 March 1778,
noted, "Implying my Self in making a westcoat." In 1781, while a prisoner of the British,
Greenman, now a lieutenant, made a quantity of clothing. 22 May, "... got a pair of overhalls cut
out, then returned to my Quaters & implyed myself Remainder of the day." 23 May, "Implying
myself in making my overalls." 24-25 May, "... made a pair of Socks." 31 May, "... made a Linning
Vest with the assi[s]tance of my Land la[d]y." 8 June, "... implying myself in making two linning
night Caps." Some soldiers were skilled at other crafts, which they found leisure time to ply.
Massachusetts soldier Nahum Parker made a number of pairs of shoes in 1780. The day before he
joined the army he wrote, "Wednesday 5 [July] I made a pair of shoes." Later in the year, while with
Washington's army, at or near Tappan, New York, he made a number of such entries. A few
examples: "Sunday 24 [September] ... I made A pare of Mogosons and Mended my shoes / God
forgive me." "27 [October] I made A pare of womens shoes." "2 [November] I finished A pare of
Boots ..." "November Tuesday 7th 1780 ... I begun A Pare of Shoes for A Woman." "Wednesday 8
I finished the shoes ..." It is probable the woman's shoes were for an army retainer.10

9
Woman in working dress, wearing a man’s felt hat, surtout coat, and linen apron over her skirt. A
good representation of a camp follower. On a march old knapsacks, linen wallets, or sacks would
more likely be used to carry necessaries; baskets would be tedious to carry and hold few belongings.
Peter F. Copeland, Working Dress in Colonial and Revolutionary America
(Westport, Ct. and London: Greenwood Press, 1977), 48.

In summation, besides their common connection with lower levels of the social strata, these
women had diverse experiences. Their background may have dictated kinds of clothing they
preferred or were familiar with, but the vagaries of war affected what was available to them, often
resulting in shortages and hardship. Ann Miller may have owned a lot of clothing for one in her
situation, but she can be compared to Sarah, the American follower, who besides "a striped linsey
petticoat, linen jacket, flat shoes, a large white cloth cloak, and a blanket," had "other cloaths with
her." Ann Miller was coming from what had been a peacetime military establishment shortly before
her capture; Sarah had probably acquired her clothing while living with her former master, though
she may have added to her belongings while with the army. Mrs. McQueen's clothing inventory
represented all the belongings she owned, but it is not known whether she was serving in garrison or
with the moving army. The German women show another side of military life. After leaving Canada

10
with Burgoyne's army, they had marched long distances through rough country, in difficult
conditions. They may have started off well-shod, well-clad, and in good spirits, but an arduous
campaign had left them with "bare feet, cloathed in dirty rags," and probably wishing they had never
joined the army at all.

Above: The only known period portrait of an American woman with the army. She holds a camp
kettle while two soldiers with spoons eat from it, east side of the Hudson River, directly across from
West Point. (Painted in August 1782.) Detail from Pierre Charles L'Enfant’s painting of West Point
and dependencies. Penciled on back, "Encampment of the Revolutionary Army on the Hudson
River" (Library of Congress description, “Panoramic view of West Point, New York showing
American encampments on the Hudson River”), watercolor, 142.7 x 27.7 cm (sheet), Library of
Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540.
(Below) L’Enfant’s painting.

11
Emma Cross and Jenny Lynn as followers of the Delaware Regiment, 1781. Cowpens Battlefield,
January 2018.

12
Another example of the rough, utilitarian clothing likely worn by army camp followers;
round felt hat, kerchief, shawl, coarse linen apron, woolen stockings, and moccasins.
Peter F. Copeland, Working Dress in Colonial and Revolutionary America
(Westport, Ct. and London: Greenwood Press, 1977), 99.

13
Photograph courtesy of Carmen Marusich and the 40th Foot, 2d Battalion Light Infantry.

14
(Note: I include this illustration with a caveat. When I was first made aware of this image, I
was quite taken with it. There are very few pictorial representations of black freedmen in
18th century, and those of individual black females, free or black, even rarer. Unfortunately
in this case the artist seems not to have followed the description to the letter, as the woman
portrayed here does not seem to be a mixed blood mulatto (a person with one black and one
white parent). Perhaps one day I can persuade a willing artist to paint another portrayal; in
the meantime, this will have to do.)
New Jersey Gazette, 28 October 1778: "RUN-AWAY ... a likely MULATTO slave, named
Sarah, but since calls herself Rachael; she took her son with her, a Mulatto boy named Bob,
about six years old ... She was lately apprehended in the first Maryland regiment, where she
pretends to have a husband, with whom she has been the principal part of this campaign,
and passed herself off as a free woman." Runaway advertisement, The Brigade Dispatch,
vol. X, no. 4 (Sept./Oct. 1974), 15. Illustration by Peter F. Copeland, courtesy of the artist.

15
UPDATE: While working on my book “’They Were Good Soldiers’: African Americans Serving in
the Continental Army” I sent out a request for any artists who would be willing to do a new
portrait of Sarah (see runaway advertisement below). Bryant White kindly answered the call, and
painted the image below, which was included in the book. (For the associated monograph on black
women with the army, see “‘Lately apprehended in the first Maryland regiment …’: African
American Women with the Army,” excerpted from, “‘They were good soldiers.’: African
Americans Serving in the Continental Army, 1775-1783” (ISBN 9781911628545, 2019)
https://www.academia.edu/38515415/_Lately_apprehended_in_the_first_Maryland_regiment_Afric
an_American_Women_with_the_Army )

16
17
 Endnotes

1. The Papers of the Continental Congress 1774-1789, National Archives Microfilm Publications
M247, (Washington, DC, 1958), reel 71, p. 421. These belongings were probably lost at La Prairie
de la Magdeleine on the south bank of the St. Lawrence River, roughly between Chambly and
Montreal. Lester J. Cappon, ed., Atlas of Early American History, The Revolutionary War 1760-
1790 (Princeton, N.J., 1976), 2.
2. Mark M. Boatner, Encyclopedia of the American Revolution (New York, N.Y., 1966), 193. The
colors of the Royal Fusiliers were captured and are in the collections at West Point Military
Academy.
3. "Accounts of Sundries belonging [to] the [soldiers] Taken at Chamblee lost or stolen on the Road
as is Said," [undated], Papers of the Continental Congress, reel 71, p. 429.
4. Kim Stacey. "A Women on Campaign: Clothing of a Soldier's Wife in the 84th Regiment," The
Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXVII, no. 4 (Winter 1997), 12.
5. M.M. Quaife, ed., "Documents - A Boy Soldier Under Washington: The Memoir of Daniel
Granger", Mississippi Valley Historical Review, XVI, 4 (March 1930), 547.
6. Walter Hart Blumenthal, Women Campfollowers of the American Revolution (New York, N.Y.,
1974), 27-28.
7. Pension papers of Patrick Cronkite, fifer, 1st New York Regiment, 1777-1783, supplementary
depositions of Maria Cronkite (nee Humphrey) and Hendrick Plimley, Revolutionary War Pension
and Bounty - Land - Warrant Application Files, National Archives Microfilm Publication M804,
reel 695, W16932. Mordecai Gist, runaway advertisement, 18 October 1778, The Brigade Dispatch
(Journal of the Brigade of the American Revolution), vol. X, no. 4 (Sept./Oct. 1974), p. 15.
8. Joseph Plumb Martin, Private Yankee Doodle: A Narrative of Some of the Adventures, Dangers
and Sufferings of a Revolutionary Soldier (New York, N.Y., 1962), 197-198. For Martin's
references to "southerners" and "southern troops" see, 112-113, 135-136, 145-146.
9. George Washington to the Board of War, 11 November 1778, John C. Fitzpatrick, ed., The
Writings of George Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources 1745-1799, vol. 13
(Washington, DC, 1936), 245-246. Joseph Reed to the Council of Pennsylvania, 11 January 1781.
John B. Linn and William H. Egle, eds. Pennsylvania Archives, Second Series, vol. XI (Harrisburg,
Pa., 1880), 669-670.
10. Robert C. Bray and Paul E. Bushnell, eds., Diary of a Common Soldier in the American
Revolution: An Annotated Edition of the Military Journal of Jeremiah Greenman, (DeKalb, Il.,
1978), 112, 209-210. Journal of Nahum Parker for six months service in the 15th Massachusetts
Regiment, 1780, Revolutionary War Pension Files, reel 1874.

18
For further reading on British, German, and American female followers in the War for Independence
see:
Walter Hart Blumenthal, Women Camp Followers of the American Revolution (New York, 1974), "British
Camp Women on the Ration", 15-54. "American Camp Women Under Washington", 57-90.

Don N. Hagist, "The Women of the British Army, A General Overview. Part 1 - Who & How Many," The
Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXIV, no. 3 (Summer 1993), 2-10; "Part 2 - Sober, Industrious Women," vol. XXIV,
no. 4 (Autumn 1993), 9-17; "Part 3 - Living Conditions," vol. XXV, no. 1 (Spring 1995), 11-16; "Part 4 -
Lives of Women and Children," vol. XXV, no. 2 (Summer 1995), 8-14.

Holly A. Mayer, Belonging to the Army: Camp Followers and Community during the American Revolution
(Columbia, S.C., 1996)

Elizabeth Cometti, “Women in the American Revolution,” The New England Quarterly, vol. XX, no.
3 (September 1947), 335-337.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/213814242/Elizabeth-Cometti-%E2%80%9CWomen-in-the-American-
Revolution-%E2%80%9D-The-New-England-Quarterly-vol-XX-no-3-September-1947-335-337

(Part 1) Bruce E. Burgoyne, “Women with the Hessian Auxiliaries during the American
Revolutionary War,” The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXVI, no. 1 (Spring 1996), 2-8.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214066869/Bruce-E-Burgoyne-%E2%80%9CWomen-with-the-
Hessian-Auxiliaries-during-the-American-Revolutionary-War-%E2%80%9D-The-Brigade-
Dispatch-vol-XXVI-no-1-Spring-1996-2

(Part 2) Bruce E. Burgoyne, “Women with the Hessian Auxiliaries during the American
Revolutionary War,” The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXVI, no. 1 (Spring 1996), 19-23.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214077163/Part-2-Bruce-E-Burgoyne-%E2%80%9CWomen-with-the-
Hessian-Auxiliaries-during-the-American-Revolutionary-War-%E2%80%9D-The-Brigade-
Dispatch-vol-XXVI-no-1-Spring

Bruce E. Burgoyne, “Women with Hessian Military Units” (being a compendium of women
identified as having followed German corps during the American War, 1775-1783), The Brigade
Dispatch, vol. XXVI, no. 3 (Autumn 1996), 2-10.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214347053/Part-1-Bruce-E-Burgoyne-%E2%80%9CWomen-with-
Hessian-Military-Units%E2%80%9D-being-a-compendium-of-women-identified-as-having-
followed-German-corps-during-the-Amer

Paul E. Kopperman, "The British High Command and Soldiers' Wives In America, 1755-1783,"
Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research, no. 60 (1982), 14-34. Married women, 14;
women's duties, 15-16, 21; number of women in the Continental Army, 16; the thoughts of the high
command concerning women, 16; the number of women in the army and individual regiments, 19-
20, 26-28; women's rations, 22-23; women as patients in hospital, 31, 33.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214779011/Paul-E-Kopperman-The-British-High-Command-and-
Soldiers-Wives-In-America-1755-1783-Journal-of-the-Society-for-Army-Historical-Research-no-60

19
Don N, Hagist, “Women on Burgoyne’s Campaign,” The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXX, no. 4 (Winter
2000), 18-20
http://www.scribd.com/doc/213934713/Don-N-Hagist-%E2%80%9CWomen-on-
Burgoyne%E2%80%99s-Campaign-%E2%80%9D-The-Brigade-Dispatch-vol-XXX-no-4-Winter-
2000-18-20

Mrs. Middleton and Mary Driskill, the Experiences of Two Women with British Regiments
Don N. Hagist, “Mrs. Middleton Takes Prisoners,” The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXIX, no. 3 (Autumn
1999), 17 (a British Army woman’s experiences, from a primary source).
Don N. Hagist, “Mary Driskill, 10th Regiment of Foot,” The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXX, no. 2
(Summer 2000), 15 (a British Army woman’s experiences, from a primary source).
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214783573/Mrs-Middleton-and-Mary-Driskill-the-Experiences-of-Two-
Women-with-British-Regiments-Don-N-Hagist-%E2%80%9CMrs-Middleton-Takes-Prisoners-
%E2%80%9D-The-Brigade

Apparel and Goods Issued to Female Followers of American Troops

Don N. Hagist, “She was very fond of soldiers,” The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXIX, no. 2 (Summer
2000), 15-16.
Don N. Hagist, “The Women of Fort Jefferson” (goods issued to individuals at a Kentucky fort,
1780-1781), The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXX, no. 1 (Spring 2000), 21-23.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214790248/Apparel-Worn-by-and-Goods-Issued-to-Female-Followers-
of-American-Troops-Don-N-Hagist-She-was-very-fond-of-soldiers-The-Brigade-Dispatch-vol-XXI

French Troops and Female Followers

René Chartrand, “Notes Concerning Women in the 18th Century French Army,” The Brigade
Dispatch, vol. XXV, no. 3 (Summer 1995), 2 (explanation of the relative paucity of women with
French forces in America).
Donald J. Brandt, “Rochambeau's Army, and Women in America,” The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXV,
no. 3 (Summer 1995), 3 (insights on women with and around a French regiment).
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214927135/French-Troops-and-Female-Followers-Rene-Chartrand-
%E2%80%9CNotes-Concerning-Women-in-the-18th-Century-French-Army-%E2%80%9D-The-
Brigade-Dispatch-vol-XXV-no

Refugees and Women following Loyalist Regiments (Part 1)

Todd W. Braisted, "Refugees & Others: Loyalist Families in the American War for Independence,"
The Brigade Dispatch (Journal of the Brigade of the American Revolution), two parts: vol. XXVI, no. 4
(Winter 1996), 2-7; vol. XXVII, no. 2 (Summer 1997), 2-6.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214984897/Refugees-and-Women-following-Loyalist-Regiments-Part-1-
Todd-W-Braisted-Refugees-Others-Loyalist-Families-in-the-American-War-for-Independence

Refugees and Women following Loyalist Regiments (Part 2)

Todd W. Braisted, "Refugees & Others: Loyalist Families in the American War for Independence,"
The Brigade Dispatch (Journal of the Brigade of the American Revolution), two parts: vol. XXVI, no. 4
(Winter 1996), 2-7; vol. XXVII, no. 2 (Summer 1997), 2-6.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/214995035/Refugees-and-Women-following-Loyalist-Regiments-Part-2-
Todd-W-Braisted-Refugees-Others-Loyalist-Families-in-the-American-War-for-Independence

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"`The multitude of women': An Examination of the Numbers of Female Camp Followers with the
Continental Army":
1777 and 1780: A Common Thread?
1776 to 1782: “Necessary to keep the Soldier's clean"
1781: "Their Wives all of whom ... Remained" - Women on Campaign With the Army
1781: "The women with the army who draw provisions"
1782: "Rations ... Without Whiskey" - Colonel Henry Jackson's Regimental
Provision Returns
1783: "The proportion of Women which ought to be allowed ..."
The Brigade Dispatch (Journal of the Brigade of the American Revolution)
Three parts: vol. XXIII, no. 4 (Autumn 1992), 5-17; vol. XXIV, no. 1 (Winter 1993),
6-16; vol. XXIV, no. 2 (Spring 1993), 2-6 (Reprinted in Minerva: Quarterly Report
on Women and the Military, vol. XIV, no. 2 (Summer 1996)).
https://www.scribd.com/document/125413359/The-multitude-of-women-An-Examination-of-the-
Numbers-of-Female-Followers-With-the-Continental-Army

"’The proportion of Women which ought to be allowed...’: An Overview of Continental Army

Female Camp Followers”
1. “A clog upon every movement. “: Numbers
2. "Rations... Without Whiskey": Women’s Food Allowance
3. "Some men washed their own clothing.": Women's Duties and Shelter
4. Orders Concerning Women in the Summer of 1777 (Delaware Regiment of Maj. Gen. John Sullivan’s
Division
5. "Coming into the line of fire.": Women on the March or on Campaign
Appendices
A. An Estimate of Females with Continental Army Units
on the March to Yorktown, 1781
B. Mess Roll of Capt. John Ross’s Company, 3d New Jersey Regiment
C. Tent Assignments in Lt. Col. John Wrottesley’s (3d) Company, 1st Battalion,
Brigade of (British) Guards (Including “British Army orders regarding female
followers, summer 1777”)
D. Period Images of Army Followers or Poor to Middling Female Civilians
E. Photographs of Army Women at Living History Events
F. Online Articles Pertaining to Female Camp Followers and Related Subjects
During the War for American Independence
G. Other Authors’ Monographs (Women Following the Army)
The Continental Soldier, vol. VIII, no. 3 (Spring 1995), 51-58. ALHFAM Bulletin (Association of
Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums), vol. XXVIII, no. 4 (Winter 1999), 18-21.
https://www.scribd.com/doc/255868431/The-proportion-of-Women-which-ought-to-be-
allowed-An-Overview-of-Continental-Army-Female-Camp-Followers

“’Remember[ing] the Ladies’: Margaret Johnson and Elizabeth Evans, Women of the New
Jersey Brigade” http://www.scribd.com/doc/235418684/Remember-ing-the-Ladies-
Margaret-Johnson-and-Elizabeth-Evans-Women-of-the-New-Jersey-Brigade

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"`The number of rations issued to the women in camp.': New Material Concerning Female Followers with
Continental Regiments":
Female Followers with the Troops at Wyoming:Prelude to Sullivan's Campaign, 1779
"Provisions and Stores Issued to the Grand Army": Female Followers at
Middlebrook, 1779
“The women belonging to their respective corps": Further Analysis and Comparison of the
Returns of Women
The Brigade Dispatch, vol. XXVIII, no. 1 (Spring 1998), 2-10; vol. XXVIII, no. 2
(Summer 1998), 2-12, 13.
https://www.scribd.com/document/125413719/The-number-of-rations-issued-to-the-women-in-
camp-New-Material-Concerning-Female-Followers-With-Continental-Regiments

Sarah Mary Benjamin (nee’ Mathews), formerly Sarah Osborn (1743-1858).

Richard O. Eldred, "The Heroine of Yorktown,” Daughters of the American Revolution Magazine
(November 1984), 635-636, 698. (See also, 18th-century American Women (World Wide Web),
http://b-womeninamericanhistory18.blogspot.com/2010/01/sarah-osborns-revolutionay-war-
service.html )

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(Painting by Don Troiani, www.historicalimagebank.com )

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