Who They Were: Southern Women Spies Of the American Civil War

1. Who They Were: Southern Women Spies Of the American Civil War Home About Northern Spies Southern Spies More Information How they Spied Site Map

2. About the Site Antonia Ford This is a site devoted to the famous and not so famous Southern women who spied for the South and the North! The information provided here I hope will give the user at least a glance of their impact! Disclaimer: The photos reproduced here are the property of the Library of Congress. Please do not borrow them.

3. Southern Women Who Spied Belle Boyd America and Artemisia Scott Belle Boyd Mrs. Braxley Betty Duvall Belle Edmondson Antonia Ford Laura Ratcliffe Hanna Nancy Hart Rose O’Neal Greenhow Betty Hassler Clara Judd Lillie Mac Kall Lottie and Ginnie Moon Augusta Morris Mary and Sophia Overall Ann and Kate Patterson Emmeline Piggott Sarah Slater Loretta Velazquez

4. Rose O’Neal Greenhow • When:1861-1864 • Where: Virginia, North Carolina and Europe • What: Beginning with the battle of Bull Run, Mrs. Greenhow used her high position in Washington to gather information from her military acquaintances • She established a spy ring based out of Washington • She was arrested and exiled out of Washington • She traveled to London to gain financial support for the war • She drowned on her return to North Carolina

5. America and Artemisia Scott • When: 1862 • Where: Lived in Falls Church, Va. • What: Were arrested by Union officers for reporting the position of Union troops to Confederate troops near their home. They were supposedly responsible for the capture of a Union soldier under their acquaintance.

6. Southern Women Who Spied for the North • Elizabeth Van Lew • Mary Elizabeth Bowser • Paulina Cushman • Mrs. Green • Mrs. Graves • Jeanette Laurimer Mabry • Mrs. Lucy Rice Elizabeth Van Lew

7. Elizabeth Van Lew • When: 1861-1865 • Where: Richmond, Virginia • What: She was responsible for a large spy ring in the center of the Confederacy. Known as “Crazy Bet”, she was able to sneak into enemy camps and gather information and provided it to Union troops. Her spy ring used ciphers to transmit intelligence across enemy lines. • Why: She was very vocal about her anti-slavery sentiments

8. Jeannette Laurimer Mabry • When: 1861-1865 • Where: East Tennessee • What: Despite her husband’s position in the Confederate army, she gathered information about goings-on on the front. She took this information and gave it to any guide or spy headed towards Union lines. • Why: She was a staunch Unionist in spite Confederate family ties

9. How they Spied • Women were considered innocuous and considered too gentile to spy • They were able to get away with their schemes because men would not search women. • Women would hide contraband, information, maps and supplies in hidden pockets, in their hair, in their dresses and in baskets that looked like supplies.

10. More Links • National Museum of Women’s History • Belle Boyd Cottage • Belle Boyd House • Rose O/Neal Greenhow Papers • Maggie L Walker historic site • Tennessee Encyclopedia • Georgia Encyclopedia • City of Fairfax Court House • Find a Grave Mary Elizabeth Bowser

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