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Mary Edwards Walker, Civil War Doctor

Updated Mar 25, 2024
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Mary Edwards Walker, Civil War Doctor
First female US Army surgeon, Dr. Mary Edwards Walker.

She began as a nurse on the battlefield of the Civil War but became a (civilian) battlefield surgeon during the war. (She graduated as a medical doctor in 1855 but women weren't accepted for battlefield service - she changed that.) She was awarded the Medal of Honor for her service (the only woman to receive the Medal of Honor).

After the War, she was a supporter of such issues as health care, temperance, women's rights and dress reform for women. (Look at the photo!)
Date & Place: in USA
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Today we might wonder if this woman was transgender (in this case a man born into a woman's body). She sure looks like she would have preferred being born a man. I can understand preferring pants over dresses, but a top hat and men's clothes? She would have at least been considered a "cross dresser" by her peers. I wonder what her contemporaries thought.
My point of view is this, Sandra, for what it's worth: She was a woman at a time when women weren't taken seriously and didn't have the options we have today. In order to achieve what she did, she had to "de-sex" herself. Dressing like a man made others look at her for what she did, not how she dressed. Look at how difficult it is now for women to command respect, over 150 years later. She dressed as a man so that she would be seen for what she did, not for how she looked.
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Mary Edwards Walker
Mary Edwards Walker was born on November 26, 1832, and died at age 86 years old on February 21, 1919. Family, friend, or fan, this family history biography is for you to remember Mary Edwards Walker.
Age in photo:
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