Kim Greer, Nevada Middle School, Nevada, Missouri
DESIGN LEVEL: Middle School-High School
Overview
Students will explore the various ways that women supported or resisted the Revolutionary War effort economically, politically and militarily.
Objectives
Students will:
- Analyze resources featuring Revolutionary War era women to compare and contrast their impact on the war effort.
- Research at least two women mentioned in the materials provided and create a two voice poem about their experiences.
Materials
- Women as Major Participants in the Revolutionary War, Carol Berkin, YouTube video
- Deborah Sampson and Other Women Who Fought, Carol Berkin, YouTube video
- Esther Sewall, Grace Galloway and other Loyalist Women, Carol Berkin, YouTube video
- Lunch Bite – The Female Review: or Memoirs of an American Young Lady, Rachel Nellis, YouTube video
- The Female Review: or, Memoirs of an American Young Lady, “A Citizen of Massachusetts” [Herman Mann], Dedham, Mass.: Nathaniel and Benjamin Heaton, for the Author, 1797, The Society of the Cincinnati, The Robert Charles Lawrence Fergusson Collection [see gallery below]
- Nancy Hart, Felix Darley, artist, Charles Regnier, engraver New York: Goupil & Co., 1853 The Society of the Cincinnati, The Robert Charles Lawrence Fergusson Collection
- Abigail Adams to John Adams, March 31, 1776, Massachusetts Historical Society
- Margaret Corbin, Revolutionary, American Revolution Institute
- Biography of Mary Ludwig Hays (1754-1832), National Women’s History Museum
- Moll Pitcher at the Battle of Monmouth, John Rogers, engraver; after D.M. Carter, artist, New York, 1856, The Society of the Cincinnati [see gallery below]
- Recollections of a Georgia loyalist / Johnston, Elizabeth Lichtenstein, 1764-1848.; Eaton, Arthur Wentworth Hamilton, 1849-1937, ed. — New York ; London :: M.F. Mansfield & Co., 1901 [excerpt]
- Ms. Greer’s Two Voice Poem Template
Recommended Time
One or two 50-minute class periods.
Activity
- Ask students to take notes from the primary and secondary resources identified above in “Materials” on a paper that has been divided into quadrants labeled: economic, political, loyalist, and military. Students should make observations about the various roles women played during the Revolutionary War, then share those thoughts within a small group.
- Ask students to work in teams to choose two women based on their resource notes and create a “two voice poem” using Ms. Greer’s template. The more varied and contrasting the experiences, the better. Each student team should recite their poem for the group, with each individual student speaking in the voice of the woman they researched (line one or two), then with both students saying the third line together.
Extension
This lesson is designed to be adapted for distance learning but if it is taking place in a traditional classroom, students could use Flipgrid or their phones to film their performance of the poem.
Students could choose one historical figure that they have been introduced to and create a Google Slides presentation arguing for their recognition on a coin or statue.
Standards Addressed
2016 MISSOURI LEARNING STANDARDS, SOCIAL STUDIES
DT.AH.6-8.T1S1.B: Explain connections between historical context and peoples’ perspectives at the time in American history.
DT.AH.6-8.T1S1.D: Using an inquiry lens, develop compelling questions about American history prior to 1870, to determine helpful resources and consider multiple points of views represented in the resources.
DT.AH.6-8.T1S1.E: Analyze the causes and consequences of a specific problem in American history prior to c. 1870 as well as the challenges and opportunities faced by those trying to address the problem.
Click to play video segment.
Daughters of Liberty and Loyalist Women, Part 1 of 8: "Women as Major Participants in the Revolutionary War"
Carol Berkin, Presidential Professor American Colonial and Revolutionary History, Baruch College
April 9, 2014
Click to play video segment.
Daughters of Liberty and Loyalist Women, Part 5 of 8: "Deborah Sampson and Other Women Who Fought"
Carol Berkin, Presidential Professor American Colonial and Revolutionary History, Baruch College
April 9, 2014
Click to play video segment.
Daughters of Liberty and Loyalist Women, Part 7 of 8: "Esther Sewall, Grace Galloway, and other Loyalist Women"
Carol Berkin, Presidential Professor American Colonial and Revolutionary History, Baruch College
April 9, 2014
Click to play video segment.Research Services Librarian Rachel Nellis discusses "The Female Review: or Memoirs of an American Young Lady" by Herman Mann. In this 1797 biography, Mann explored the life of Deborah Sampson, a soldier in the Massachusetts Line and one of the first female pensioners of the American Revolution. Mixing fact with romantic inventions, this imaginative account of Sampson’s wartime service was published to support her case for a pension, which she first received in 1805. Sampson’s life and the creation of this book provide an interesting starting point for analysis of the treatment of enlisted soldiers and woman combatants after the war.
Click for a larger view.
The Female Review: or, Memoirs of an American Young Lady
“A Citizen of Massachusetts” [Herman Mann]
Dedham, Mass.: Nathaniel and Benjamin Heaton, for the Author, 1797The Society of the Cincinnati, The Robert Charles Lawrence Fergusson Collection
Deborah Sampson (1760-1827) enlisted in the Massachusetts Continental Line in May 1782 using the name “Robert Shurtleff.” Mixing fact with romantic inventions, this imaginative account of Sampson’s wartime service was published to support her case for a pension. In 1805 she received a disability pension of $4 a month, which she relinquished to accept a pension of $8 a month awarded under the Pension Act of 1818.
Click for a larger view.
Nancy Hart
Felix Darley, artist, Charles Regnier, egraver
New York: Goupil & Co., 1853The Society of the Cincinnati, The Robert Charles Lawrence Fergusson Collection
The life and legend of Nancy Hart embodies the violent struggle between patriot and loyalist neighbors that characterized the American Revolution in the Georgia backcountry. This 19th century color lithograph depicts Hart's storied encounter with a party of loyalists. The engraving is based on Elizabeth F. Ellet's account of Hart in her 1848 history of women during the American Revolution. This print was marketed to both American and French audiences, reflecting interest on both sides of the Atlantic.
Click for a larger view.
Moll Pitcher at the Battle of Monmouth
John Rogers, engraver; after D.M. Carter, artist
New York, 1856The Society of the Cincinnati
Battle scene with Molly Pitcher in the center assisting two solders fire a cannon next to an officer who lies mortally wounded. In the background to the right are a group of officers on horseback, the first of which appears to be George Washington.
