Deborah Sampson - Army

Army

In 1778, she enlisted in the army as a Continental soldier. In that day and age, women were not allowed to enlist, so she disguised herself as a man. She had little trouble doing this, since she was 5"7 which was tall for a woman. In disguise, the local recruiting office enlisted her under the name of "Robert Shurtliff" of Carver. On May 20, 1782, she tried enlisting in the army time successfully enlisting in the army on the master of Master Noah Taft of Uxbridge, under the name of her deceased brother, Robert Shurtliff Sampson, and his/her residence as Uxbridge, Massachusetts. Her signature still exists in Massachusetts records.

She was chosen for the Light Infantry Company of the 4th Massachusetts Regiment under the command of Captain George Webb. The unit, consisting of fifty to sixty men, was first quartered in Bellingham, Massachusetts and later the unit mustered at Worcester under the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment, commanded by Colonel Shepard.

Sampson fought in several skirmishes. During her first battle, on July 3, 1782, outside Tarrytown, New York, she received two musket balls in her thigh and an enormous cut on her forehead. She begged her fellow soldiers to let her die and not take her to the hospital, but they refused to abandon her. A soldier put her on his horse, and they rode six miles to a hospital. The doctors treated her head wound, but she left the hospital before they could attend to the musket balls. Fearful that her true identity would be discovered, she removed one of the balls herself with a penknife and sewing needle, but her leg never fully healed because the other ball was too deep for her to reach. On April 1, 1783, she was promoted and spent seven months serving as a waiter to General John Paterson. This job entitled her to a better quality of life, better food, less danger, and a shelter.

After the peace treaty was signed, everyone thought the war was over. However, on June 24, the President of Congress ordered General Washington to send a fleet of soldiers to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to aid in squelching a rebellion of several American officers. During the summer of 1783, Sampson came down with malignant fever and was cared for by a doctor, Barnabas Binney. He removed her clothes to treat her and discovered the cloth she used to bind her body and, thus, discovered her secret. He did not betray her secret; he took her to his house, where his wife and daughters housed and treated her.

After Sampson recovered she returned to the army, but not for very long. In September 1783 peace was assured through the signing of the Treaty of Paris. November 3 was the date for the soldiers to be sent home. When Dr. Binney asked her to deliver a note to General John Paterson, she thought that her secret was out. However, General Henry Knox never uttered a word; instead, she received an honorable discharge from the service, a note with some words of advice, and a sum of money sufficient to bear her expenses home. Thus, on October 25, 1783, General Henry Knox honorably discharged Deborah Sampson from the Army at West Point, after a year and a half of service.