Deborah Sampson

By 1782, the Revolutionary War had dragged on for eight years, and the Continental Army was stretched thin. Supplies were scarce, soldiers were exhausted, and every recruit counted. At a time when women were not permitted to serve, 21-year-old Deborah Sampson, who had been raised on a farm in Massachusetts, disguised herself as a man and enlisted under the name Robert Shurtliff.

For more than a year, Sampson performed the same duties as her fellow soldiers, enduring the grueling physical demands of marching, drilling, and combat. Wounded in battle, she treated her own injuries to avoid discovery, and when illness forced her to leave the army, she re-enlisted under the same alias, determined to continue her service. Her identity was revealed only after another illness forced her into medical care, ending her military service shortly before the war’s conclusion.

After the war, Sampson continued to defy expectations. She pressed for recognition and compensation, petitioning Congress for a military pension and sharing her story in public lectures. Her persistence, courage, and refusal to be confined by traditional roles captured the imagination of her contemporaries and left a vivid record of one woman’s extraordinary commitment to independence.