Assumed Identity Author: William Mask ISBN Print: 978-1-63260-372-2 ePub: 978-1-63260-373-9 Copyright © 2013 SNAP! Learning™ 2490 W. Shaw Ave. #200 Fresno, Ca 93711 855.200.SNAP www.snaplearning.net ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher. TABLE OF CONTENTS Disguised Identity............................................................................................................ 4 Sarah Emma Edmonds ..................................................................................................... 5 Jennie Hodges ................................................................................................................. 6 Loreta Janeta Velazquez ................................................................................................... 7 Acknowledged Identity ................................................................................................. 8-9 Revealed Identity: The Trial of Jennie Hodges/Albert D.J. Cashier ................................10-13 References .................................................................................................................... 14 Quick Writes .............................................................................................................15-17 Research Integrate and Synthesize ................................................................................. 18 Vocabulary .................................................................................................................... 19 Oral Reading Fluency Chart ............................................................................................ 20 Book Check ...............................................................................................................21-22 Disguised Identity Battle of Chickamauga Lithograph by Kurz & Allison 1 The historical analysis of the American Civil War (1861- During the war, the choices for women were limited to 3 1865) has consistently proven over the last 150 years that staying at home, watching and caring for children or prop- the conditions faced by soldiers, and those that remained erty, or helping out with odd jobs around the community. on the home front, were nothing short of complete devas- The thought of grabbing a musket was deemed unladylike, tation. Often, combatants fought with inadequate weapon unacceptable, and, more importantly, illegal. supplies, clothing, and food, especially the soldiers repre- senting the Confederate States. Regardless, instead of waiting for bad news from the bat- 4 tlefields, some women decided to boldly join in the war 2 While the plight of the soldiers was alarming, it sometimes effort. The laws for both the North and South were explic- pales in comparison to the conditions faced by the families it: No Women Allowed! Therefore, these brave women fighting to survive without a man in the house. In fact, it decided to assume the identity of men so that they could is estimated that over 4 million men were sent to fight in seize a weapon and fight. In fact, these women often ex- America’s bloodiest conflict, and over 600,000 lost their celled to higher ranks than the men and fought just as lives. This means that thousands of American families were hard, and as long, as their male counterparts. fatherless for a significant time, many forever. 4 Sarah Emma Edmonds “Franklin Thompson” 5 Sarah Emma Edmonds became an overnight hero for Michigan Infantry Volunteers. She held the positions of women of the Civil War. Raised in New Brunswick, Canada, male nurse, the regiment postmaster, and the division on a farm that required the girls to perform the same tasks mail clerk. as the boys, Sarah developed a mental and physical tough- ness. She rode horses, fished, hunted, chopped wood, and She consistently received promotions for outstanding 7 milked cows. Therefore, she felt competent enough to efforts. Thompson, according to a Congressional Report, compete with the men. “gave his heart and soul to the regiment, sharing in all its toils…never absent from duty, obeying all orders with in- 6 In 1860, with Civil War looming in the United States, Sarah telligence…and efficient aid to the Union cause.” Edmonds crossed the border into the United States and changed her achieved great heights during her enlistment period, identity. She dressed as a man, called herself “Franklin giving great hope to others. Thompson,” then enlisted in Company F of the Second 5 Jennie Hodgers “Albert D.J. Cashier” 8 Jennie Hodgers was an Irish immigrant who made her way Tennessee, lead by Ulysses S. Grant, and then journeyed to the United States as a stowaway. She resided in Belvi- to Mississippi, for the siege of Vicksburg. As Albert dere, Illinois. Like Edmonds, by seventeen Jennie began Cashier, she shot and killed Confederate soldiers during to dress like a boy, due to her country-like surround- the siege, giving further evidence to support the abilities ings. Eventually she adopted the male name, “Albert D.J. of women in war. Cashier,” and joined the 95th Illinois Infantry Volunteers in August 1862. Many years later, Hodgers was exposed as a woman and 10 then found guilty of impersonating a man. She was incar- 9 However, the similarities between the two stop there, for cerated in an insane asylum, but after serving a short sen- Jennie belonged to a “fighting regiment.” And fight they tence, she was released. Thereafter, Jennie returned to her did! Her regiment traveled south to join the Army of life as a man, Albert Cashier. 6 Loreta Janeta Velazquez “Lt. Harry T. Buford” 11 The Confederate army also possessed its fair share of Throughout the entire war effort of the South, Velazquez 13 women heroes dressed as males, most notably Loreta proved her invaluable dedication to defeating Union forces. Janeta Velazquez. Her second husband enlisted in the Towards the end of the war, she contracted an illness and Confederate army at her urging, and when he left for duty, subsequently her gender was exposed when hospitalized. she raised a regiment for him to command. When he For most of the war, her acting and dressing abilities kept died in an accident, she enlisted in disguise, and served at her double-identity concealed. Manassas/Bull Run, Ball’s Bluff, Fort Donelson, and Shiloh under the name Lieutenant Harry T. Buford. According to historical records, more than 400 women 14 fought for both sides, with fearlessness and honor in de- 12 Velazquez also posed as a woman entering Union fending their given cause, during the most devastating territories, seduced men into speaking of military strat- war in American history. This major crisis that rocked egies and maneuvers, then went back to Confederate the foundations of the young American nation disrupted leaders and divulged the information. She claimed, “There all areas of social norms, which in turn created a calling were several points about my disguise which were strictly for women to assume the identity of men for a noble and my own invention, and which, for certain good and suffi- mighty cause. cient reasons, I do not care to give to the public.” 7 Acknowledged Identity Marines with the Lioness Program refill their rifle magazines during the live-fire portion of their training at Camp Korean Village, Iraq, July 31, 2006. 15 Today, the modern woman no longer needs to assume While the position of the U.S. government to allow women 16 a male identity in order to serve the armed forces in the right to fight in combat duty seems groundbreaking, combat duty. In January of 2013, U.S. Pentagon offi- they are simply following the lead of many other nations. cials lifted all bans that had originally denied women Presently Israel, Australia, Canada, Norway, France, New certain combat positions, allowing them to fill “hun- Zealand, and North Korea are allowing women to protect dreds of thousands of front-line positions and poten- and serve their countries from the front lines. In fact, the tially elite commando jobs after generations of limits on North Korean government has established an “all-women’s their service.” This unprecedented move by U.S. officials artillery company under the Korean People’s Army Unit reversed a 1994 rule that had previously restricted women’s 4302, the Thrice Three-Revolution Red Flag Kamnamu combat roles due to their perceived lack of strength and (persimmon tree) Company.” conditioning for certain tasks and a fear that their presence might disrupt unit cohesion. 8 17 Current-day numbers highlight that over 230,000 U.S. of Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Army, but she also became women have served in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Female the first woman to join the Military Order of the Purple warriors have risked their lives and health in the same Heart, a national service organization of combat-wounded manner as men. In fact, of the 6,600 U.S. service members troops. that have died in both countries, 152 of them were women. She earned her distinction when a vehicle she was riding 20 18 In the U.S. Navy, women have begun to fill positions in in hit a roadside bomb. Due to the explosion, she and her the submarine force that have long been billets strictly re- fellow male soldier