Mary Hays (American Revolutionary War): Difference between revisions
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hub.guitarhero.com/hubhub.ghubhub.guitarhero.chub.guitarhero.com/om/.guitarhero.com/uitarhero.com/.guitarhero.com/hub.guitarhero.com/hub.hub.guitaAlthough Rebecca Motte didn't start the fire, she provided the needed ingredient. She helped set fire to her own home. Now, why would she do such a thing? Well, her home situated high above Charleston, South Carolina, was ideally suited for a fort. So, the British moved her out. They moved in. But, not for long. The Patriots needed the British out. They planned to burn the house. Rebecca wanted her home back so badly that it did not matter if it burned. So, she provided the fire arrows for the task. The British moved out quickly. The Patriots moved in even more quickly, saving most of the house from destruction. For their efforts, Rebecca served them a meal in her reclaimed house. rhero.cohub.guitarhero.com/m/guitarhero.com/ |
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{{Infobox military person |
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|name =Molly Pitcher |
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|battles =[[American Revolutionary War]] |
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[[File:Molly Pitcher currier ives.jpg|right|thumb|Molly Pitcher at the [[Battle of Monmouth]], [[lithograph]]]] |
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'''Molly Pitcher''' was a nickname given to a woman said to have fought in the American [[Battle of Monmouth]], who is generally believed to have been '''Mary Ludwig Hays McCauly'''. Since various Molly Pitcher tales grew in the telling, many historians regard Molly Pitcher as [[folklore]] rather than history, or suggest that Molly Pitcher may be a composite image inspired by the actions of a number of real women. The name itself may have originated as a nickname given to women who carried water to men on the battlefield during the war. Army base, Fort Bragg holds an annual event called "Molly Pitcher Day" show casing weapon systems for family members, Airborne Operations, and Field Artillery. |
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== Legend and evidence == |
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The web |
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[[File:Molly Pitcher engraving.jpg|right|thumb|Molly Pitcher at the [[Battle of Monmouth]], engraving by J.C. Armytage, c1859]] |
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Pages from the UK |
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The deeds in the story of Molly Pitcher are generally attributed to Mary Ludwig Hays McCauley.<ref>[http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1999/summer/pitcher.html Will the Real Molly Pitcher Please Stand Up!]</ref> Molly was a common nickname for women named Mary in the Revolutionary time period.<ref name="eb">[http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9060208 "Pitcher, Molly."] '''''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]''. 13 February 2007.</ref> Biographical information about her has been gathered by descendent-historians,<ref>[http://goodyear-mascaro.org/Ludwig-Hays/Molly-Pitcher.html The Real Pennsylvania Dutch American, "Molly Pitcher"]</ref> including her cultural heritage, given name, probable year of birth, marriages, progeny, census and tax records, etc., suggesting a reasonably reliable account of her life. Nonetheless, independent review of these documents and the conclusions suggested by the family still needs to be done by professional historians; some details of her life and evidence of the story of her heroic deeds remain sparse. |
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Mary Ludwig was born to a [[Germany|German]] family in [[Pennsylvania]]. There is some dispute over her actual birth date. A marker in the cemetery where she is buried lists her birth date as October 13, 1744.<ref>http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=pv&GRid=820&PIpi=135485</ref> Mary had a moderate sized family including Mary and her older brother Johann Martin, and their parents, Anna Margaretha (Wildt) and Hans Georg Ludwick, who was a butcher. It is likely that she never attended school or learned to read, as education was not considered necessary for young girls during this time.<ref name="Koestler-Grack">Koestler-Grack, Rachel A. ''Molly Pitcher: Heroine of the War for Independence''. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers, 2006. ISBN 0-7910-8622-4.</ref> |
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In [[Bucks County]], [[Pennsylvania]], Mary met William Hays, a barber. They were married in 1769. It has often been mistakenly reported that Mary's first husband was named John. However, Continental Army records show that William Hays was an artilleryman at the [[Battle of Monmouth]] in 1778.<ref name="Rockwell">Rockwell, Anne ''They Called Her Molly Pitcher''. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002. ISBN 0-679-89187-0.</ref> (Mary's next husband was named John McCaulley). On July 12, 1774, in a meeting in the [[Presbyterian Church]] in Carlisle, Dr. William Irvine organized a town boycott of British goods as a protest of the British [[Tea Act]]. William Hays' name appears on a list of people who were charged with enforcing the boycott.<ref name="Koestler-Grack"/> |
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== Valley Forge == |
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In 1777, William Hays enlisted in Proctor's 4th Pennsylvania Artillery, which later became Proctor's 4th Artillery of the Continental Army. During the winter of 1777, Mary Hays joined her husband at the Continental Army's winter camp at [[Valley Forge]], [[Pennsylvania]]. She joined a group of [[camp follower]]s led by [[Martha Washington]] who would bake and deliver food, wash clothes and blankets, and care for sick and dying soldiers. |
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In the spring of 1778, the Continental Army was retrained under [[Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben|Baron von Steuben]]. During this time, William Hays trained as an artilleryman. Mary Hays and other "camp followers" served as "water girls" during the training, carrying water to drilling infantry troops on hot days. Also, artillerymen needed a constant supply of fresh water to cool down the hot [[cannon]] barrel and to soak the rag tied to the end of the "ramrod" or "rammer," the long pole with which they cleaned sparks and gunpowder out of the barrel after each shot. |
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It is likely that Mary Hays earned her famous nickname, Molly Pitcher, during this time. During training, artillery and infantry soldiers would shout "Molly! Pitcher!" whenever they needed Mary to bring water.<ref name="Koestler-Grack"/> |
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== Battle of Monmouth == |
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At the [[Battle of Monmouth]] in June 1778, Mary Hays attended to the Revolutionary soldiers by giving them water. Just before the battle started, she found a spring to serve as her water supply. Two places on the battlefield are currently marked as the "[[Monmouth Battlefield State Park|Molly Pitcher Spring]]." Mary Hays spent much of the early day carrying water to soldiers and artillerymen, often under heavy fire from British troops. |
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The weather was hot, over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Sometime during the battle, William Hays collapsed, either wounded or suffering from heat exhaustion. It has often been reported that Hays was killed in the battle, but it is known that he survived.<ref name="Koestler-Grack"/> |
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As her husband was carried off the battlefield, Mary Hays took his place at the cannon. For the rest of the day, in the heat of battle, Mary continued to "swab and load" the cannon using her husband's rammer. At one point, a British musket ball or cannon ball flew between her legs and tore off the bottom of her skirt. Mary supposedly said, "Well, that could have been worse," and went back to loading the cannon.<ref name="Rockwell"/> |
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Later in the evening, the fighting was stopped due to gathering darkness. Although [[George Washington]] and his commanders expected the battle to continue the following day, the British forces retreated during the night and continued on to [[Sandy Hook, New Jersey|Sandy Hook]], [[New Jersey]]. The battle was seen as a major victory for the Continental Army. |
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After the battle, General Washington asked about the woman whom he had seen loading a cannon on the battlefield. In commemoration of her courage, he issued Mary Hays a [[Warrant Officer|warrant]] as a [[non commissioned officer]]. Afterwards, she was known as "Sergeant Molly," a nickname that she used for the rest of her life.<ref name="Rockwell"/> |
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== Later life == |
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Following the end of the war, Mary Hays and her husband William returned to Carlisle, Pennsylvania. During this time, Mary gave birth to a son named Johanes (or John).<ref name="Koestler-Grack"/> |
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In late 1787 or very early 1788, William Hays died. In 1793, Mary Hays married John McCauley, another Revolutionary War veteran and possibly a friend of William Hays. McCauley was a stone cutter for the local Carlisle prison. However, the marriage was reportedly not a happy one, as McCauley had a violent temper. It was McCauley who was the cause of Mary's financial downfall, causing Mary to sell 200 acres of bounty land left to her by William Hays, for 30 dollars. Sometime between 1807 and 1810, John McCauley disappeared, and it is not known what became of him.<ref name="Koestler-Grack"/> |
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Mary McCauley continued to live in Carlisle. She earned her living as a general servant for hire, cleaning and painting houses, washing windows, and caring for children and sick people. "Sergeant Molly," as she was known, was often seen in the streets of Carlisle wearing a striped skirt, wool stockings, and a ruffled cap.<ref name="Koestler-Grack"/> She was well liked by the people of Carlisle, who said that her only flaw was that she "often cursed like a soldier." <ref name="Rockwell"/> |
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On February 21, 1822, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania awarded Mary McCauley an annual pension of $40 for her service. She died January 22, 1832, in Carlisle, at the approximate age of 87.<ref name="eb">[http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9060208 "Pitcher, Molly."] ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]''. 13 February 2007.</ref> She is buried in the Old Graveyard in Carlisle, under the name "Molly McCauley." A statue of "Molly Pitcher," adorned by a cannon, stands in the cemetery. |
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== Margaret Corbin == |
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Another probable source for the legend of "Molly Pitcher" is the true story of [[Margaret Corbin]], which bears many similarities to the story of Mary Hays. Margaret Corbin was the wife of John Corbin of [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|Philadelphia]], also an artilleryman in the Continental army. On November 12, 1776, John Corbin was one of 2,800 American soldiers who defended [[Fort Washington (New York)|Fort Washington]] in northern [[Manhattan]] from 9,000 attacking [[Hessian (soldiers)|Hessian troops]] under British command. When John Corbin was killed, Margaret took his place at the cannon, and continued to fire it until she was seriously wounded in the arm. In 1779, Margaret Corbin was awarded an annual pension by the state of Pennsylvania for her heroism in battle. She was the first woman in the United States to receive a military pension. Her nickname was "Captain Molly." <ref name="Koestler-Grack"/> |
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== Commemorations == |
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=== Federal === |
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[[File:Molly pitcher stamp.jpg|thumb|right|150px|1928 Molly Pitcher stamp.]] |
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[[File:fh-mollypitcher.jpg|thumb|150px|Molly Pitcher depicted at base of Columbus monument in front of Freehold, NJ Courthouse]] |
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[[File:Mollypitcher spring.jpg|thumb|150px|Molly Pitcher Spring Marker]] |
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In 1928, "Molly Pitcher" was honored with an [[overprint]] reading "''MOLLY / PITCHER''" on a U.S. [[postage stamp]]. Earlier that year, festivities had been planned to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the [[Battle of Monmouth]]. Stamp collectors petitioned the U.S. Post Office Department for a [[commemorative stamp]] to mark the anniversary. After receiving several rejections, New Jersey congressman Ernest Ackerman, a stamp collector himself, enlisted the assistance of the majority leader of the House, John Q. Tilson.<ref name=Linns>{{cite news |
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| last = Hotchner |
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| first = william M. |
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| title = The scandal surrounding the Molly Pitcher overprint stamp of 1928 |
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| work = Linn's Stamp News |
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| pages = 6 |
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| publisher = Amos Press Inc. |
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| date = 2008-08-25}}</ref> [[United States Postmaster General|Postmaster General]] Harry New steadfastly refused to issue a commemorative stamp specifically acknowledging the battle or Molly Pitcher. In a telegram to Tilson, Postmaster New explained, "Finally, however, I have agreed to put a surcharged title on ten million of the regular issue Washington 2¢ stamps bearing the name 'Molly Pitcher.'"<ref name=Linns/> |
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Molly was finally pictured on an [[imprinted stamp]] on a [[postal card]] issued in 1978 for the 200th anniversary of the battle.<ref>[http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Crete/9404/post5.html&date=2009-10-25+05:55:25 United States Postal Cards] UX77, multicolored, lithographed, issued September 8, 1978, in Freehold, New Jersey. Bicentennial of the Battle of Monmouth on June 28, 1778, and to honor Molly Pitcher (Mary Ludwig Hays)</ref> |
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"Molly" was further honored in [[World War II]] with the naming of the [[Liberty ship]] [[List of Liberty ships, M|SS ''Molly Pitcher'']], launched, and subsequently torpedoed, in 1943. |
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The stretch of [[US Route 11]] between [[Shippensburg, Pennsylvania]], and the Pennsylvania-[[Maryland]] state line is known as the ''Molly Pitcher Highway''. |
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The Field Artillery and Air Defense Artillery branches of the US Army established an honorary society in Molly Pitcher's name, the [[Honorable Order of Molly Pitcher]]. Membership is ceremoniously bestowed upon wives of artillerymen during the annual Feast of St. Barbara. The Order of Molly Pitcher recognizes individuals who have voluntarily contributed in a significant way to the improvement of the Field Artillery Community. |
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=== State === |
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The "Molly Pitcher" rest stop on the [[New Jersey Turnpike]] is named for her and is located at southbound mile 71.7. |
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=== Other === |
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There is a hotel in [[Red Bank, New Jersey]], not far from the site of the [[Battle of Monmouth]], called the ''[[Molly Pitcher Inn]]''. Close by the site, in Freehold, New Jersey, there is a small stone marker that purports to indicate the location of Molly Pitcher's well. The American Legion Post in Englishtown is named "Molly Pitcher Post 04". In the 1940s a [[Gramophone_record#78_rpm_disc_developments|78 rpm record album]] for children dramatized the Molly Pitcher story with musical accompaniment. |
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There is a statue of her in Old Cemetery, [[Carlisle, Pennsylvania]] as well as a hotel named after her in the downtown area. |
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Monmouth Park in Oceanport, New Jersey, has run the Molly Pitcher Stakes since 1946. |
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The Molly Pitcher Brewing Company located in Atascadero, California opened its doors on June 7, 2012. |
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== See also == |
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* [[Agustina de Aragón]] |
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* [[Deborah Sampson]] |
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* [[Molly Corbin]] |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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== Bibliography == |
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* Bohrer, Melissa Lukeman. ''Glory, Passion, and Principle: The Story of Eight Remarkable Women at the Core of the American Revolution''. New York: Atria Books, 2003. ISBN 0-7434-5330-1. |
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* Raphael, Ray. ''Founding Myths: Stories That Hide Our Patriotic Past''. New York: New Press, 2004. ISBN 1-56584-921-3. Raphael regards "Molly Pitcher" as a myth that serves to obscure the actual (though less dramatic) contributions of women to the war effort. |
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* ''The Real Pennsylvania Dutch American, "Molly Pitcher" - A Documented History''. ISBN 1-4685-1019-3. |
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== External links == |
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* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=820 Find-A-Grave profile for "Molly Pitcher", identified there as Mary (Molly) Ludwig Hays (never spelled Hayes) McCauley (also spelled McCalley)] |
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* [http://www.1847usa.com/identify/0537_621.htm Molly Pitcher Overprint on 2c Postage Stamp] |
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* [http://tugster.wordpress.com/2007/12/19/still-balancing Tugster Blog of Molly Pitcher Rest Area on the New Jersey Turnpike] |
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* {{Cite Appletons'|Molly, Captain|year=1900}} |
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{{New Jersey in the American Revolutionary War}} |
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{{American tall tales}} |
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{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. --> |
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|NAME =Molly Pitcher |
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|ALTERNATIVE NAMES =Captain Molly? |
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|SHORT DESCRIPTION =Woman soldier in American Revolutionary War |
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|DATE OF BIRTH =1754 |
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|PLACE OF BIRTH = |
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|DATE OF DEATH =1832 |
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|PLACE OF DEATH = |
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}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pitcher, Molly}} |
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[[Category:American folklore]] |
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[[Category:American people of German descent]] |
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[[Category:Women in the American Revolution]] |
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[[Category:New Jersey in the American Revolution]] |
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[[Category:People from Carlisle, Pennsylvania]] |
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[[Category:Women in 18th-century warfare]] |
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[[Category:1754 births]] |
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[[Category:1832 deaths]] |
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[[Category:Tall tales]] |
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[[ru:Питчер, Молли]] |
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Revision as of 17:37, 12 October 2012
hub.guitarhero.com/hubhub.ghubhub.guitarhero.chub.guitarhero.com/om/.guitarhero.com/uitarhero.com/.guitarhero.com/hub.guitarhero.com/hub.hub.guitaAlthough Rebecca Motte didn't start the fire, she provided the needed ingredient. She helped set fire to her own home. Now, why would she do such a thing? Well, her home situated high above Charleston, South Carolina, was ideally suited for a fort. So, the British moved her out. They moved in. But, not for long. The Patriots needed the British out. They planned to burn the house. Rebecca wanted her home back so badly that it did not matter if it burned. So, she provided the fire arrows for the task. The British moved out quickly. The Patriots moved in even more quickly, saving most of the house from destruction. For their efforts, Rebecca served them a meal in her reclaimed house. rhero.cohub.guitarhero.com/m/guitarhero.com/ Videos News Shopping BooksPlacesBlogsDiscussionsApplicationsPatents MoreFewer Search near…
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