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CIVIL WAR WOMEN
Primary Sources on the Internet


Diaries, Letters, Documents | Photographs and Prints

As a result of the Duke bibliography Women and the Civil War, we consistantly receive requests from students and teachers who would like to see primary sources on this topic available to th em via the Internet. In response, we have begun to transcribe and scan some of our manuscript collections which document women's experiences in the Civil War. Given the wealth of information about the Civil War already on the Internet, there is a relatively small amount of material that reflects women's lives and experiences during this time period. Below are links to primary sources on the Internet that are directly related to women and the Civil War. We encourage archivists, project staff, and Civil War enthusists to network more women's collections!

Tell us about other sites to add to this list!


DIARIES, LETTERS, and other DOCUMENTS

Alice Williamson Diary, 1864
Diary of a 16 year old rebel girl living in Gallatin, Tennessee during Union occupation of the area. Transcription and scanned image of original document held by the Special Collections Library at Duke Unversity.

Rose O'Neal Greenhow Papers, 1861-1864
Letters from Greenhow, a Confederate spy, to Jefferson Davis, Alexander Boteler, and others regarding war activites. Also several newspaper articles describing her imprisionment in 1861 and her death in 1864. Transcriptions and scanned images of original documents held in the Special Collections Library at Duke University. Another site specializing in military history provides information on Greenhow's war contributions as well as a picture and brief biographical caption.

Rachel Cormany Diary, June 14-July 6, 1863
An excerpt of this Franklin County, PA., woman's diary describing the town of Chambersburg during the Gettysburg campaign. Taken fromThe Cormany Diaries: A Northern Family in the Civil War, James C. Mohr, editor, Richard E. Winslow, III, assistant editor, (Pittsburg, University of Pittsburg Press, 1982), pp. 328-341. Part of the Valley of the Shadow project.

Carrie Berry Diary August 1, 1864-January 4, 1865
Passages from the diary of a 10 yr. old Atlanta girl describe the immediate affects of the War on her and her family. Transcription of original diary provided by the Atlanta Historical Center.

At Gettysburg, or What a Girl Saw and Heard of the Battle
A narrative by Tillie Allerman. Electronic text of a book originally published in 1889.

Civil War Reminiscences by Catharine Hunsecker
Transcription of a narrative which gives some general information about Hunsecker's life, but mainly focuses on the events of the Civil War and the affect it had on her community in Franklin County, PA. Part of the Valley of the Shadow project.

Sallie Seeper Scott Letter, April 15, 1865
Transcription of a love letter from Sallie Seeper Scott of "Lower Chanceford" (state unknown), to Robert Bennett, Chief Carpenter Shop in Washington, D.C. Original held in the Special Collections Department of the University Libraries at Virginia Tech. Part of their on-line collection of American Civil War Resources.

Memoir of Alansa Rounds Sterrett, c.1859-1865.
Transcription of original memoir housed in the the Augusta County Historical Society. Alansa Rounds Sterrett was Jedediah Hotchkiss' niece and a teacher at Loch Willow Academy during the Civil War. A Northerner, Alansa Rounds married Franklin F. Sterrett, a friend of Hotchkiss' and a Confederate cavalry officer. Part of the Valley of the Shadow project.

10th South Carolina Ladies Auxilary
This is a website for Civil War "re-enactresses" that contains a wealth of primary source information about women during the war. Site includes links to several WPA memoirs of South Carolina women during the war, detailed information about fashion and fabrics of the times, and a bibliography of suggested readings.

The Ladies Union Aid Society of St. Louis
Produced by a women's Civil War reenacting group, this site provides a history of the LUAS which contains excerpts from original documents related to the creation and work of the Society. Includes references to specific women such as Anna Clapp and Jesse Freement, but also illustrates the work of the many unnamed women who aided soldiers. Also has a bibliography for further reading.

Nancy Emerson Diary, 1862
Memoranda of events and thoughts of woman living in Augusta County, Virginia. Transcription and scanned images of the original manuscript diary held in the Alderman Library at the University of Virginia. Part of the Valley of the Shadow project.

PHOTOGRAPHS and PRINTS

The Library of Congress and the National Archives have scanned hundreds of photographs relating to the Civil War. While only a small percentage of these photos actually depict women (see below), other photographs may provide useful supplementary information or illustrations for women-focused projects. For instance, photos show towns where women lived and battles and events often described in women's diaries and letters. Each of the following images specifically include women:

From the Library of Congress' American Memory Project

Note: Because of the way the American Memory Project photographs are set up, we cannot provide direct links to each of the photos listed. To access the following photos, simply go to the Library of Congress Civil War Search Page, and search on any of the words in the following picture captions. Or search on words like women, girls, nurses, or lady.

To Duke Special Collections Library | To Women and the Civil War Bibliography

* Compiled by
Ginny Daley
6/96