Capital Dames: The Civil War and the Women of Washington, 1848-1868

In this engrossing and informative companion to her New York Times bestsellers Founding Mothers and Ladies of Liberty Cokie Roberts marks the sesquicentennial of the Civil War by offering a riveting look at Washington DC and the experiences influence and contributions of its women during this momentous period of American historyWith the outbreak of the Civil War the small social Southern town of Washington DC found itself caught between warring sides in a four-year battle that would determine the future of the United StatesAfter the declaration of secession many fascinating Southern women left the city leaving their friendssuch as Adele Cutts Douglas and Elizabeth Blair Leeto grapple with questions of safety and sanitation as the capital was transformed into an immense Union army camp and later a hospital With their husbands brothers and fathers marching off to war either on the battlefield or in the halls of Congress the women of Washington joined the cause as well And more women went to the Capital City to enlist as nurses supply organizers relief workers and journalists Many risked their lives making munitions in a highly flammable arsenal toiled at the Treasury Department printing greenbacks to finance the war and plied their needlework skills at The Navy Yardonce the sole province of mento sew canvas gunpowder bags for the troopsCokie Roberts chronicles these womens increasing independence their political empowerment their indispensable role in keeping the Union unified through the war and in helping heal it once the fighting was done She concludes that the war not only changed Washington it also forever changed the place of womenSifting through newspaper articles government records and private letters and diariesmany never before publishedRoberts brings the war-torn capital into focus through the lives of its formidable women.