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American Women In The Civil War Essay

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Jessica Montgomery History 101 American History to 1877 Wendi Bryant September 16, 2014

Changes to America from The Civil War

Nobody wants to believe that wars are necessary or that innocent lives need to be shed in pursuit of freedom. But regardless of if one finds a war necessary or not, wars can benefit communities and countries in many ways for years to come. The Civil War, the most bloody war, had lasting impacts on the country. Because of the 600,000 lives lost, Slavery was banned, Women were able to receive more rights, and medical advances were made. Beginning in 1619, slavery was used as a way for colonists to produce crops efficiently. Many Africans were forced to labor and were treated poorly. The Civil War made it possible for slaves to become free. Many slaves used the war to their advantage and were already escaping the southern slave states through the …show more content…

The wartime economy brought women into the workforce, both north and south, for the first time in meaningful numbers” (Davis). Just before the Civil War, women were fighting to reform their rights and freedoms. The war really pushed the controversial topic of women’s rights to the forefront. Many women were left to pick up the slack after men left for the war. This was a chance for women to really prove themselves. “The war drew more women into the wage-earning work force as nurses, clerks, and factory operatives. Dorothea Dix served as superintendent of female nurses and, by successfully combating the prejudice against women providing medical treatment to men, opened a new occupation to women” (Henretta 429). Women also baked and canned food and provided goods to the soldiers and they even made clothing. The Civil War really encouraged women to do more outside of their homes with less people opposing and questioning the women doing anything outside their traditional

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The Civil War lasted from 1861 to 1865. Before this war, America’s social, political, and economic strains had been rising for years. Southern slave owners were pushing into new territories, attempting to swing new states to become slave states, with Northerners’ patience wearing thin. In America’s quest for more land, westward expansion only fueled the fire that divided the country even further. Concepts such as popular sovereignty were very unpopular amongst many citizens.

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Between 1861 and 1865 men were obligated to leave their homes and fight either on the union or confederate side of the United States. As a result women were forced to maintain the households while the primary breadwinners were gone. The Civil War challenged the ideology of the roles of women in the antebellum era. The roles of women in the north and south transformed tremendously and became a pivotal aspect to the war. One duty women took during the Civil War was become supporters of their male loved ones, which proved to be influential since it raised the morals of the men and gave them something to survive for.

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The Civil War (1861-1865) was a blotch on American history. It destroyed many acres and farms; hundreds of thousands of lives were taken; and not to mention the South’s territories were demolished. The cause of this conflict were the differences of the North and South cultures and their rights. During Abraham Lincoln’s presidency, the South was agricultural which meant that they needed slaves; however, the North was industrial. The South also wanted states’ rights and decide their way of life rather than following federal authorities.

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The jobs the women did during the war helped them provide for their family because they were getting paid as oppose to having a traditional job and not getting paid a dime. The jobs they had to do were difficult and hard at times but they did their best they could do, and although they didn’t get paid as much as men they still worked harder than ever. They wanted to show that they can do anything a men can do, they wanted to show that they can make a difference in the world. The women got a chance to show their abilities and

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Women before the Civil War devoted their lives to making a clean and healthy home for their family. Women fighting for the Union organized ladies’ aid societies to supply the Union troops with anything they needed. They went door-to-door, held county fairs, and had performances to raise money for the war. They tried to find ways to help the soldiers on the front lines. They cared for the sick and injured soldiers as nurses in hospitals.

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As a result of the war women were forced into the workforce due to many of the men being away at war. Many women had to run the family farm and work in factories and stores due to the reduced workforce. This provided an opportunity for women to obtain new job skills and change the belief that a woman’s place was in the home. Also, World War I provided an opportunity for women to enlist in the military as nurses and as part of the Naval Coastal Defense Reserve. Women participation in the labor force was helpful in the women’s suffrage movement that eventually gave women the right to vote thru the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920.

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The Civil War opened so many new opportunities for people. But it especially opened opportunities for women. The war established the importance of unity and equality between people. It was a time of change and innovation, with people finding new opportunities to pursue their dreams. Louisa May Alcott, an American novelist who served as a nurse in World War II, wrote in her journal, “I long to be a man, but as I can’t fight, I will content myself with working for those who can.”

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The women stepped in as the new head of the household “[performing] exhausting, physical work in and around their homes” (Middle Tennessee University, n.d.). Women began protecting and providing for their families, continuing the business, or farms “the cultivation of land, or a scanty living from the hills and valleys of this border, was made through much difficulty by women and children” (Crump 1907). Women knew their family and friends in the war needed as much help as possible so women “became valued employees at munitions plants and arsenals, building the machinery of war” (Civil War Trust, n.d.). Women made gunpowder, ammunition, and filled cartridges to supply the troops fighting the war, but by doing so put themselves in danger. Women such as Mary Jane Black encountered first hand the dangers of the

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The years of the war was tiring and strenuous not only for the soldiers at war, but also for the women who were toughing it out on the home front. After clocking in long hours at the factory building machines and vehicles needed for the war, they still had to perform their household duties. But, many were happy and willing to do so, as working outside of their homes and helming jobs that they never did before was how women showed their patriotism for their country. Women had to maintain the industrial as well as the agricultural sectors in order to ensure that the American society could continue to function, and to help the allies in the war (“Brock, J., Dickey, J. W., Harker, R., & Lewis, C”, 2015). New opportunities were also made available for women in white-collar sectors.

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