Mary Walker: Medal Of Honor

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Mary Walker was an advocate for women 's rights and the first woman awarded the Medal of Honor. At the outbreak of the Civil War Mary Walker volunteered in Washington to join the Union effort, and she worked as a nurse in a temporary hospital set up in the capital. In 1862 she was sent to Virginia to provide medical care to wounded soldiers. In 1863 she was briefly appointed as a surgeon in an Ohio Regiment. The stories that surround this time of her life are undocumented, but in 1864, she was a prisoner of war exchanged for a Confederate soldier. Some people say she was captured on purpose so she could spy for the Union. In September of 1864 Mary Walker was hired as an assistant surgeon to the Ohio 52nd Infantry. September 1865 she was awarded