The Wives of Soldiers
The Virginia Gazette (Dixon and Hunter).
The Virginia Gazette (Dixon and Hunter), September 21, 1776. Colonial Williamsburg Rockefeller Library Collections.
Document Text |
Summary |
| To Mess. DIXON & HUNTER. | To Mr. Dixon and Mr. Hunter. |
| By inferring the following in your gazette, you will oblige a friend to the Commonwealth. | If you print the following letter in your newspaper, you will help a friend to the Patriot cause. |
| To the LADIES whose husbands are in the continental army. | To the Ladies whose husbands are in the Continental Army. |
| I NOW address myself to you who are under the same trouble of mind that I myself am. I am now absent from the tenderest of husbands; but why is he absent from me? Because he is a soldier in the continental army, nobly supporting the glorious cause of liberty. I must confess, that when I hear of the dreadful wars and bloodshed, it makes me shudder, yet, when I reflect on the wickedness of a cruel and abandoned Ministry, who are forging chains, to bind not only us in the present age, but to bring our posterity into a lasting state of slavery; conspiring with our slaves to cut our throats, instigating the savage Indians to fall on our frontiers; I say, when I reflect on whole families inhumanly butchered by those savages, without regard to age or sex; the infant torn from its mother’s arms; the milk in its innocent mouth; its brains dashed out against the next post; and when I consider all these cruel scenes, owing to the contrivance of a cruel and abandoned tyrant and his agents (acts too shocking in the heathen nations, but more so when perpetrated by order of those who profess Christianity) I am not only willing to bear the absence of my dear husband for a short time, but am almost ready to start up with sword in hand to fight by his side in so glorious a cause. But let us support ourselves under the absence of our husbands as well as we can, and as we are not able to help them fight, let us pay our attention to another branch of American politics, which comes more immediately under our province, namely, in frugality and industry, at home particularly in manufacturing our own wearing; and let the tyrants of Great Britain see that the American Ladies have both ingenuity and industry, and that we dress with gentility without any of the British manufactories. Let us, in some measure, lay aside our visiting and fashions, and earnestly attend to carding, spinning, and weaving, and brown our fair arms in our bleach yards, and instead of the fine gewgaws of Great Britain wear linen of our own manufacturing; and although it may not be so very fine, yet we may say we paid nothing for it to Great Britain, and that we are free women, and while our dear husbands are nobly struggling in the army for that freedom, let us be fervent in prayer to ALMIGHTY GOD for their protection and safe return, and that it may please him to support us under our present troubles, and our dear husbands under their present trials, for CHRIST’s sake. I hope Ladies you will excuse the liberty I have taken in this short hint, as we are all greatly interested in this important affair. | I am writing to the women who are facing the same difficulties I am. I find myself without my wonderful husband. But why is he gone? Because he is a soldier in the Continental Army, nobly supporting the glorious cause of liberty. I have to confess when I hear about the battles and violence of the war, I shudder. But then I think about the cruel colonial government that is trying to force the colonies into a state like slavery. I think about them plotting with our enslaved people to have us murdered. I think about them encouraging Indigenous warriors to attack our settlements. I think about the families who have been murdered by Indigenous warriors, the babies who were torn from their mother’s arms only to have their heads cruelly smashed. Then I remember that all of this was encouraged by the English government. When I remember all this, I am not only willing to accept my husband’s absence, I am nearly ready to take up a sword and fight beside him. But let us support ourselves without our husbands as best we can. And since we cannot help them fight, let’s support the cause another way. Let’s make our own clothing and show the British government that we do not need any of their goods. Let’s put aside our entertainments to devote ourselves to producing our own cloth. It might not be as fine as the material produced in England, but we can say we made it ourselves, and we are free from the influence of England. While our husbands are fighting, let us pray every day for their protection and safe return. Let us pray that God will support us in our current difficulties, and our dear husbands too. I hope you will excuse me for writing to you all, as we are all very interested in this important moment. |
| I am, Ladies, your’s, &c. &c. &c.
ANNE TERREL |
I am, Ladies, yours, etc. etc.
Anne Terrel |
| Bradford county, September 1, 1776. | Bradford County, September 1, 1776 |
The Virginia Gazette (Dixon and Hunter), September 21, 1776.
Background
Women found a wide variety of ways to contribute to the Patriot cause during the American Revolution. From refusing to purchase imported goods to writing broadsides, publishing propaganda, or working directly for the troops, there were many public ways women supported the war effort. But most women’s political activity took place right at home. This allowed women to fulfill their traditional roles as wives and mothers while still contributing to the cause.
About the Documents
This letter by Anne Terrel was published in The Virginia Gazette on September 21, 1776. It offers empathy and guidance for women whose husbands have left to join the Continental Army. The letter captures the early enthusiasm for the war among Patriot women. It also contains hints of some of the propaganda that was circulating about the tactics taken by the British Army and their allies in the first year of the war. Finally, it demonstrates how women were encouraged to support the war effort without breaking the bounds of their traditional role in society.
Vocabulary
- broadside: A printed piece of paper; often used as a flyer or poster.
Discussion Questions
- How did Anne Terrel think women could contribute to the Revolutionary War effort?
- How does this letter make you feel? How do you think the women who read it in September 1776 responded?
- What does this letter reveal about the reactions of women in the early days of the American Revolution?
Suggested Activities
- Pair this resource with Spinning Wheels, Spinning Bees and Protesting Tea to consider how women used daily activities as a method to protest British rule and support the Patriot cause.
- For a larger lesson on how women used the written word to promote their political ideas in the Revolutionary Era, pair this resource with any or all of the following:
- Contrast this resource with Army Wife. How is the tone of this letter different from the tone of the letters Lucy Knox sent to her husband? What might account for those differences? Why should we read both?
- To learn more about why Anne Terrel feared the British Army was conspiring with enslaved people, see Dunmore’s Proclamation.
- To learn more about the experiences of Indigenous people during the American Revolution, see Madam Sacho and Sullivan’s Army, Life Story: Polly Cooper, and Life Story: Molly Brant.
Themes
POWER AND POLITICS; ACTIVISM AND SOCIAL CHANGE
The New York Historical Curriculum Library Connections
- For resources relating to the American Revolution in New York, see The Battle of Brooklyn.
