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Sanitary Commission

Gettysburg Diaries: Georgeanna Woolsey's "Friendly Enemies"

Tue, 2015-07-07 08:58 -- Jocelyn Green
Today in 1863, Gettysburg began to experience a second invasion. The armies had withdrawn on July 4, and now it was time to pick up the pieces of shattered homes--and bodies. Last week I shared the perspectives of housewife Sarah Broadhead and of teenager Tillie Pierce. Today I'd like to share from the perspective of Sanitary Commission nurse Georgeanna Woolsey. The following is excerpted from my nonfiction book, Stories of Faith and Courage from the Home Front: Friendly Enemies [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"671", "attributes":{"class":"media-image alignright wp-image-216 size-full", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"124", "height":"179", "alt":"BB-homefront-cover_125"}}]]When the armies moved out, they left behind 21,000 wounded Union and Confederate soldiers. The town of Gettysburg, with its 2400 residents, was taxed beyond their limit to feed, clothe, house and otherwise care for the men. Waves of volunteers from the U.S. Sanitary Commission and the U.S. Christian Commission flooded the town to help, bringing storehouses of food, clothing, and hospital supplies, plus manpower to relieve the townspeople of their nonstop cooking and nursing. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"1287", "attributes":{"class":"media-image size-medium wp-image-2890", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"279", "height":"300", "alt":"Georgeanna Woolsey"}}]] Georgeanna Woolsey   Among the Sanitary Commission volunteers was Georgeanna Woolsey, who distributed fresh food and drink to the men on ambulance trains. She recalled: I do not think that a man of the 16,000 who were transported during our stay, went from Gettysburg, without a good meal—rebels and Unionists together, they all had it, and were pleased and satisfied. “Have you any friends in the army, madam?” a rebel soldier, lying on the floor of the car, said to me, as I gave him some milk. “Yes, my brother is on -----‘s staff.” “I thought so, ma’am. You can always tell; when people are good to soldiers they are sure to have friends in the army.” “We are rebels, you know, ma’am,” another said; “Do you treat rebels so?” It was strange to see the good brotherly feeling come over the soldiers, our own and the rebels, when side by side they lay in our tents. “Hullo, boys! This is the pleasantest way to meet, isn’t it? We are better friends when we are as close as this, than a little farther off.” And then they would go over the battles together: “we were here,” and “you were there,” in the friendliest way. Many on both sides found it impossible to cling to demonizing rhetoric about the opposing army when they ate and talked together, and slept side by side. Resident Liberty Hollinger later said, “Many romances were developed during the stay of the soldiers. One of our most intimate friends (a northerner) married a southerner who her mother had nursed back to health.” As friendships and marriages bonded Yankees and Rebels together, the people hoped the country would soon be reunited as well. Prayer: Lord, help me tear down any division among my brothers and sisters in Christ. “How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!” ~Psalm 133:1 ___________________________ Georgeanna Woolsey's pamphlet, entitled "Three Weeks at Gettysburg", can be read in its entirety online, and provided the inspiration for a few scenes in Widow of Gettysburg. Georgeanna herself was the inspiration for my first novel, Wedded to War, and she does come back to make an appearance as a nurse at Gettysburg in Widow of Gettysburg. The young woman named Liberty Hollinger, quoted in the excerpt above, inspired me to name my heroine of Gettysburg "Liberty." (Such a great name!) If you liked meeting Georgeanna Woolsey, Tillie Pierce, and Sarah Broadhead, you may also enjoy 3 Heroines of Gettysburg. View the live-action trailer below for a better glimpse into Wedded to War, my Civil War novel inspired by Georgeanna Woolsey:

Women's Central Association of Relief During the Civil War

Tue, 2012-08-07 06:19 -- Jocelyn Green
It never ceases to amaze me what can happen when one idea takes root and blossoms until it has a life of its own. This is what happened when Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell, the first female to earn a medical degree in the United States, organized the volunteer efforts of women in New York City in the first few months of the Civil War.  “Women’s meeting at Cooper Union Hall, Cooper Institute New York City, to organize the ‘Women’s Central Association of Relief’ for the Army.” Let's back up for a moment. When the war broke out, women across the country wanted to help. But they were sending jars of jellies that shattered and gifts of meat that spoiled before they could reach their destination. They knitted socks, but didn't know where to send them. For example, some regiments were flooded with them and others went without. Troops in Virginia could have used mosquito netting instead! What to do with all this well-intended help? Dr. Blackwell realized the Union army needed a system for distributing supplies and organized four thousand women into the Women’s Central Association of Relief (WCAR). The WCAR grew into chapters around the county, and this body systematically collected and distributed life-saving supplies such as bandages, blankets, food, clothing and medical supplies. Blackwell also partnered with several prominent male physicians in New York City to offer a one-month training course for 100 women who wanted to be nurses for the army. This was the first formal training for women nurses in the country. Once they completed their training, they were sent to Dorothea Dix for placement at a hospital. By July 1861, the WCAR prompted the government to form a national version—the United States Sanitary Commission, which was the precursor to the American Red Cross. And it all started because Dr. Blackwell decided to mobilize the women of the country to help the Union. Below is a snapshot of what the WCAR collected and distributed to soldiers from May 1, 1861 to Nov. 1, 1863. Keep in mind all of this was donated free of charge from women across the country, and they donated MORE after this until the war ended in April 1865. These numbers also don't include the donations that were made to the entire Sanitary Commission. [[{"type":"media", "view_mode":"media_large", "fid":"714", "attributes":{"class":"media-image aligncenter size-full wp-image-484", "typeof":"foaf:Image", "style":"", "width":"569", "height":"706", "title":"WCAR", "alt":""}}]] Source: Women Doctors and Nurses of the Civil War by Lesli J. Favor *Dr. Blackwell plays a major role in Wedded to War. The main character of the novel, Charlotte Waverly, is inspired by the historical figure of Georgeanna Woolsey, one of the 100 nurses given the one-month of training. (One month! How do you think that served her? Find out in Wedded to War.)  
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