by B Borcyk

Created on: December 16, 2010   Last Updated: December 20, 2010

The American Revolution changed the roles of women forever. Previously, a woman knew only of cooking, cleaning, and looking after her husband and children. Major goals were to marry a proper man and bear him children (Nguyen). Women then were not seen as high members of society, and their rights were often suppressed. In fact, they were viewed as property rather than individuals.

During the American Revolution, while both American and British men were at war, women were forced to undertake such chores as caring for horses, delivering messages, hunting, and many others. Others took over as carpenters, blacksmiths, or shipbuilders in order to maintain their former livelihood (Nguyen). A few adapted their homes into havens for the sick and injured and became the stepping stone for American nursing. Some wives and daughters even dared to follow their men into war.

According to “Contributions of Women during the American Revolution” by Gillian Courtney, a park ranger at Stony Point Battlefield State Historic Site, women who participated directly in the war were called “camp followers.” Their duties were similar to the usual: cooking, mending, cleaning, and nursing wounded and sick soldiers. They even earned a small wage, and some took back a portion of their husband’s pension if he was killed in battle (Courtney).

Throughout the war, women also held protests against the British. They held their own tea party, called the Edenton Tea Party. According to Nguyen, they “boldly signed their true names” when signing their declaration to ban British goods. The ban included beverages, clothing, and other merchandise.

Post-revolution, the women who took over for their men while they were away had a rough time transitioning back to normal, every-day duties. The freedom they fought for was established, and their hard work was done. It is difficult to go back to a life of simple homemaking. This paved the way for the women’s suffrage movement, campaigns against slavery, and women with jobs outside of the home. This was the beginning of America as we know it today.

Today, we look around and more women than not are working one or more jobs. Many mothers and wives are taking college classes, something our ancestors have been fighting for since before the revolution. Women are doing all of this, creating more diverse and complex roles for themselves, as well as changing the roles of men in the process. What will these changes entail in the future?

Courtney, G. (1999). “Contributions of Women during the American Revolution.” Retrieved, December 15, 2010, from: http://www2.lhric.org/spbattle/wohist.html

Nguyen, T. (2009). “American Athenas: Women in the Revolution.” Retrieved, December 15, 2010, from: http://www.americanrevolution.org/nguyen.html

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