Statue of Deborah Sampson holding her musket and powder horn while clothed in a Continental Army uni
Statue of Deborah Sampson holding her musket and powder horn while clothed in a Continental Army uniform.Deborah Sampson was a soldier in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War who served with distinction disguised as a man. She fought in many skirmishes and was even wounded in one engagement. On July 3rd 1782 she sustained two musket balls to the thigh while in combat near Tarrytown, New York. Rather than accept treatment from doctors who could discover her identity, Sampson treated herself, removing the musket balls with a penknife and suturing the wound with a sewing needle.In the summer of 1783 she came down with a fever and was treated by Dr. Barnabas Binney, who discovered her secret after removing her clothes for treatment. Dr. Binney did not reveal her secret, instead taking her into private care by his wife and daughters in his own home. On October 25, 1783, General Knox honorably discharged her from the Army at West Point, after a year and a half of service. She married Benjamin Gannett in 1785 and had three children. She died in 1827 at the age of 66.Today Deborah Sampson is honored with a memorial and statue in front of the Sharon Public Library in her hometown of Sharon, Massachusetts. -- source link
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