Ockipedia

Deborah Sampson

By Brooke Harkrader 

       Deborah Sampson.  In her time a disgrace, but today, a hero.  She fought and was wounded for her country, so why was she looked down upon in her time?  Well, as you may have guessed Deborah Sampson was a female.  Deborah Sampson was a strong woman with strong patriotic views and she decided early on that she was going to help win independence for her country, but not in the usual manner.  Most women followed their men, providing them with food and nursing them if they became injured or ill, but Deborah wanted to fight with American troops, and that she did.  How, you may ask, could anyone allow a woman to enlist and then fight in the Revolutionary War?  Well, that’s the thing, Deborah Sampson never did enlist, but Robert Shurtliff surely did.  Now, read on to learn about the adventurous life of Deborah Sampson...  Or should I say Robert?

Life Before The War       

       Deborah Sampson was born in Plympton, Massachusetts on December 17, 1760, to Jonathon Sampson and Deborah Bradford Sampson.  Early on in Deborah Sampson’s life her father disappeared.  Some believe he simply left and abandoned his family, and others say he was lost at sea, but either way, the Sampson family lost Mr. Sampson’s income and went into deep poverty.  Mrs. Sampson could not support her seven children, so in 1775 Deborah and her siblings were sent to work as servants in wealthier households.

Deborah was five when she was forced to leave home.  Originally Deborah lived with her cousin, Miss. Fuller who taught Deborah to read and write.  When Miss. Fuller died three years later, Deborah had to live with a widowed old woman named Mrs. Thatcher.  Conditions at Mrs. Thatcher’s were rough and when Mrs. Thatcher became too ill to take care of Deborah, Deborah was sent to live with Deacon Jeremiah Thomas.  Deborah worked for Deacon Jeremiah Thomas for ten years where, because of the hard labor, Deborah became a strong, young woman and though Deborah did not receive proper schooling, she did learn from the Deacon’s sons.  They would review their school lessons with her at night and Deborah would often study their school books.  Since Deborah was a well-educated, single woman, she was to take the role as the local school teacher.  So, now Deborah is a well-built and educated woman who has developed strong patriotic views.  This was the beginning of Robert Shurtliff.

The Short Life of Robert Shurtliff

       On May 20^th, 1782, Robert Shurtliff enlisted into the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment in Medway, Massachusetts under Captain Nathan Thayer.  The only problem was that Robert Shurtliff happened to be Deborah Sampson.  Deborah had walked 50 miles to get to Medway, Massachusetts so that she could enlist without a physical examination.  Plus, Deborah had sewn herself a suit of men’s clothing to wear, she cut her hair, and she tightly wrapped her chest to look like man.  The fact that she didn’t shave was not a problem either, considering many of the people fighting were young boys who still did not need to shave themselves.  

Deborah soon returned home to Sharon, Massachusetts where she married Benjamin Gannett. Later, they had three children, one boy and two girls, but like her parents Deborah and Benjamin were living in deep poverty.  Deborah was often forced to borrow money from Paul Revere who, in 1805, got the United States Congress to grant Deborah Sampson and her family a pension as a disabled soldier and a veteran’s bonus. 

Deborah and her family went on to live successful lives.  Deborah began giving military lectures in 1802 and though many still thought Deborah Sampson was a disgrace, they were still curious about her and were anxious to hear her speeches.  During her lectures, Deborah would talk about her experiences in the army, the men she fought with, and the battles she fought in, but Deborah was against war, and never did she say she supported fighting. Deborah Sampson’s inspiring life ended when she died on April 29^th, 1827.