The underwater boat was a submerged craft, which held four men who operated a mechanical propulsion device. Above the craft, at the water line, was a large green raft that supported air hoses down to the underwater boat so the men could breathe. It was to be used only at night to quietly maneuver close to a Union ship and attach an explosive device to its hull. The underwater boat would then quietly back away before setting off the device and sinking the ship.
Although Mrs. Baker continued operating between Richmond and Washington for the remainder of the war, this was her only recorded major mission. When Mr. Pinkerton went back into private business, Mrs. Baker went with him. No further record of her life exists.
Although she only performed one major mission it was of vital importance to the Union army and helped keep the Union strong in its quest to reunite the nation.
25
Rebecca Wright: Union Spy
The one patriotic and heroic act of Miss Rebecca Wright opened the way for General Philip H. Sheridan’s conquest of the Shenandoah Valley.
Rebecca Wright was a simple Quaker schoolmistress in Winchester, Virginia, when the Civil War began. Although she was a pacifist living in what became a Confederate state, her deep loyalty was to the Union.
Winchester, Virginia, was in Confederate hands and was the key to conquering the Shenandoah Valley. General Sheridan knew that Confederate General Jubal A. Early was concentrating his troops at Winchester, but he was receiving conflicting reports on the Confederate troop strength and movements around the Winchester area. He sought the aid of General Crook, who was familiar with the area and knew many of the local residents. General Crook was asked to suggest someone he knew to be loyal to the Union who could help get the information needed to plan an attack on Winchester. General Crook suggested Miss Rebecca I. Wright.
While looking for someone to carry General Sheridan’s request to Rebecca Wright, the Union troops located an elderly slave named Thomas Laws who lived in Berryville, two miles east of Winchester. Mr. Laws had a pass from General Early that allowed him to travel to and from Winchester to sell vegetables and eggs. He agreed to be the courier for General Sheridan and welcomed the chance to do his part for the Union.
Rebecca was quite shocked and a little scared when, around noon on September 16, 1864, Thomas Laws knocked on her door with a message from General Sheridan. The message was written on a piece of tissue paper rolled tightly in a tin foil ball. Thomas Laws carried the message in his mouth so if in danger of capture he could swallow it.
Rebecca Wright. Courtesy of the Western Reserve Historical Society. Cleveland, Ohio.
To avoid any undue suspicion, Mr. Laws waited until noon when Rebecca’s class was dismissed before approaching her house. He told her that he had an urgent message for her. Nervously, she invited him into a small room in the house and closed the door. Thomas took the message out of his mouth and gave it to her. He cautioned her not to destroy the tin foil. He would need it to carry her reply back to General Sheridan. Mr. Laws told Rebecca he would return in three hours for her reply.
General Sheridan had written:
I know from Major General Crook that you are a loyal lady and still love the old flag. Can you inform me of the position of Early’s forces, the number of divisions in his army, and the strength of any or all of them and his probable or reported intentions? Have any troops arrived from Richmond, or any more coming or reported to be coming?
I am very respectfully your obedient servant
P. H. Sheridan, Major General Commanding.
You can trust the bearer
Rebecca was afraid that if her neighbors found out she was assisting General Sheridan they might resort to violence against herself and her mother. They already were being shunned by most of the neighbors because of their views about the war. However, she bravely decided to honor the request as best she could.
Rebecca already knew some of the information that General Sheridan needed. The information came from a Confederate officer who was recovering from his battle wounds in a nearby boarding house. He had asked if he could call on Rebecca on September 14, which was only two days before the request from General Sheridan arrived. She consented and allowed him to call on her after school was out.
During the visit, the wounded officer, while trying to impress Rebecca, talked about the war and in doing so revealed the location of Kershaw’s division of infantry and Cutshaw’s battalion of artillery.
Rebecca listened quietly like a gracious hostess, absorbing all the information and wondering what use she could make of it. General Sheridan’s request gave her the answer. She replied:
I have no communication whatever with the rebels but I will tell you what I know. The division of General Kershaw and Cutshaw’s artillery, twelve guns and men, General Anderson Commanding, have been sent away and no more are expected to arrive as they can not be sparred from Richmond. I do not know how the troops are situated. I will take pleasure here-after learning all I can of the strengths and positions, and the bearer may call again.
Very Respectfully yours
Thomas Laws returned at three o’clock that afternoon for her reply and delivered it to General Sheridan later the same day. The reply was the information General Sheridan needed. Now seemed the time for an attack.
General Sheridan’s men slowly positioned themselves and on the morning of September 19, 1864, he threw his entire army at General Early’s weakened defenses at Winchester. This was the third Battle of Winchester but the first battle in General Sheridan’s ultimately victorious Shenandoah Valley Campaign.
General Sheridan attacked with 33,600 infantry and 6,400 cavalry troops. Union losses in the battle of Winchester were 653 killed, 3,719 wounded and 618 missing.
General Early’s forces numbered 8,500 infantry and 2,900 cavalry. Confederate losses were 4,000 killed or wounded and 2,000 taken prisoner.
Rebecca and her mother were awakened by the battle and quickly hid themselves in the cellar of their home to avoid being injured by explosions and flying debris. When the battle was over, General Sheridan rode up to Rebecca’s home to personally thank her for the vital information, which led to the Union victory. She pleaded with him to not publicize her assistance because the neighbors might retaliate against her and her mother with violence. General Sheridan assured her that no one would take any action against her or her family, and her part in the Battle of Winchester was kept a secret.
Rebecca continued teaching children in the small school until January 7, 1867, when a letter and gift arrived from General Sheridan. The letter was a thank you for her assistance in the battle and on the back of the letter was an endorsement by General Grant recommending her for a government position in the Treasury Department. Included with the letter was a gold watch and chain. The letter somehow got printed in the valley newspaper and made public her participation in the defeat of Winchester. The residents of Winchester were outraged.
She was a heroine to those still loyal to the Union but the majority of the residents considered her a traitor. Her life in Winchester became dangerous. She was heckled on the streets, spat upon, and her boarding house was boycotted. She was reduced to poverty and only received the meager income from her schoolhouse.
General Philip H. Sheridan. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.
This went on for two years until General Grant was elected President. She then accepted the promised Treasury Department appointment and moved to Washington, D.C. While working for the Treasury Department, she met and married William C. Bonssall. She continued working for the Treasury Department for the next 47 years.
Her salary with the Treasury Department was $900 per year until 1892 when her salary was increased to $1,000. In 1902 she passed a competitive examination and her salary was increased to $1,200. She retired from the Treasury Department 1914.
She kept as her treasures for the rest of her life the gold watch and chain, the letter with General Grant’s endorsement, and the tissue paper note from Gen
eral Sheridan that began her spying adventure.
26
Notable Women Spies
One of the most dangerous forms of service during the Civil War was being a spy. Spying was as dangerous as being a soldier because when caught, spies were usually executed. Women spies during the Civil War were not treated the same as men and usually only served time in prison and or were taken back to their lines and released after receiving a stern warning. Society frowned on taking stern action against a woman, and this social attitude worked in favor of women spies.
The following adventures of two women spies show their willingness to put their lives on the line and their ability to function under dangerous conditions.
Hattie Lawton—Union Spy
Hattie Lawton went to work for the U.S. Secret Service under Allan Pinkerton when the Civil War began. Her husband Hugh became a captain in the Union army under General George Binton McClellan.
Hattie Lawton moved to Richmond, Virginia, at the request of the Federal Secret Service. She posed as a Southern lady who had been driven out of the North. With this cover she was quickly accepted into Richmond social circles and made many new friends. John Scobell, who was the first Negro operative, was assigned to assist her by posing as her servant. His orders were to never leave Hattie alone when she was out of her residence. She was only permitted to work alone as a spy when she was entertaining guests.
Other Federal operatives quickly forwarded the information gathered by these two operatives to General McClellan. As the situation in Richmond became more tense, General McClellan found that it was becoming more difficult to get messages from his operatives. To solve this problem he decided to set up a direct line of communication to Richmond. Hugh Lawton, Hattie’s husband, was one of McClellan’s officers and appeared to be the perfect choice for her new contact. The General arranged a nightly rendezvous for the couple at an inn in Glandale, Virginia, which was run by a Union sympathizer. The inn was not only used by Federal agents; it was also frequented by Confederate operatives.
Hattie was a familiar sight to the Confederate soldiers as she took her daily ride with her servant to the inn and back home. Hattie, with Scobell posing as her servant, was easily granted passes to go riding in the afternoons. The pair came and went as they pleased and were considered a welcome sight by the war-weary Confederate troops.
When Hattie and Hugh met at the inn, they exchanged riding crops containing messages in the hollowed-out handles. Mr. Scobell served as a lookout during the Lawtons’ meetings, thus ensuring their safety.
One evening, a very friendly peddler came into the inn and began to spend money foolishly. Hattie quickly realized that this peddler was actually a Confederate agent. The peddler disappeared after the evening meal, which at first relieved the Lawtons and Mr. Scobell. However, this relief soon turned to great concern because Hattie learned from an informant that the peddler left quickly to alert his men and set a trap to capture her on her way back to her home in Richmond. The Confederate soldiers were not aware of Hugh being there as Hattie’s contact.
After Hugh returned to his regiment, Hattie and Scobell decided to try to make a run through the trap and out of Glendale. They saddled two swift horses and Scobell strapped a pistol on his horse so he could have easy access to it if he or Hattie were in peril. The pair then rode out into the night, avoiding the road when possible, but the full moon soon gave them away to the Confederate soldiers who were watching for them.
They were 20 miles from the safety of the Union lines when they began a desperate attempt to outrun the soldiers. Their Confederate pursuers quickly overtook them. As the soldiers closed in, Scobell’s horse stepped into a gopher hole and fell. Hattie started back for him but he waved her on. He quickly grabbed his gun and fired six shots at the soldiers. He killed two, wounded one, and scared two others away.
Once safely behind Union lines, Hattie located her husband and with several Union soldiers set out to find Scobell. When they found him, he was not injured, but nursing the wounded Confederate soldier.
Hattie continued her spying career and traveled throughout the Confederacy with either John Scobell or Pinkerton’s favorite agent, Timothy Webster.
In early January 1862, Hattie was sent on a mission to Richmond with Timothy Webster. They posed as brother and sister. As they approached Virginia, the weather turned bad and they missed their final connection. They walked the rest of the way through the cold winter rain. By the time they reached Richmond, Timothy Webster was very sick and in pain. They stayed in a hotel for three weeks while Hattie attempted to nurse Mr. Webster back to health.
During this three-week period, no information had been forwarded to General McClellan and concern arose about the safety and whereabouts of the two agents. Mr. Pinkerton decided to send two of his best agents to Richmond to find out what had happened. The two men he sent were Pryce Lewis and John Scully.
When the two reached Richmond they went to the Union contact—the Richmond Examiner newspaper office. The editors informed Lewis and Scully that Mr. Webster had been sick and was in bed at his hotel, and had not left the room since his arrival. They did not know why Hattie had not sent word to Pinkerton about the situation.
The two Union agents hurried to the hotel and in their haste made a fatal error. Instead of asking the desk clerk which room Mr. Webster was in, they went directly to his room and knocked on the door. The clerk alerted the authorities of this odd occurrence.
In Webster’s room, they found Hattie sitting next to the bed tending to Mr. Webster and a Confederate visitor named Mr. Pierce. While they were upstairs in Webster’s room, Captain McCubbin of the Richmond provost martial’s office surrounded the hotel and all four were arrested.
Agent Scully was tried and found guilty. Agent Lewis escaped from jail and was recaptured by Confederate soldiers. He was also tried and found guilty. They both were sentenced to hang. The sentence was later changed from death by hanging to imprisonment.
Webster was sentenced to death. The Union did everything possible to save him from being hung. The Confederacy would not listen to the pleas of the Union and on the morning of April 29, 1862, at Camp Lee in Richmond, Virginia, Timothy Webster was hanged twice. The first time, the rope broke or slipped and he fell to the ground. The Confederates marched him back up the scaffold and after properly securing the rope, Webster was hung again. Webster complained that he was being hung twice for the same offense.
Hattie Lawton was tried and sentenced to Castle Godwin Prison in Richmond, a prison for women suspected of being disloyal, spies or committing treacherous acts against the Confederacy. She spent one year in prison and was then freed in a prisoner exchange. She was released in January 1863.
There is no further word on her activities for the rest of the war. She obviously could not return to her previous spying activities in the South.
Mary Elizabeth Bowser—Union Spy
Mary Elizabeth Bowser was a Negro slave in the home of John and Elizabeth Van Lew of Richmond, Virginia. The Van Lews’ daughter was also named Elizabeth, and was born on October 12, 1818, in Richmond, Virginia. As a young girl Elizabeth Van Lew (whose story is told in more detail in Chapter 18) was sent to live with her grandfather who was the mayor of Philadelphia. It was while living in Philadelphia that she developed strong anti-slavery sentiments. After her father’s death Elizabeth and her mother freed all the 12 slaves owned by the Van Lew family and helped to reunite them with their loved ones. Once free, most of the former slaves stayed with the family, including the maid, Mary Elizabeth Bowser.
Once Mary Bowser was free she was sent north at the expense of Elizabeth Van Lew to be educated. When her education was completed, Mary returned home to work with the Van Lews.
During the Civil War, Elizabeth Van Lew became one of the Union’s most productive Union spies. She had organized and set up a complex network of operatives to pass information to General Grant at City Point.
In early 1863, a close friend of Elizabeth V
an Lew persuaded the personal staff of President Jefferson Davis to hire Mary Bowser as a dining room servant in the Davis home. Her duties were as a dining room maid and a nanny to the children. Incredible as it may seem, there was another Union Negro spy in the Davis home. He was the personal coachman to Jefferson Davis, and carried the information he gathered to his Union contacts during the night when everyone was asleep. There is no documentation that the two spies in the Davis home were aware of each other’s activities. Posing as an uneducated ex-slave, Mary Bowser aroused no suspicion and was able to gather valuable information from overhearing plans being made and discussions between many Confederate generals and President Davis while serving them meals in the dining room.
Mary Bowser wrote nothing down on paper; instead she committed the information to her exceptional memory. She would remember every detail so she could accurately transmit the information to her contact in Richmond.
Her Union contact was Mr. Thomas McNiven, who ran the local bakery, which supplied baked goods to the Jefferson Mansion. When he made his daily deliveries to the Davis home, Mary would verbally pass on the information to him. The information was then sent via the Van Lew spy network to General Grant. The information gathered by Mary Bowser was invaluable to the Union.
Women in the Civil War Page 14