Edmonds, Sarah Emma, 1841-1898
Born in 1841 in New Brunswick, then a British colony, Edmonds grew up with her sisters on their family's farm near Magaguadavic Lake, not far from the border with the State of Maine. Edmonds fled home at age fifteen to escape an arranged marriage and the abuse of her father, who wanted a son instead of a daughter. Aided by her mother, who herself married young, Edmonds escaped the marriage and ultimately adopted the guise of Franklin Thompson to travel easier. A male disguise allowed Edmonds to eat, travel, and work independently. Crossing into the United States of America, Edmonds worked for a successful Bible bookseller and publisher in Hartford, Connecticut.
Sarah Emma Edmonds' interest in adventure was sparked by a book she read in her youth by Maturin Murray Ballou called Fanny Campbell, the Female Pirate Captain', telling the story of Fanny Campbell and her adventures on a pirate ship during the American Revolution while dressed as a woman Fanny remained dressed as a man in order to pursue other adventures, to which Edmonds attributes her desire to cross dress. During the Civil War, on May 25, 1861, she enlisted in Company F of the 2nd Michigan Infantry, also known as the Flint Union Greys. On her second try, she disguised herself as a man named "Franklin Flint Thompson," the middle name possibly after the city she volunteered in, Flint, Michigan. She felt that it was her duty to serve her country and was truly patriotic towards her new country. She at first served as a male field nurse, participating in several campaigns under General McClellan, including the First and Second Battle of Bull Run, Antietam, the Peninsula Campaign, Vicksburg, Fredericksburg, and others. However, some historians claim that these reports place her in more than one location at the same time.
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| Publication Date | Publishing Account | Status | Note | View |
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2020-08-21 10:08:05 am |
Jesse Wilinski |
published |
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2019-04-11 05:04:41 pm |
Dina Herbert |
published |
User published constellation |
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2019-04-02 10:04:38 am |
Dina Herbert |
published |
User published constellation |
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2019-04-02 10:04:49 am |
Dina Herbert |
published |
User published constellation |
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2016-08-10 11:08:54 am |
System Service |
published |
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2016-08-10 11:08:54 am |
System Service |
ingest cpf |
Initial ingest from EAC-CPF |
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