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Pitcher, Molly

In the battle of Monmouth (q. v.) a shot from the British artillery instantly killed an American gunner while working his piece. His wife, Mary, a young Irishwoman twenty-two years of age, and a sturdy camp-follower, had been fetching water to him constantly from a spring near by. When he fell there appeared no one competent to fill his place, and the piece was ordered to be removed. Mary heard the order, and, dropping her bucket and seizing a rammer, vowed that she would fill her husband's place at the gun and avenge his death. She did so with skill and courage. The next morning she was presented to Washington by General Greene, who was so pleased with her bravery that he gave her a commission as sergeant and had her name placed on the pay-list for life. The fame of “Sergeant Mary,” or Molly Pitcher, as she was more generally known, spread throughout the army.

Harper and Brothers Publishers. . New York. 1902.

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Molly Pitcher (2)
J. M. Washington (1)
Old St. Mary (1)
Francis V. Greene (1)
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