Mary Burns or John Burns was an American woman who disguised herself as a man in order to fight in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. She enlisted in the

7th Michigan Volunteer Cavalry Regiment The 7th Michigan Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was a part of the famed Michigan Brigade, commanded for a time by Brigadier General (United States), Brigadier General Georg ...

in order not to be parted from her lover, who was in the same regiment. Her sex was discovered ten days after being recognized by an acquaintance, before her company had left

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. She was arrested in uniform, held in the city jail, charged with masquerading as a man, and sent home. The account of the incident in the Detroit ''Advertiser and Tribune'' (February 25, 1863) described the defendant as "a very pretty woman".Cited in ''Michigan Women in the Civil War''. Michigan, 1963. p. 33.

References

Female wartime cross-dressers in the American Civil War Michigan Brigade Year of birth missing Year of death missing Women soldiers 19th-century American women Military personnel from Michigan {{AmericanCivilWar-bio-stub

See also

References