Mollie Bean was a

North Carolinian North Carolina ( ) is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia to the southwest, and Tennessee to the west. The ...

woman who, pretending to be a man, joined the 47th North Carolina Infantry, a regiment of the

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

army 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 ...

Civil War service

Mollie Bean took on the name of Melvin Bean and was captured in uniform by Confederate forces outside

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

, on the night of February 17, 1865.Richmond Whig, February 20, 1865, page 2. When questioned, she said she had served with the 47th North Carolina Infantry for two years and been twice wounded, but neither of these wounds led to her discovery. Bean was described in the press as "manifestly crazy" and charged with being a "suspicious character", i.e. a

spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ''e ...

. She was incarcerated at Richmond's wartime prison Castle Thunder, where Mary and Molly Bell were held prisoners in October 1864. Her captain was reported to be John Thorp. The ''Richmond Whig'', which reported Bean's discovery on February 20, 1865, assumed that other soldiers in the company knew Bean was a woman; according to historian

Elizabeth D. Leonard Elizabeth D. Leonard is an American historian and the John J. and Cornelia V. Gibson Professor of History at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. Her areas of specialty include American women and the Civil War era. Education Leonard earned an ...

, this was likely not true. A fictionalized version of Bean is a major character in Harry Turtledove's alternative history novel ''

The Guns of the South ''The Guns of the South'' is a alternate history science fiction novel set during the American Civil War by Harry Turtledove. It was released in the United States on September 22, 1992. The story deals with a group of time traveling members of t ...

'', where she is cast as a former prostitute.

References

External links

"What part am I to act in this great drama?K.G. Schneider - Women soldiers of the Civil War
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bean, Mollie 19th-century births Military personnel from North Carolina Confederate States Army soldiers Female wartime cross-dressers in the American Civil War People of North Carolina in the American Civil War Year of death unknown American Civil War prisoners of war held by the United States Wartime cross-dressers

Civil War service

See also

References

Further reading

External links