Izora (Zora) Fair was a native of

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

. During 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 was a refugee in Oxford, Georgia. In November 1864, she nearly exposed

General Sherman William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a General officer, general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), earning recognit ...

's planned " March to the Sea" to the Confederacy. She was sometimes called "Oxford's Confederate Girl Spy". Fair disguised herself as an African-American, by staining her skin with crushed walnut hulls,Historic Haunted America
/ref> and sneaked into Sherman's headquarters in Atlanta. Overhearing some officers discussing Sherman's planned route to

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

, including the plan to divide the force into two groups, she left the headquarters and attempted to report what she had learned to

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 ...

General

Joseph Johnston Joseph Johnston may refer to: * Joseph Johnston (Irish politician) (1890–1972), Irish academic, farmer and politician * Allan Johnston (politician) (Joseph Allan Johnston, 1904–1974), Liberal party member of the Canadian House of Commons * Josep ...

. Her letter was intercepted by the Union Army, which attempted to track her down. Sources differ as to whether or not the Union Army caught and interrogated her. After the war, she returned to South Carolina. She died a few months later.

References

External links

Photo of the Zora Fair Cottage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fair, Zora Year of birth missing 1865 deaths People of North Carolina in the American Civil War American Civil War spies Female wartime spies Women in the American Civil War