Martha Washington And Deborah Sampson: Two Paths Of Courage

We explore how Martha Washington and Deborah Sampson advanced the Revolution through very different forms of leadership. One shaped morale and public life; the other broke barriers to fight and spy under a borrowed name.• Pairing Martha Washington and Deborah Sampson through military connection• Deborah Sampson’s enlistment as Robert Shirtliff and covert missions• Self-treatment of wounds to protect her identity• Discovery, honorable discharge, and veteran legacy• Martha Washington’s destroyed correspondence and historical traces• Presence at Valley Forge and role in sustaining morale• Defining the social tone for the early capital and first ladies• Multiple models of women’s leadership including Abigail Adams• Service, virtue, and contributing to ends larger than self Check Out the Civic Literacy Curriculum!School of Civic and Economic Thought and LeadershipCenter for American Civics