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Everyone has heard of Molly Pitcher, but did you know that her actions may have saved the Continental Army from losing the
Battle of Monmouth? Many historians believe that if she hadn't taken her wounded husband's place at the cannon, his unit would
have been forced to retreat, giving British troops the advantage.
Molly Pitcher was born Mary Ludwig on October 13,
1754 near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She eventually married William Hays, and when her husband enlisted in the First Pennsylvania
Artillery of the Continental Army, Molly traveled with him to battle.
Mary Ludwig Hays earned her nickname of "Molly
Pitcher" during the Battle of Monmouth, because she delivered pitcher after pitcher of water to the parched and overheated
Continental soldiers. In addition, she also cared for the wounded and is said to have carried one Continental soldier to safety.
During the battle her husband fell wounded, and Molly immediately took his place at the cannon, enabling his unit
to go on. This was only the second time a woman had manned a gun on an American battlefield, the first being Margaret Corbin
at Fort Washington in 1776. Joseph Plumb Martin, an American soldier whose war memoir has been published, wrote:
"While in the act of reaching for a cartridge, a cannon shot from the enemy passed directly between her legs without
doing any other damage than carrying away all the lower part of her petticoat. Looking at it with apparent unconcern she observed
that it was lucky it did not pass a little higher, for in that case it might have carried away something else."
It is said that after the Battle of Monmouth, General George Washington praised Molly Pitcher's courage, making her a noncommissioned
officer. After this, she became known as "Sergeant Molly".
Molly and her husband returned to Carlisle,
Pennsylvania after the Battle of Monmouth. William Hays died in 1789 and Molly subsequently married George McCauley. In 1822
the Pennsylvania legislature passed an act "for the relief of Molly McKolly, for her services during the Revolutionary
War." She was awarded $40, which was to be paid to her annually for the rest of her life.
For decades after
the war, American artillerymen continued to raise this tribute to Molly Pitcher: "Drunk in a beverage richer and stronger
than was poured that day from Molly Pitcher's pitcher."
Molly Pitcher died in Carlisle on January 22, 1832.
She is buried in Carlisle with a flagstaff, cannon, and monument at her graveside.
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