Molly Pitcher Paper
Molly Pitcher was a famous heroine known to inspire many women during the American Revolution. There is debate about her real name being Mary Ludwig Hayes McCauley or Margaret Cochran Corbin. She was born on October 13, 1744, and was raised to be a hard worker. While working for Mrs. Irvine, Mary Ludwig met her husband, William Hays. They married on July 24, 1769. When the Revolutionary War began, William enlisted and became a gunner in the Pennsylvania Artillery. Mary Ludwig followed him. Molly, along with the other camp followers took care of the sick, washed their clothes and cooked food.
During the Battle of Monmouth in June of 1778, Mary Ludwig Hayes earned the nickname Molly Pitcher when bringing battle-fatigued and…show more content… In this case, Molly Pitcher is an exaggerated, idealized, essentialized conception. For example, the claims about her childhood cannot be verified because they are just based on oral testimony. Although there is scholarly evidence of Molly Pitcher being on the scene of Monmouth, there is no proof that Molly acted heroically. Her husband, whether it was William Hays or John Corbin, was enlisted in the artillery of the Continental army and it was normal for officers’ wives to travel with them, which places her at the scene. However, the only evidence of Molly Pitcher operating the cannon is the eye witness account of Joseph Plumb Martin. Even then, he never states the name of the woman manning the cannon, so one can only make an assumption (Klaver). There are also a lot of pictures and paintings of Molly Pitcher firing a cannon; this can be seen as a form of war propaganda utilizing her act of extreme bravery. The claim about Molly Pitcher could be verified if there was any paper evidence of her being there, for example, if George Washington had written a formal statement thanking her on behalf of the army. It is hard to find more evidence on Molly Pitcher because information concerning women contributing to the war cause is minimal. Therefore, most of the claims cannot be verified it is just based on the general story that have been retold and modified over
