Mary Edwards Walker

Born:  November 26, 1832, Oswego, New York

Died:  February 21, 1919, Oswego, New York

Resting Place:  Rural Cemetery, Oswego, New York

Brief History:  In 1855, she earned her medical degree at Syracuse Medical College in New York, married and started a medical practice. She attempted to join the Union Army at the outbreak of the American Civil War and was denied. She served as a surgeon at a temporary hospital in Washington, D.C. before being hired by Union Forces and assigned to Army of the Cumberland and later the 52nd Ohio Infantry, becoming the first female surgeon in the US Army. She was captured by Confederate forces after crossing enemy lines to treat wounded civilians and arrested as a spy. She was sent as a prisoner of war to Richmond, Virginia until released in a prisoner exchange. In September 1863, Dr. Walker became the first female U.S. Army surgeon following her commission as a "Contract Acting Assistant Surgeon (civilian)" by the Army of the Cumberland.

While imprisoned, she refused to wear the women’s clothes provided to her. She wore men’s clothes her entire life because she felt they were more comfortable and hygienic and made her job as a surgeon easier. She was frequently arrested for wearing men's clothes, including her signature top hat. She responded to those who criticized her choices, "I don't wear men's clothes, I wear my own clothes. Dr. Walker was active in the fight for suffrage, and tried to register to vote in 1871, but was denied. She was among the early advocates for women's suffrage who argued that the Constitution had already granted women the right to vote, and that all that was required was enabling legislation from Congress. In 1907, Walker published "Crowning Constitutional Argument", in which she argued that some States, as well as the federal Constitution, had already granted women the right to vote.