Wonder Women of Gettysburg Hidden Valor By Junket

At just 15 years old, Tillie Pierce transformed from a schoolgirl into an unexpected battlefield nurse, caring for wounded soldiers during the chaos of Gettysburg. From this very home, she fled to the countryside, only to find herself in the middle of the bloodiest battle in American history. Her firsthand accounts give us one of the most vivid and harrowing perspectives of the war seen through the eyes of a young girl.

This stately home belonged to David Wills, but it was his wife, Catherine Jane Wills, who played a crucial role in helping organize aid for wounded soldiers and grieving families. The house became the center of relief efforts after the battle, providing shelter and comfort to those left in the wake of destruction. It was also where President Lincoln finalized the Gettysburg Address—his powerful words echoing the sacrifices made by the women of Gettysburg.

During the battle, the Gettysburg Hotel became a makeshift hospital where women like Hettie Shriver and other local heroines worked tirelessly to save lives. The once-elegant rooms filled with the cries of the wounded, as women bandaged soldiers, soothed fears, and offered the only comfort many would know in their final moments. Walking through its halls today, you can almost hear the whispers of the past, where courage and compassion met in the face of war.

The Gettysburg Train Station became a lifeline for the wounded and dying, as women volunteers braved the overwhelming task of caring for thousands of injured soldiers. Nurses like Cornelia Hancock, a 23-year-old Quaker woman, arrived by train with no formal training but an unshakable resolve to help. Her work on the battlefield and in makeshift hospitals earned her the respect of generals and soldiers alike, proving that heroism knows no uniform.

The Sisters of Charity at St. Xavier Academy provided critical medical care, despite the horrors unfolding around them. These nuns worked day and night, turning classrooms into hospital wards and offering prayers for the wounded. Their dedication to healing, regardless of which side a soldier fought for, made them unsung angels of Gettysburg.

The Farnsworth House bore bullet holes from sharpshooters, but inside, women like Elizabeth Thorn were fighting their own battles. The wife of the town’s gravedigger, she took on his gruesome duties while six months pregnant, burying more than 100 soldiers in the stifling July heat. Her unbreakable spirit and quiet strength make her one of Gettysburg’s most remarkable, though often overlooked, heroines.

Jennie Wade was the only civilian killed during the Battle of Gettysburg, struck by a stray bullet while baking bread for Union soldiers. Her selflessness in providing food for the troops turned her into an unwitting martyr of the war. Today, the house stands as a testament to the sacrifices made by ordinary women caught in the storm of battle.

Elizabeth Thorn, the cemetery’s caretaker’s wife, became an unexpected war hero when she buried fallen soldiers under grueling conditions while expecting her first child. Despite her own suffering, she completed her work with quiet determination, ensuring that the dead were laid to rest with dignity. A statue in her honor now stands in Evergreen Cemetery, a lasting tribute to the women who bore the unseen burdens of war.

After her husband, Amos Humiston, died clutching a photograph of his children, his widow, Philinda Humiston, turned her grief into action. She founded the National Homestead at Gettysburg, a refuge for children who had lost their fathers to war. Her work ensured that the legacy of Gettysburg’s fallen would live on through the children they left behind.