Remembering Women

Women did not just commemorate men. Female memorial groups also sought to celebrate the sacrifices and work of Confederate women. Whether caring for the finances or sewing clothes for soldiers, women took on many responsibilities during the war. Women’s groups sought to remember those efforts, like in the photographic memento distributed for the Orphan Brigade reunion in 1916. The Orphan Brigade was the nickname for the Confederate First Kentucky Brigade. This highly celebrated military group held annual reunions throughout the state and women groups helped out with the organization. In 1916, they distributed a printed memento souvenir. The pages contained images of soldiers and generals of the Orphan Brigade. While male figures constituted over a half of the images, the creators also included women as well. This memento showed gender did not prevent women in the Civil War from making sacrifices, and that memorial groups believed women deserved to be remembered along with men.