Mines: Dr. Mary Edwards Walker was given Medal of Honor for her heroic action at Chickamauga and Chattanooga

When Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center board Chairman Maj. Gen. Bill Raines, with others, cuts the grand opening ribbon on Feb. 22, 2020, public tours of the facility will begin.

The exhibits serve as an instructional platform for the Medal of Honor Character Development Program, using the six identified characteristics shared by all Medal of Honor recipients. As visitors walk through history designed to connect with today, most will notice one specific feature: Only one woman has been the recipient of the Medal of Honor, and she was awarded our nation’s highest military honor for combat surgical service and valorous action during the Battles of Chickamauga and Chattanooga.

Who was that woman nominated for the Medal of Honor by Gen. George Thomas, the “Rock of Chickamauga,” and Gen. William T. Sherman? She was Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, a graduate of Syracuse Medical College who was the second woman in U. S. history to earn a medical degree and the first to specialize in surgery.

Mary Edwards Walker was born in Oswego, New York, to Transcendentalists and abolitionist parents who encouraged their children to explore their talents, to think freely about the pressing issues associated with the new Republic and to engage in solutions, often found in education. Alvah and Vesta Whitcomb Walker had started the first free school in Oswego, and their daughters were educated alongside their only son. The children worked the farm. Their clothing was adapted for safety and work efficiency; the girls wore trousers because their parents were aware of the danger of billowing skirts and open fires, both on the hearth and in clearing fields. While teaching was the accepted vocation for young women, Mary Edwards Walker chose medicine, even though her medical practice was less than successful since the public was wary of female doctors.

When the American Civil War began in 1861, Dr. Walker offered her services to the Union Army’s medical command and was rejected. Determined to join the Union cause, she served as an unpaid volunteer and then organized the Women’s Relief Organization to aid the families of the wounded. She managed to treat wounded soldiers near the front lines in Virginia and in 1863 was finally accepted as a “Contract Acting Assistant Surgeon” attached to Ohio troops.

At the Battle of Chicka- mauga, Walker often crossed battle lines to care for civilians, too. Today, one can interview descendants of Walker County babies delivered by Dr. Walker. Letters exist noting her role in the community, often recounting her unusual appearance. She strode the battlefield in her short skirt, trousers and black top hat, an attire that distinguished her from both Union and Confederate soldiers. During the Battles for Chattanooga, Walker established her hospital near the foot of Cameron Hill and the current site of BlueCross BlueShield. Official reports note her efforts to minister to medical needs, with little concern about her own personal safety. Her work drew the attention of several of the Union Army’s leadership and subsequently, she was recommended for the Medal of Honor.

Her work continued beyond Chattanooga and included four months as a Confederate prisoner of war, a release that allowed her to rejoin the Ohio 52nd Infantry as the assistant surgeon and the presentation of the Medal of Honor by President Andrew Johnson. Following the Southern surrender at Appomattox, Walker remained in the public eye, advocating for women’s rights and dress reform, attempting to register to vote in 1871 (for which she was arrested) and campaigning for Congress in 1890. She testified before the U.S. Congress, supporting women’s suffrage.

In a re-evaluation of all Civil War Medal of Honor recipients, Walker’s medal was rescinded by President Woodrow Wilson due to her nonmilitary status within the U.S. Army at the time of her service. Asked to return her medal, she refused and proudly wore it every day until her death in 1919, one year before the passage of the 19th Amendment for which she had advocated for almost 50 years. After an appeal by her family in the 1970s, President Jimmy Carter legally restored her status as a Medal of Honor recipient. Her story of valor, determination and self-discipline continues to inspire young students and their families.

One of the first rotating exhibits at the Heritage Center will feature an in-depth examination of Dr. Walker’s place in Medal of Honor history. One hundred years after the passage of the 19th Amendment, Dr. Walker’s story resonates with all who believe that each of us can contribute to the fulfillment of the American Dream and that the personal characteristics of Medal of Honor recipients create positive change, both on the field of combat and in our communities.

Linda Moss Mines is the Chattanooga-Hamilton County historian, the vice president for education for the Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center and the regent, Chief John Ross Chapter, NSDAR.