Painting by Don Troiani

Who was the first? Margaret Cochran Corbin. The first woman to fight in combat for the United States.

Today is July 4, the 249th anniversary of the birth of our country. We celebrate the holiday in many ways. Barbecues. Hikes. Camping. Going fishing. Rarely do we think about the tremendous sacrifice made those many years ago. Men and women. Children, too.

I was intrigued by Margaret’s story. She was orphaned at five years old. Her father was killed in an Indian raid, her mother taken captive. She and her brother were raised by an uncle. After she married, her husband joined the Pennsylvania militia. She followed him. This was not uncommon. Many of the wives followed their husbands and helped with making food, caring for the wounded. Margaret did more. She was right next to her husband, assisting him as he fought as a gunner assistant. On November 16, 1776, at Fort Washington on Manhattan Island, the fort was attacked by British and Hessian troops.  She stood at the cannon alongside her husband and the gunner. During the ferocious  battle, the gunner was killed. Her husband, John Corbin, took over. Then he, too, was killed. She had no time to mourn, but knew what to do and continued to work the artillery.

That is, until she too, was wounded, severely injuring her shoulder and chest and mangling her jaw. She never fully recovered from the wounds and was left without the use of her left arm for the rest of her life. Captured by the British troops, she was soon paroled and assigned to the Corps of Invalids at West Point. https://www.dar.org/national-society/who-margaret-cochran-corbin

Eventually, she was compensated for her service and received a lifelong pension for her service. “Captain Molly” as she was nicknamed, died at age 48, about three miles south of West Point, NY. https://allthingsliberty.com/2021/09/10-amazing-women-revolutionary-war/

There are so many heroes and heroines I could talk about. She was only one of many. What do we do with this information? I believe we need to thank God for the freedoms we enjoy because of the sacrifices of many.

I didn’t find information that Captain Molly ever remarried, had children. She was an invalid for the rest of her relatively short life and needed a caregiver to live.

What’s your plan for this day? We will have friends and family together. We will eat good food. Laugh and enjoy each other’s company. But we also plan to read the Declaration of Independence together.

I love this paragraph, but we’ll read it all later today:

We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcriptI

I hope you were inspired by Margaret’s story–Captain Molly. Take the time to thank God for the men and women like her. Let’s remember.

Below is a song with a video. Hope you enjoy it.

Happy Independence Day! May God bless you. May God continue to bless America.

Get out that copy of the Declaration of Independence or look it up online:https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript

Get these Blog posts emailed directly to you.