Some forgotten Pennsylvania heroines

by Henry W. (Henry Wharton) Shoemaker

"Some forgotten Pennsylvania heroines by Henry W. Shoemaker" is a historical address and collection of brief biographical sketches written in the early 20th century. It challenges status-based notions of fame and spotlights overlooked Pennsylvania women from frontier, Revolutionary, and Civil War contexts, emphasizing courage, service, and moral character. The address opens by questioning familiar icons and then recounts vivid lives of lesser-known figures: Mary Jemison, the Seneca-adopted “White Woman of the Genesee”; Regina Hartman, recognized after captivity by a hymn at Carlisle; and “Molly Pitcher,” who manned a cannon at Monmouth and endured hardship afterward. It adds brisk vignettes of frontier bravery and sacrifice—Peggy Marteeny’s rescue under Indian pursuit, Sabina Wolfe’s rise from country girl to social leader, Barbara Frietchie’s defiant flag, Frances Slocum’s life among Native Americans, Elizabeth Zane’s frontier heroism, and Jennie Wade’s death at Gettysburg. The narrative links Pennsylvania roots to national figures like Nancy Hanks and tells the tragic tale of Mary Wolford, namesake of Young Woman’s Creek. It closes with a call to memorialize these women as exemplars of modesty, grit, and public spirit, noting contemporaries such as Jane Addams who carry their legacy forward.