| deborah sampson summary?

deborah sampson summary?

abandonedheart asked the question:


Deborah Sampson was the most celebrated female veteran of the American Revolution. She wore a uniform and fought in several battles as a man before her gender was discovered. Sampson was born in Plympton, Massachusetts on December 17, 1760 into a poor farming family. Her father died at sea, leaving her mother to care for six young children. At the age of 10, Sampson became an articled servant to a farmer and spent the next several years working to obtain her freedom. Sampson studied by herself at night to improve herself by education since she was being unable to attend school.

In 1778, at the age of 18, Sampson was finally released from her indenture and taught several years as a schoolteacher. The American Revolution was then in full swing, and thoughts of patriotism and adventure appealed to her. In 1782, she decided to join the Continental Army. Disguising herself as a man, Sampson signed up at Middleborough under the name Timothy Thayer and accepted the usual enlistment bounty. Unfortunately, she spent her money at the local tavern, became drunk, and her true identity became known. Angry authorities discharged her and retrieved the money, while neighbors expelled her from the local Baptist Church. A few months later, Sampson repeated the plan at Uxbridge, Massachusetts, which was 70 miles away. There, she signed on for three years as a private in Capt. George Webb’s company of the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment, enlisting under the name of Robert Shurtleff. In the summer of 1782, her company was posted near West Point, New York, a region noted for Tory activities. She fought in several skirmishes at Tappan Bay, receiving a sword wound on the head, but she bandaged herself to avoid detection. Several weeks later, Sampson was shot in the thigh during a skirmish at East Chester. Again, she refused proper medical treatment, and the ball remained lodged in her leg, but her gender remained a secret.

Despite pain from an unhealed wound, Sampson conducted surveying work in the Ohio Valley and became known as an excellent soldier. In 1783, she became an aide to Gen. John Patterson in Philadelphia. Her wound grew infected, however, and she collapsed from fever. When the doctor treating her uncovered the charade, he informed Patterson. The general was bemused and paraded Sampson in front of her regiment in a dress. So careful had she conducted her ruse that none of her erstwhile compatriots recognized her. She was then honorably discharged from the service in October 1783 by Gen. Henry Knox, who commended her for 18 months of service to the country.

A year after the war ended in 1784, Sampson met and married Benjamin Gannett, and they settled on his farm in Sharon, Massachusetts. She remained in poor health as a result of her wounds, and by 1790, the couple was desperate for money to raise their three children. Accordingly, Sampson petitioned the state for a military pension and received £34. In 1797, she also published an account of her military experience entitled The Female Review, which further spread her notoriety. To further supplement her income, Sampson began touring New England in 1802 to discuss wartime experiences, decked out in her old uniform. She thus became one of the first female lecturers in the country. In 1804, Sampson approached Congress for additional funding with a recommendation from Paul Revere. Through his intercession, she was placed on the Massachusetts Invalid Pension Roll at $4 per month. In 1818, when Congress passed additional veterans legislation, this amount was increased to $8.

Sampson died in Sharon on April 29, 1827, survived by her husband. This placed Benjamin Gannett in the unusual position of being a widower eligible for a military pension based on his wife’s prior service. He died before this eventuality came to pass, but in 1838, Congress authorized payment of $466.66 to the children of Sampson in recognition of her service to the country. In 1944, the Liberty ship Deborah Gannett was also christened in her honor.

“Deborah Sampson.” American History. 2008. ABC-CLIO. 7 Nov. 2008 .

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can you make this article shorter (3 paragraphs about)
and make the words simpler? like a 6th 7th grade level.
thanks!

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