She was instructed to meet a disloyal American soldier named Chambers but was unable to locate him (he had died a few weeks earlier). She then infiltrated Washington’s camp at White Plains, New York on three separate occasions where she sold wares to the men and women camped there. During the summer of 1778, she disguised herself as a peddler named Mrs. She was married to a British soldier and was introduced to Major Duncan Drummond early in the war. Many women spied for the British as well. Women were not just spying for the Patriots during the American Revolution. Darragh’s bravery and cunning were crucial in ensuring that this attack at Whitemarsh did not end in a massacre. This warning gave Washington’s men time to prepare for the attack which ended in a standoff. Once there, she met up with Patriot soldiers and handed over a message about the impending attack to Colonel Elias Boudinot. That night, Darragh left the city with the excuse of getting flour from a mill outside of town.
Darragh hid in a closet to spy on the officers’ meeting where she overheard the soldiers planning a surprise attack on Washington’s army in Whitemarsh, Pennsylvania for December 4, 1777. On December 2, 1777, the British ordered the family to stay in their bedroom while they held a meeting in the house. John then took the message to his older brother, Charles, who was serving in the Continental Army under General Washington. Darragh then hid the message under cloth-covered buttons on her son John’s coat. Darragh’s husband, William, wrote the information she uncovered in a special shorthand known to most members of the family. She regularly spied on the soldier’s meetings, under the guise of bringing them refreshments or wood for the fire. Darragh saw an opportunity to help the Patriots. Additionally, British General Sir William Howe took up camp across the street and would regularly hold meetings with officers in the Darragh’s house. During the occupation of Philadelphia by the British, several high-ranking soldiers were quartered in the Darragh’s home. The Darraghs were Quaker and did not believe in violence, but they sided with the Patriots during the American Revolution. Lydia Barrington Darraghwas originally from Dublin, Ireland but moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the 1750s. As a woman, she was severely underestimated, and by doing her laundry, a normal womanly thing to do, no one suspected that she was doing anything out of the ordinary. This messaging system was never broken throughout the entire Revolution and no one in the Culper Ring was ever caught. The number of handkerchiefs hung corresponded to one of the six coves. Six coves along the shore of Long Island were designated as dead drop locations. The black petticoat signaled that a message was ready to be picked up and the handkerchiefs would relay where the message was hidden. Strong hung a black petticoat on her clothesline, along with a number of handkerchiefs. She developed an ingenious, almost foolproof signal device to message Brewster: she simply hung her laundry out to dry, in plain sight of British soldiers. It was her job to signal fellow spy Caleb Brewster that information was ready for him to pick up. They snuck the information they uncovered to Abraham Woodhull in Setauket who lived next door to Strong. Other members of the Culper Ring were based in New York City where they spied on the British soldiers. Strong and several other residents of Long Island were recruited by Tallmadge who had grown up in Setauket. She was involved in General George Washington’s spy ring known as the Culper Spy Ring headed by Major Benjamin Tallmadge. The Clothesline CodeĪnna Smith Strong was a spy based in Setauket, Long Island in New York.
Here are just a few women who accomplished extraordinary things to advance their cause during the revolution. Many times, these women spies were more successful and better at hiding than their male counterparts. British soldiers billeted in the homes of colonialists were sometimes too loose with their secrets. While women were not allowed to serve in the military, they found other ways to help the war effort. But there are countless extraordinary women who risked and sacrificed just as much as men. The vast majority of these stories involve men. Throughout the Revolutionary War, there are stories of heroism those who sacrificed to save others, those who put their lives on the line to warn of impending danger.
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