Portrait of Deborah

Deborah Sampson is a heroine of the Revolutionary War. At twenty-two this New England girl was the "Joan of Arc" of her generation. Shunning the comforts and protection of womanhood, Deborah embarked on a startling adventure, disguised as a Continental soldier, calling herself Robert Shurtleff. So intrepid was her spirit, so artful her concealment, that she historically served in several battles, being wounded twice and tending to her own wounds to avoid disclosure that she was a woman posing as a man. After she received the Honorary Badge of Distinction, her sex was finally betrayed when she was felled by a fever. Some wanted top see Deborah hung for her deception, but others declared her a kind of saint.