Hidden History: Ellenboro Civil War vet was a media sensation

The Iron Brigade consisted of six regiments from Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan known for their discipline, fighting ability and unique appearance. They wore black Hardee hats and Union frock coats similar to what officers wore, which made them stand out among the ranks wearing standard Union uniforms.

The Iron Brigade fought in several of the Civil War battles that were considered turning points in the war between the states: The second Bull Run battle, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg and Antietam, as well as a number of other battles in the Eastern Theater.

The soldier arrived in Chicago, spending the night at the Soldier’s Rest, a shelter for war veterans on the city’s southeast side. In the morning, the soldier’s overcoat, which contained money and discharge papers, had been stolen.

Without any money and in an unfamiliar city, the soldier spent a few nights on the street before going to the local police precinct and asking for help.

It was there that Rebecca Peterman, who had enlisted in the Union army disguised as a man when she was 16 years old, confessed to her true identity.

The Chicago Evening Journal jumped on the story, reporting about the incident and interviewing Rebecca about her service. For reasons unknown, the press called her “Georgianna Peterman,” and that is how she was referred to in all of the news stories.

The Chicago reporter seemed surprised that Rebecca “seemed to regard her past course as something not to be regretted.”

Women disguising themselves as men to join the cause wasn’t unusual. It is estimated that more than 1,000 women, and probably more, did just that, and that at least 60 of them were wounded or killed. But for most, their reasons were to follow husbands or sweethearts so they could stay together.

Rebecca wasn’t shy about telling the press that she had joined for adventure, and that she was eager to see “what war was all about.” But she would soon regret her honesty. The press was more sympathetic to women who were following their hearts, while Rebecca’s reasons seemed to make her an aberration in their eyes.

Finally home in Ellenboro, Rebecca found herself in the spotlight and the subject of newspaper stories from Wisconsin to Pennsylvania. In an interview, her stepfather called her military service a “wild, erratic course” that was an embarrassment to the family, and that “the girl is perfectly uncontrollable.”

Two weeks after arriving home, Peterman’s older sister, Isabella, died from exposure after being caught in a winter storm coming home from a neighbor’s house.

Whether grief-stricken by her sister’s death or seeing an opportunity to leave while her family was otherwise occupied, Peterman donned her soldier’s uniform and went to Prairie du Chien, checking into the soldier’s hostel and perhaps hoping to escape until the press grew tired of her. She was recognized and forced to leave.

She tried again at Boscobel, this time hoping to re-enlist. Having no luck, she made her way to Portage to try re-enlisting there, but she was again recognized and ordered to leave under threat of being taken to jail.

There is no paper trail to tell us what happened to Rebecca after that. She had a small, boyish build and could easily pass as a young man with the right clothing. It’s likely that she changed her name and found someplace far away to live.

Rebecca joined the 7th Regiment as a drummer. There is evidence that she participated in battles, was a scout and was a picket soldier, a position that involved being placed ahead of a defensive line to warn of advancing enemies. By all accounts, she was a brave soldier, even being described by some who served with her as “a good fellow.”

A former teacher who was interviewed during Rebecca’s months-long time in the spotlight said, “Plain country life was not enough for her ambition.”

Those of us with imaginations might like to think she headed west, finding adventure again in the mountains and gold mines of the frontier. And perhaps finding a bit of happiness, too.

Special thanks to Kerrin Colson, of Schreiner Memorial Library, Lancaster, Wis., for assistance with local Ellenboro history and the genealogy of Rebecca Peterman and her family.

Sources: “They Fought Like Demons: Women Soldiers of the American Civil War” by De Anne Blanton and Lauren M. Cook; “Wisconsin Women in the War Between the States” B.A. Thesis (1911) by Ethel Alice Hurn; “Women on the Civil War Battlefield” by Richard H. Hall; “Wisconsin and the Civil War” by Ronald Paul Larson.