Emma Edmonds: Master of Disguise

Ask, May/Jun 2008 by Simon, Charnan

Private Frank Thompson was one of the Union Army's most successful spies during the Civil War. Whether disguised as a slave, an Irish peddler woman, a black laundress, or a Confederate sympathizer, Frank's real identity was never uncovered by the enemy. But it wasn't until long after the war ended that Frank's fellow Union soldiers learned just how good at disguise he was. For in real life, Frank Thompson was a woman named Emma Edmonds!

Emma Edmonds was born in Canada in 1841 but left her unhappy home and bad-tempered father to come to the United States when she was 15. Because it was easier to find work as a young man than a young woman, Emma decided to disguise herself as Frank Thompson. When the Civil War broke out, it was as Frank Thompson that she enlisted in the Union Army.

For a year Emma-now Private Frank Thompson-served as a nurse to soldiers injured in battle, and as a messenger and postman. But when she heard that an important spy for the Union Army had been captured and hanged, she volunteered to take his place.

First she had to prove herself to the War Department in Washington, D.C. She answered questions about weapons and forts and cannons, and about her loyalty to the United States. She proved that she knew how to ride a horse and shoot a gun. The generals decided that she possessed enough "bravery, secretiveness, and good character" to become a spy-never suspecting that she was a woman in disguise!

Within a week Emma was ready for her first spying mission. She knew that the Confederate Army used black slaves to build fortifications and do other hard work. Emma thought that if she could disguise herself as a slave, she could easily slip behind enemy lines. She used a chemical called silver nitrate to darken her skin, put on the faded, ragged overalls commonly worn by slaves at the time, and fastened a black wig over her closely cropped hair.

In her disguise, Emma simply walked into the Confederate camp and was quickly assigned to a slave work detail. All day she moved rocks and gravel to build up the camp's defenses. Her muscles ached; her hands were bloodied and blistered. But she made mental notes of every gun, every trench, and every cannon. Two days later she slipped away unnoticed, with hastily scribbled notes and diagrams hidden in the soles of her shoes.

The Union officers were delighted with the information Private Thompson brought them. It wasn't long before Emma was sent on another spy mission.

This time Emma disguised herself as an Irish peddler woman. Using pillows to pad out her slight frame, she put on the petticoat, skirt, and cape that would turn her into Bridget O'Shea.

To reach the enemy camp, Emma tromped through soggy Chickahominy Swamp and was forced to spend the night in a heavy rainstorm. By morning she was burning with fever, and it was three days before she was well enough to move on. Shakily, she made her way to a small house at the edge of the swamp, where she discovered a young Confederate officer suffering from typhoid fever. Knowing he was dying, the officer asked Emma to deliver his gold watch to his commanding officer at the nearby Confederate camp.

Emma nursed the soldier as well as she could. But by morning he was dead-and she was on her way to the Confederate camp. The sentry told her to make herself comfortable until the commanding officer could see her. While she waited, Emma wandered around the camp, memorizing the number of troops, the size of the cannons, and the layout of the trenches.

The commander asked Emma to lead a few soldiers back to the small house, where they could recover the officer's body. Emma agreed and the commander gave her a fine horse to ride. When they reached the house and the Confederate soldiers went inside, Emma galloped away across the swamp-back to the safety of the Union camp!

Emma Edmonds continued spying as Private Frank Thompson until malaria finally forced her to leave the army. After the war she resumed her real identity as a woman, married, and had children. But she never forgot her years as a spy. She published an account of her adventures in a book titled Nurse and Spy in the Union Army. The book was hugely populareven though (or perhaps because!) some of the details might be exaggerated. Years later, Emma applied for a veteran's pension. Her fellow soldiers were shocked to discover that Private Frank Thompson had really been a woman. But they all agreed that he-or she-had been a brave and resourceful soldier.

Emma spoke modestly when explaining what drove her to perform her heroic deeds: "I am naturally fond of adventure, a little ambitious, and a good deal romantic-but patriotism was the true secret of my success."