A lesson learned from OBSTINATE DAUGHTERS, by Denise Kiernan

 The achievements of History's "great figures" are only possible with help from countless ordinary people.


    Whenever students ask me my favorite time periods to study, I inevitably fall back on three key eras--the American Revolution, the American Civil War and Reconstruction, and the 1960's. All three eras had key elements in common; they were times of significant, even wrenching change, and they all left behind debates and legacies that continue to shape American society to this day. With its deep-dive focus on the women of America's revolutionary generation, I was quite excited to visit Denise Kiernan's new book Obstinate Daughters, and it contains fascinating lessons about the importance of History's so-called "invisible figures"--people whose names no one memorizes for AP tests, yet who provided absolutely key roles for their era's sweeping changes.

    Kiernan's book jumps around quite a bit as she focuses on the stories of dozens of women, and that makes it a better study for people seeking to understand the era in general, rather than for casual readers looking for a more traditional biography. That said, one of the fascinating elements of the book focuses on just how important various women were to all the key events of the American Revolution. For example, everyone knows the story of Paul Revere, and how his famous ride alerting the region to the presence of British soldiers could not have been done without the assistance of others; few know that women riders likely also played a key role in spreading the message that night, as they could more easily be ignored as threats by British spies as they galloped through the night. Kiernan also goes a little bit into the famous legend of Betsy Ross, who supposedly made America's first flag. She notes that while that might not have been true, Ross was undoubtedly a talented flag-maker and spinster in her own right, and she was as good of symbol as any to the countless women who helped to distribute such famous symbols throughout the Continental Army (Kiernan also notes the effort male historians have put into debunking such famous legends as Ross, without examining that larger story of women flag-makers in general). Women during the American Revolution served as spies for both the Americans and the British, with Washington himself supporting a famous female-driven spy ring. Molly Pitcher herself might have been a legend, but the stories of women rushing near battlefields to aid men in cooling and reloading their weapons was all too real, to say nothing of the various women who disguised themselves as men in order to fight in the Revolution (an act of rebellion that would continue throughout just about every major war in American History).

    Kiernan also spends quite a lot of time on the larger questions and divisions of the American Revolution, such as what exactly freedom meant to various oppressed groups. She points out the tragedy of the various loyalist women who thought they were aiding their beloved Britain in a patriotic struggle, only to find Continentals ransacking their homes and threatening them in darker ways (one can likely guess). She tells stories of black women in the northern states who aided the Americans and in the southern states who aided the British, all on the desperate hope that those sides would eventually grant them freedom at the end of the war. She also tells the fascinating stories of Cherokee women who tried to rally their nation to aid the Americans throughout the war, only to be branded as traitors to their country when American expansion into their lands continued relentlessly.

    Overall, Kiernan provides an in-depth and fascinating look at a chaotic generation of women, who all had different definitions of freedom and proper roles, and did what they could to aid their various nations (one great subject I forgot to mention: the importance of laundry, how back-breaking that kind of work was, and how vital it was to try and prevent the spread of various pests and diseases in the armies). It is an enlightening read, and a great source for anyone who seeks to learn more about the lives and struggles of 18th century women.

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