Ken Harbaugh tells the stories of service members who have distinguished themselves through an act of valor. These stories feature recipients from the Civil War to present day, including a few who were originally overlooked for the medal.
Dr. Mary E. Walker spent her whole life defying gender roles. She saved up money to go to college to become a Doctor, refused to wear women’s clothing her whole life, and served as an “Assistant Surgeon” (but still technically a civilian) during the war. She was captured and held as a prisoner of war for four months, and at the end of the war, she was awarded the Medal of Honor for her devotion to the detriment of her own health. Her medal was later rescinded in 1917, along with 911 other recipients, after the military decided to create eligibility requirements for the Medal of Honor. 50 years later, thanks to the help of her descendants, Dr. Walker’s Medal of Honor was posthumously restored by President Carter.
Dr. Walker was a vocal supporter of women’s suffrage, equal pay, and healthcare, and testified to Congress in support of women’s suffrage in 1912 and 1914. She received harassment her whole life for how she dressed, and in her later years, she opened her home to others who were ostracized by society.
Welcome to the Medal of Honor podcast, brought to you in partnership with the National Medal of Honor Museum. I’m Ken Harbaugh. In each episode, we’ll learn about a different service member who has distinguished him or herself through an act of valor.
Mary E. Walker was born on November 26th, 1832 in Oswego, New York. She grew up helping out on the farm, often wearing trousers and shirts because they were more comfortable for that type of work. This was a trend that would continue throughout her life.
Walker saved up enough money to attend college, and graduated from Syracuse Medical College in 1855. She was the only female medical doctor in her class. After graduation, Dr. Walker married Albert Miller, another doctor. Instead of a typical wedding dress, she wore trousers for the ceremony, and refused to agree to “obey” Albert in her wedding vows. She also kept her own last name.
Together, Dr. Walker and her husband started a medical practice in New York, but it failed because the general public didn’t want to accept a female doctor. After that, she struggled to find a job. Hospitals only wanted to hire her as a nurse, not a doctor. Dr. Walker’s solution was to travel to Washington D.C. and join the Union Army. The Civil War had just begun, and she hoped to get a commission as a medical officer. This was denied, but she was allowed to practice as a nurse in temporary hospitals set up around the capital.
Less than a year later, Dr. Walker began working as an unpaid field surgeon near the front lines, and served in many prominent battles, including the First Battle of Bull Run. Eventually she was given a commission as a “Contract Acting Assistant Surgeon (civilian)”
During the war, Dr. Walker continued to wear men’s clothes, arguing that it was more practical for her line of work. In addition to surgery, she routinely crossed into the front lines in order to treat the wounded, and when she did, she’d listen to troop orders and report back to her commanding officer with what she heard.
One time while treating an injured soldier in the field, Dr. Walker was captured by Confederate soldiers and charged with spying. She denied the allegations, but was held as a prisoner of war for four months before being freed in a prisoner exchange.
Dr. Walker had serious health complications as a result of her time in prison, but upon her release, she continued to practice medicine at the Louisville Women’s Prison Hospital and at an orphan asylum in Clarksville, Tennessee, where she stayed until the end of the war.
On November 11th, 1865, Dr. Mary E. Walker was awarded the Medal of Honor. At that time, the rules about the Medal of Honor were less defined, so Dr. Walker was awarded the medal for her devotion and service to the country, given at the risk of her own life, during the entire war. She became the first and only woman to ever receive our nation's highest military award, and is one of only eight civilians to receive it.
In the decades following the Civil War she became an outspoken supporter of women’s suffrage, equal pay, and healthcare. Her public and repeated disregard of gender norms, in addition to her typically male profession, made her the subject of mistreatment and harassment. She was once arrested for dressing like a man, and on trial she said “Dress as I please in free America on whose tented fields I have served for four years in the cause of human freedom.” She was released, and the judge ordered she never be arrested for dressing as a man again.
Dr. Walker later opened her home to others who experienced harassment, were publicly ostracized, or dressed outside of gender norms. She also testified in front of Congress in support of Women’s suffrage in 1912 and 1914.
In 1917, the military decided to create eligibility requirements and parameters about who could receive the Medal of Honor. As both a woman and a civilian, the awarding of the medal to Dr. Walker back in 1865 opened the floodgates to countless service members who felt they deserved the award too. As a result, the military revoked a total of 911 medals from previous recipients, including Dr. Walker. She refused to return the award, and she wore it every day until she died on February 21st, 1919 in her hometown of Oswego, New York.
Thanks to the help of her descendants, Dr. Walker’s Medal was posthumously restored to her by President Jimmy Carter in 1977.
The Medal of Honor podcast is a production of Evergreen Podcasts.
Nathan Corson is our executive producer and mixing engineer, Declan Rohrs is our associate producer, scriptwriter, and recording engineer, and I’m Ken Harbaugh.
We are proud to support the National Medal of Honor Museum. To learn more, and to support their mission, go to mohmuseum.org. Thanks for listening.
