Grade Level: 8
Time: 40-60 minutes

Standards: 8-3. Civil Unrest, Civil War, and Reconstruction 

8.His.5.b. Explain how and why individuals challenged gender roles in the Civil War Era (e.g., Loreta Janeta Velazquez, Frances Louisa Clayton, Anna Elizabeth Dickinson, Hartford Soldiers’ Aid Society, Rebecca Primus and Addie Brown). 

Learning Objectives: 

• Students will be able to describe the origins and functions of soldiers’ aid societies in Connecticut. 
• Students will analyze how women challenged traditional gender roles by becoming active participants in the war effort. 
• Students will identify the types of material support provided to soldiers and their families. 

Teacher Background: 

On April 15, 1861, the women of Bridgeport created the nation’s first soldiers’ aid society. News of the April 12 attack on Fort Sumter had quickly reached the citizens of Connecticut, and just as quickly, Connecticut’s women mobilized for war.

The Ladies’ Soldiers’ Aid Society in Bridgeport initially supported the Sixth Connecticut Regiment, but the needs of the war effort were many and constant throughout the war. The society met every week and its members, needing money to purchase cloth and other necessities, went from door to door to “try to wake up every one to a sense of sacred duty that devolved upon us all.” Newspapers reported the war and the government called men to the war, but these women took it upon themselves to become active participants in the war effort.

Click here for more information on Connecticut and the war.

Materials: 

• Blank paper
• Pencil and coloring tools

Introduction (10 minutes)

Teacher Prompt:

“Almost immediately after news of the April 12, 1861 attack on Fort Sumter reached the citizens of Connecticut, Connecticut’s women mobilized for war. While men were being called to the battlefield, brave and determined women took it upon themselves to also become active participants in the war effort.  

The first soldier’s aid society in the country was started in Bridgeport by women who wanted to support the Sixth Connecticut Regiment. The needs of the war effort were many and constant throughout the war, and societies soon expanded – eventually, the Hartford Soldiers’ Aid Society became the central organization for all other state aid societies, where they shared information about what the troops needed. By going door-to-door and appealing to the public through letters to the newspaper, the societies raised money and collected supplies.”

Have students read the list of supplies distributed by the Hartford Soldier’s Aid Society in 1864. Discuss: What kinds of items were donated? Organize them into categories.

Main Activity: Recruit Donations (25 minutes) 

Option 1: Script

Drawing on the sense of urgency felt after the attack on Fort Sumter, have students work in small groups to draft a persuasive door-to-door appeal to “wake up” neighbors to their civic duty, explaining why Connecticut citizens should donate money or goods to help the Sixth Connecticut Regiment.

Option 2: Flier 

Have students work individually or in small groups to design recruitment posters for the Ladies’ Soldiers’ Aid Society, using a list of supplies that might have been donated. 

Opportunities for Assessment

1. In-Class or Homework: Have students read “Relief for the Sick and Wounded,” an appeal for donations from the Hartford Soldier’s Aid Society in 1862. Students can work independently or with a partner to look up definitions of words they don’t know and answer the following questions.
   1. What is the purpose of the letter?
   2. Why is the society in need of supplies?
   3. Who are they asking for help?
   4. The author describes the soldiers as “martyrs to liberty.” A martyr is someone who suffers for a belief or cause. What does this specific word choice tell you about the author’s attitude toward the soldiers?
   5. The author asks the reader, “Are those of us who are enjoying the blessings which the soldier’s misery is securing to us, doing our whole duty?” How might the author want the reader to feel?
2. Class Share (10 minutes, optional): Students can present their scripts or fliers to the class.

Articles and Worksheets

List of Supplies (PDF)
“Relief for the Sick and Wounded” (Original Version PDF) (Transcribed Version PDF) (Transcribed Version Doc)