institute director jonathan noyalas details rebecca wright's involvement and how this action impacted the rest of her life. shenandoah university hosted this program and provided the video. when general philip sheridan took command of the newly created army of the shenandoah. in early, august of 1864 he was urged by president abraham lincoln. general ulysses, that's grant and secretary of war edwin stanton. to be extremely cautious in the shenandoah valley the trio of lincoln grant and stanton did not want philip sheridan the prematurely engaged confederates under general jubal early. because they were not only concerned about battlefield defeat and i think again it's important here to sort of step back for a moment. you know you think about everything that the confederates had achieved in the shenandoah valley aside from you know union successes at first. kernstown rutherford's farm battle of piedmont. it was a scene of incessant disaster. and so they weren't worried about just another in a string of battlefield defeats. they were concerned about the timing. because everything that's happening in the summer and into the autumn of 1864 has that presidential election looming over it? so that trio of lincoln grant and stanton they understood. that have shared and went out and fought jubal early in the shenandoah valley and lost it would not only be militarily detrimental but politically detrimental giving the election potentially to lincoln's challenger in george b. mcclellan. and philip sheridan of course was extremely aware. of the circumstances under which he operated and the pressure that he confronted. and so sheridan was going to be that pragmatic cautious commander that lincoln grant and stanton wanted him to be and sheridan wrote very simply of this. he said i deemed it necessary. to be very cautious. and the fact the presidential election was impending made me doubly so. i could not afford to risk disaster. i determined to take all the time necessary to equip myself with the fullest information. i always tell individuals there's this very delicate balancing act that general sheridan has to maintain. so sheridan certainly doesn't want to go out and prematurely engage early and risk a defeat. but it's also not a good idea for sheridan to do nothing. and so after about a month. of military maneuvering between harpers ferry and fishers hill located just south of the strasburg in what one union soldier referred to as a quote-unquote mimic war. president lincoln was getting a little bit anxious. because just as president lincoln did not want sheridan to go out. an attack early and potentially lose a battle. president lincoln also didn't want philip sheridan to have this army of approximately 40,000 men in the shenandoah valley and doing nothing. and that's also not going to look very good on lincoln and not going to help his chances for re-election. so president lincoln by the second week of september starts to get a little bit impatient. he starts. communicating back and forth with general grant basically saying what do we need to do in order to get sheridan to move? you know, do we have to send him more troops? what what is the solution to this to get him moving aggressively after early and lincoln wired grant on september the 12th. sheridan and early are facing each other at a deadlock. could we not pick up a regiment here and there to the number of say 10,000 men? and quietly but suddenly concentrate them as sheridan's camp and enable him. to make a strike. so feeling that pressure from president lincoln. grant decided to come to the shenandoah valley to meet with philip sheridan. so grant sent sheridan a note on september the 15th. and he informed sheridan. he said i want to meet you in two days in charlestown. that's all grant said there were there was no further explanation here. so if you have an imagination you have all of these different scenarios running through your mind as to what? general grant might ultimately say to share it. so this was i think for philip sheridan somewhat of a wake-up call. and shared a nose that he has to have a plan in place when he goes to that meeting in charlestown on the 17th, or he is going to be given a plan potentially by general grant to execute or then you have the potentially the the worst case scenario. which grant might remove sheridan from command? so sheridan certainly did not want to be removed from command after only being in charge for a little more than a month. so sheridan understands he has to go to this meeting in charlestown with a plan but in order to formulate a plan he has to know the answers to several really key important questions. so one of these things that shared and has to have an answer to is the precise strength of jubal early's army. sheridan has been receiving all of these different reports, and he doesn't know what exactly is the size of this confederate army of the valley. he also has to know the precise whereabouts of early's command. is he concentrated in the vicinity of winchester, or are they spread out elsewhere? and then sheridan also has to know well, what's the potential for jubal early to receive? reinforcements so sheridan had a real clear understanding of the questions. the dilemma for shared was how do i get the answers to those questions? so the first thing that shared it needed in order to acquire these answers. was a messenger someone who could infiltrate those confederate lines in winchester, which is where the the bulk of the confederate army was located. someone who could go back and forth between confederate lines and winchester and sheridan's command in that vicinity of berryville without arousing any suspicion whatsoever. so with the help of major henry young who you see there on the left side of that powerpoint slide? sheridan was able to focus in on one particular person so major henry young commanded a group of 58 men. known as sheridan scouts so sheridan scouts they operated largely as jesse scouts. so these are union scouts union soldiers who function wearing at times confederate uniforms. so that they can infiltrate and get information from the enemy well major young his scouts were well aware. of one particular individual who potentially could go back and forth between union and confederate lines without arousing any suspicions at all, and it's a fellow you see there on the right side of the screen tom laws. so this was an individual? that major young and his scouts believed in their words was loyal to the union and shrewd. thomas laws was in his mid 40s at this stage of his life. he was an enslaved man from millwood in clark county, virginia. he undoubtedly had a great affinity a great loyalty to the union cause but there was one thing that he had. that major young thought made him the perfect individual to come back and forth between those lines again without arousing any suspicion. he had a pass. that was signed by confederate officials which allowed him to enter winchester three times a week. to sell produce and vegetables to confederate soldiers as well as civilians living in that community so he could come and go as he pleased again without arousing any suspicion at all. he could move about freely without arousing any suspicion. so sheridan has this potential messenger in thomas laws. and that's great. but what sheridan now needs is the information. so he has the questions that he needs answered. he has the messenger now, he needs someone to provide the answers to those questions. well, sheridan was discussing his dilemma. with longtime friend and now commander of the army of the shenandoah's 8th core general george crook. and as crook was listening to sheridan crook had an idea. so crook had spent a considerable amount of time in the shenandoah valley and particularly that summer of 1864. he got to know some of the local unionist civilians and a one individual that george crook believed might actually be able to provide some of that information help shared and puzzle together some of the answers to these important questions, which would allow him to develop a strategy to go after jubal early. was a young quaker school teacher a woman in her mid 20s. rebecca wright so crook had known her believe that her loyalty to the union was unflinching. but it's enticing as this was to general sheridan. shared an initially had some reservations. i mean yes while you have, you know, 10 to 15 percent of winchester's population are pro-unionists. shared an understands that the lion's share of people in that community are pro confederate. and so could she really be trusted. well when sheridan posed that question, could she really truly be trusted? general crook essentially laid it all on the line and he told sharon. he said i will stake my shoulder straps. that this girl is loyal and that was good enough for general sheridan. so sharon now has all of these pieces. he just has to put them together. so sheridan sat down late on the 15th. any penned the following note to rebecca wright? and that note to rebecca wright read in part. i learned from major general crook that you are a loyal lady. and you still love the old flag. can you inform me of the position of early sources the number of divisions in his army and the strength of any or all of them and is probable or reported intentions have any troops arrived from richmond or are any more coming or reported to be coming you can trust the bear? so sheridan wrote this note. on a piece of tissue paper wanted it up carefully. wrapped it in a piece of tin foil and place it into a gel capsule. and the idea was even though laws had this pass. and he was able to get back in, you know to go in and out of winchester three times a week to sell produce. sheridan was just being a little bit extra cautious. so that if confederate pickets decided to stop tom laws and they started to search him. he could simply swallow it and the confederates that they wanted it will basically that have to wait. so when sheridan gave this message? to tom laws tom laws confessed he said i'm happy to do this. but he said i don't know rebecca wright. i don't know exactly where rebecca wright lives. but tom law said i have enough of connections with unionist sympathizers in winchester who certainly can point me to the direction of rebecca wright so tom laws arrived at rebecca wright's home. on loudoun street around noon on september the 16th. and i know we have individuals who are who are watching participating in this webinar from holocaust the country this evening in case you're wondering rebecca wright's home. no longer stands if you are familiar with winchester, it's where the loud and auto park is located just north of the walking mall. there is an interpretive sign there discussing some of these events. we're going to look at in much more detail here this evening. so he arrived at her home. around noon he knocked on the door rebecca wright was working at her desk at the time. she gets up opens the door. tom laws kind of. pushes her inside slabs the door behind them and then locks the door. and tom laws could could clearly see. that rebecca wright was a little bit. a nerve she was a little bit shaken. by all of this and tom laws just told her. you need to just relax and calm down. and he told her he carried a message from general sheridan that sheridan needed her help. and rebecca wright really at that moment. i think started to understand the the gravity of the situation and she wrote later after the war. that his manner impressed me with the importance of his errand as well as the danger to both of us if it should become. when rebecca wright initially spoke to tom law she said that she didn't know anything about early's army didn't know anything about his movements and it simply she could not help she would not help. now tom laws could have just simply said okay and left. but time loss was persistent and i think sometimes in the the broader understanding of of the events leading up to the third battle of winchester and sheridan's 1864 shenandoah campaign. i don't think enough of emphasis is placed on the patients of tom longs. you know, i kind of wonder how things might have been just a little bit different had tom laws accepted her quick knee-jerk reaction and said, okay, you won't help. i'm out of here. but that's not what he did. tom law said, you know, basically i understand that. this is a big momentous decision. i'm gonna give you a few hours to think about this. i'm going to come back later in the afternoon you think about this you weigh everything in the balance and then if your answer is no, fine. we'll accept that. so after laws left rebecca wright really started to go through this. i think very bitter personal struggle this if this inner battle because on one hand. rebecca wright understood that if she did provide shared and with this information that there would certainly be dire consequences. perhaps even death. if she was found out to be serving as one of general sheridan's spies as she reflected that afternoon as she thought that afternoon. she turned to her mother rachel. for advice. i mean she did not know what course to pursue. so when rebecca wright? spoke to her mother rachel about this she told her mom. she said my initial impulse is i'm not going to do anything about it. the rebels will kill us if they were to find out. and this again is an understandable reaction. rachel certainly understood her daughters misgivings she reminded her, however. that there were a lot of sacrifices being made for the union. these are unionists. these are individuals who want the confederacy crushed. rachel wright understood that tens of thousands of lives hundreds of thousands of lives have been destroyed and changed forever. to restore the union and she wanted her daughter to understand. that this isn't just about you or i this is about the greater good of the union and if it means putting your life at risk or my life at risk or some other family members life is at risk if at the end of the day. the union is restored. well, then isn't it all worth it? and this is what? rachel wright told rebecca and this is rebecca wright's recalling of this this of course after the conflict. and she told her daughter but men are dying everywhere for their country. your life and my life and your sister's life may be needed to i would not persuade you child settle it with your conscience. let god guide you in this go to your room and give yourself to prayer. now no one can know precisely. what rebecca wright was thinking what was coursing through her mind? as she went to her room and and weighed all of her options. but they don't think that it's unreasonable to think. that one of the things coursing through her mind. was her father's wartime. experience so in the spring of 1862. her father amos wright who was regarded by confederates as a radical unionist? was among scores of male unionists. arrested by confederate stonewall jackson prior to his withdrawal from winchester on march the 11th 1862 and amos wright had spent five months in a confederate. prison i think rebecca wright also certainly would have. reflected on confederate soldiers ransacking her home early's command ransacking your home. that previous month. but i think there might also be another consideration here. something else that was potentially coursing through rebecca wright's mind. what might sheridan do to her or her family if she didn't assist now? rebecca wright, never wrote anything about this in particular but there was a newspaper correspondent after the war who pondered this point. who kind of raise the theory raise the the idea here that maybe it wasn't just her thinking about her father and what confederates had done to her home? maybe there was also this in the back of her mind as well. and this is what this newspaper correspondent wrote. again. this is a few years after the conflict. what if she refused to answer general sheridan's note? although she knew sheridan was looked upon by the people as a merciless commander and her failure to respond and give the information. he sought might prove disastrous not only to her but to her family. so she has a lot here to weigh. but after some very thoughtful consideration rebecca wright decided to provide sheridan with what information she possessed. now providentially two evenings before thomas. law's came to rebecca wright's home. a confederate officer who is still unidentified to this day and i've researched rebecca wright i've written about rebecca wright for years and i'm not able to really hone in on this soldier's identity. but what we do know? is that you have this young confederate lieutenant we believe. who was convalescing at a boarding house right next door to rebecca wright's home on loudon street. well this young confederate lieutenant rebecca wright. didn't know her her leanings were pro union. but what he did know was that he liked her. he wanted to to meet with her. he wanted to talk with her. he wanted to get to know her better. he had watched her work in her garden every single day. he became enamored with her and finally. on september the 14th. this confederate soldier he worked up the courage. to ask if he could come over and visit with rebecca wright and she decided what the heck she agreed. so when rebecca wright and this young confederate lieutenant they were making small talk. she was asking him questions without any intention. of taking anything this soldier told her and using it a few days later as intelligence for sheridan's. plants but what at the time appeared to be small talk? really led to this convalescent confederate officer divulging some very important information to rebecca wright. he told rebecca wright. that because general sheridan. had really not done anything. over the previous month that the reinforcements that had been sent to jubal early's army of the valley. were now being turned back around and sent to the army of northern virginia's forces around petersburg. so he divulged that joseph kershaw's infantry division and artillery battalion command at my major wilford cutshaw. they're leaving the shenandoah valley. they're leaving for confederate lines at petersburg. so again at the time on the 14th, she thought who cares? but now once she made that decision to help she thought well this information might be of some use to general sheridan. so her reply which again was written on tissue paper wrapped in foil put into a capsule carried by tom laws in his mouth. it divulged this really important information her note to sheridan read simply. i have no communication with the rebels. but will tell you what i know. the division of general kershaw and cutshaw's artillery 12 guns and man have been sent away and no more are expected as they cannot be spared from richmond. i do not know how the troops are situated, but the force is much smaller than represented. i will take pleasure hereafter and learning all i can of their strength and position and the bear make call again. this is precisely the kind of information that philip sheridan needed now, he could formulate a plan. he could go to that meeting in charlestown on the 17th with general grant and basically be preemptive cut him off of the past and say before you tell me anything. here's what i'm going to do. and there's this precisely what shared and did when he went to that meeting in charlestown on the 17th. he basically told grant just hold your horses. here's my plan and grant withheld his plan and he told sheridan simply to quote unquote go in now based on the information here is the plan based on the information. that philip sheridan received from rebecca wright sheridan initially decided that he was going to take his army from that vicinity of berryville. and swing them to the southwest to newtown virginia, which is present-day, steven city. and you can see on that map there berryville making that southwest line to newtown. sheridan wanted to initially trap jubal early in the lower part of the shenandoah valley. so that's the plan that he developed based on the information. he got solely from rebecca wright. but then shared and received some additional information which caused him to tweak to alter that plan. slightly so his scouts the same scouts that had told him about thomas laws. they informed sheridan that jubal early's army was not exclusively concentrated around winchester. so you had some individuals. from earliest command portions of his command in martinsburg, west virginia where i'm coming to you from this evening. elements of early's army and bunker hill, west virginia you only really had general stephen dodson ramseur's division left behind at winchester. so sheridan is now thinking with early's command stretched out. that he can strike winchester and go piecemeal attacking all these different elements. of jubal early's army so i shared in develop that plan as he altered the plan based on the intelligence. he received rebecca wright was sitting back in winchester. wondering about the fate of her message. did it make it to general shared? if it made it to share it in did the information she provide proof of any value at ever, you know whatsoever. but when those opening salvos of the third battle of winchester sounded on the morning of september the 19th east of winchester. rebecca wright began to wonder if the battle that was beginning to erupt along the berryville plank. had been a result of a message. and rebecca wright she wrote she said many many times during the next day and a quiet sabbath. i wondered what had become of him. meaning tom laws and my note and when we were awakened monday morning before daybreak by the roaring of canon my first thought was whether my note had anything to do with the fighting as the battle intensified that morning. rebecca wright she took cover in the basement of her home on loudoun street, but after spending hours in the basement, she could hear the the sounds of battle drawing closer. she couldn't take it anymore. and so she came out of her basement. she went to the uppermost portion of her home and amid the chaos the smoke the gunfire. she could see the american flag. she could see the stars and stripes. advancing on winchester from the north and from the east she was so excited. she scurried back down to the basement. she told her mother rachel. she said the old flag is coming down the street the dear old flag is coming back again all will soon be right again now. well as many of you know, september 19th 1864 the third battle of this mark the beginning. of the end for the confederates in the valley. you have that smashing victory at winchester. it is followed up three days later with fisher's hill. then you have the burning you have toms brook on october 19th, and then of course ultimate union success. at cedar creek but in the aftermath of union victory at the third battle of winchester the first place that shared and visited was rebecca wright's home? and after the battle was over after everything was decided sheridan went to general george crook. he said please take me to. rebecca wright i think this had to be for rebecca wright. both are really happy moment and a terrifying kind of awkward moment. so when sheridan came to her home? he sat down at her desk. wrote his initial dispatch about the battle what had been achieved. and then he spoke with rebecca wright, so she is happy that the army of the shenandoah commander has come to her home. to pay her a visit to pay her some respect and admiration. but it's also a little bit unnerving for her. because again, she's living in winchester. and she has neighbors. who are pro confederate sympathizers? and she has to be thinking in the back of her mind. well, what are my neighbors gonna think aren't they gonna be the slightest little bit curious? at the first place that philip sheridan visited after this this great smashing union success. was my house. and so she was really worried about what her confederate neighbors would think and she wrote of this. she said i was so fearful of suspicion. that i would hardly permit him to speak to me. i knew that should the southern people discover the part i had played in the battle. my life would not be worth much. and i was afraid to have the general talk to me. before sheridan left rebecca wright's home. on the evening of the 19th. he asked rebecca wright. he said is there anything that i can do for you? and she essentially told him yes. there is one thing you can do. keep this a secret. don't tell anyone about this. because again, she is cognizant of all of the the consequences the repercussions. if she is found out. about her role as a spy for sheridan's army so sheridan kept that promise at least for a few years. rebecca wright, i think in in a perfect world. i think largely would have hoped. that her efforts would fade into oblivion. in a manner similar to how tom laws largely faded into the background living out his days in clark county. until his death in the spring of 1896 well while tom laws. was able to live out his life quietly or at least as quietly as an african-american could in those post-war years in virginia. rebecca wright's story took a very very different vastly different trajectory. so sheridan again, he kept that promise during the war time the only gesture that he really extended to rebecca wright. as a token of gratitude and appreciation was providing foodstuffs during the winter of 64-65 through a back of rightner family to make make certain that they didn't starve. but her anonymity her role as a spy for sheridan it began to become unraveled in the early part of 1867. so on january the 19th. so the civil war is over for about a year and a half. by this point on january 19th 1867 general sheridan sent james forsyth to winchester sheridan was in new orleans, louisiana at the time. to deliver a gift and a note of appreciation to rebecca wright so sheridan wrote rebecca wright and you see there on the screen you're not going to be able to make out all the words, but this is a facsimile copy of the note that shared and sent to rebecca wright. and he stated in part. you are probably not aware of the great service that you rendered the union cause by the information you sent me. a few days before the battle of a peckon a peckon is the union name for the third battle of winchester. it was upon this information that the battle was fought and probably one. by this note, i became aware of the true condition of affairs inside of the enemy's lines. i will always remember this courageous and patriotic action of yours. now accompanying the note. was a one-of-a-kind brooch chain watch that was adorned with charms. so if you're looking at that photograph, so this is a post-warf photograph of rebecca wright taken in the 1880s by a photographer and harrisburg, pennsylvania. it was actually taken when rebecca wright visited. um a grand army the republic post in harrisburg. but she is wearing that brooch the chain. you can see there about a third of the way down the chain. there's a saber charm. there's some gauntlets there and then of course she's holding the watch. so this is this is a one-of-a-kind extremely expensive piece of jewelry given to her by general philip sheridan. rebecca wright certainly was very deeply moved. by this note and buy the gift. i mean she was so excited about the note that she put it in a double-sided glass frame so she could read both sides of it. but as deeply moved as she was. she knew she had to keep it a secret, but it was really hard. i mean her mother rachel told her, you know, whatever you do. please do not wear that watch that broach that chain out in public. because people would be able to figure out pretty quickly. you don't have the financial wherewithal to buy something like this. so as sound advice as that might have been. rebecca wright simply couldn't help herself. she could not stop the impulse to where this in public. the second and perhaps most damning of all. was at the time she received that gift and note from sheridan. the right home was serving as a boarding house. and staying at that boarding house was a reporter from the baltimore sun. so this reporter for the baltimore sun was a little bit curious. why in the world did sheridan's chief of staff show up in winchester a year and a half after the war and present rebecca wright with this gift. what was in a note? and so after some investigation and of course the incautious statements of rebecca wright's sister hannah who was actually pro-confederate did not get along with rebecca at all. the cat was let out of the bag. the secret was revealed that the gift came from general sheridan. so by february 20th 1867 all of winchester knew about rebecca wright's role in espionage for general sheridan prior to the third battle of winchester. so it was on that day. that the winchester times published a story which revealed the following. miss rebecca m wright of winchester has received as a present from general barn burning sheridan and elegant gold watch and exquisitely rot chain. approach and charms the present it is said was made in recognition of an act which for the sake of virginia women shall be nameless in these columns. well now with her role as a spy revealed she became the target. of hatred among former confederates her boarding house was boycotted people cursed her her children's spat at her. quite honestly, there were even some. very strong unionist supporters in winchester who while they approved of what she had done? and i think obviously we're glad that she did it. they simply couldn't believe it. because this took an enormous amount of courage for her to do this. there was supposedly one elderly man. who saw rebecca wright very shortly after the story broke in the winchester times. he saw rebecca wright on the street. he grabbed her by the hands. and he told her he said why am i little girl there was not a man in the place who would have dared to do such a thing as much i liked the union. i would not have had had the courage. well, the environment in winchester was so tense. so threatening. that she had no other option. but to leave winchester along with her family initially she ended up in philadelphia and she didn't know where to turn. i mean, she didn't know what she was going to do. where was she going to get money? how is she going to support herself? well, rebecca wright's story her. exile from winchester if you will this was not just local news. mean this was this was national news. every major newspaper in the nation had covered rebecca wright's story. there were some in the individuals in the north who sympathized. with rebecca wright and her plight and they attempted to help. among those who attempted to help was a prominent businessman. from lancaster, pennsylvania, robert houston so houston houston fans himself someone who was pretty well connected within the political landscape of the keystone state. and so he wrote to two individuals congressman thaddeus stevens. and senator simon cameron. and he petitioned these two individuals. to to try to convince members of congress. to give rebecca wright a military pension there is no doubt. from looking at the perspectives of thaddeus stevens and simon camera on a personal level. there is no doubt that both stevens and simon cameron were satisfied. they were glad about what rebecca wright? had done that she was willing to to lay it all on the line. but simon cameron and wrote a back to houston. and he said that he was supposed to granting military pensions to civilians. it wasn't because he didn't respect or admire. what individuals like rebecca wright have done. but it's that it would be financially impossible to do this. because i said you're gonna open up this can of worms in essence where if we grant a pension to rebecca wright. well, what about the thousands and thousands and tens of thousands of other civilians? who in some way offered military support intelligence support espionage support? to union forces i mean i'm currently working on looking at union sentiment in berkeley county, west virginia which until of course june of 1863 was part of virginia and it's it's there are dozens and dozens of people. in this county who have done so much to support the union war effort? and so simon cameron is saying we would have to pay all of these people and as much as we sympathize with her as much as we appreciate what she had done. the government simply can't do this we can't afford. to do it sir, rebecca wright was not going to receive that help. but the rebecca wright as she was thinking what am i going to do? she remembered what phil sheridan told her on september 19th 1864 after he had achieved that victory at the third battle of winchester if there is ever anything can do for you. just let me know. well now it was time. to answer that call. so she communicated with sheridan and sheridan along with? general grant were able to secure her an appointment as a clerk in the united states treasury department. she receive that appointment on july 6 1868 and if you're looking at that powerpoint slide right now who you can see that the register. of treasury clerk's and you can see they're highlighted mr. rebecca wright, virginia and her appointment date of july 6th. 1868. rebecca wright held that post. until may of 1914 until the time of her death now although she held that post for 46 years. there was one moment. where that job was in jeopardy in 1882 rebecca wright feared that the secretary of the treasury charles james folger. was scheming to remove her? so they could fill that post in other posts. with his friends so rebecca wright, she sensed this immediately. she wrote a note to general sherry. so this is you know, right before sheridan becomes gentle and chief of the army. so he becomes gentle and chief in 1883. he one of the top ranking military commanders commanders in the nation sheridan intervened. and he wrote secretary folger. not and he said, you know, i want to remind you of all the good that rebecca wright has done for this nation. and i shared and went on in this communication. he basically told secretary folger. that you can fire anyone you want in the united states treasury department. you can even fire yourself if you want, but you cannot under any circumstance because of what this woman did for me because of what this woman did for the union war effort. you cannot on under any circumstances at all fire her she must remain now three years after her appointment. to the treasury department the nebraska senator john thayer hardly secure her a pension so he tried to do what houston there from lancaster pennsylvania tried but failed to do. well those efforts never really materialized. again. this is one of those areas in the story of rebecca wright. that is that is somewhat murky here. there was an unidentified us senator it might have in fact been senator thayer. pushing for a $20,000 annual pension but this senator told rebecca and her husband william bonsall, so if you're looking at the photograph on the right, that's rebecca wright later in years at her home in washington her husband. is there actually her husband is there on the far right side of that image? and this unidentified senator again. it might have in fact been senator thayer. went to rebecca and her husband and said the only way this is going to pass is with my support. the only way i'm going to give you my support is if we split the pension. so you'll take $10,000 a year and i'll pocket the other $10,000. well, they refuse to make. that deal once life stabilized for rebecca wright in those post-war years she became and this is a little known element of her story, but i think nonetheless is significant. she became an emerging voice. in the movement for women's suffrage so rebecca wright traditionally is not one of these figures we think about as going out and and delivering speeches and punting the pavement pushing for the female right to vote, but she was she also became a popular fixture at meetings of the grand army of the republic as i alluded to when talking about that post-war photograph taken of her in harrisburg. so every single year. rebecca wright is visiting various jr. gatherings. speaking to soldiers. she was kind of a showpiece for them. i mean she was especially for veterans of the army of the shenandoah. she was essentially a living legend. but i think the most significant gathering of the grand army of the republic that she attended was in 1885. it was one of the gar posts in philadelphia gar post. number two she was one of two. invited guests of honor at this grand army other public meeting the other was philip sheridan there are not a lot of recorded instances. where in those post-war years getting into the 1880s in particular? where rebecca wright and sheridan meet? but this is certainly one of those moments. history unfortunately leaves us no record of the words that the two individuals exchanged. but after this meeting of the jr. post number two was concluded. a newspaper reporter went out from that meeting hall after general sheridan. because he knew the right story he knew about sheridan and the relationship that they had and he chase shared him down. and he asked sheridan. can you just tell me, you know reflecting now more than two decades after that event what rebecca wright really meant to you? it was the information she provided all that critical all that significant. and sheridan told the reporter the following. and i'm going to close with with this statement. sheridan told this supporter. said that woman was worth a whole brigade of soldiers. and several batteries of artillery down in the winchester campaign, and she was one of the genuine heroines of the war. and again, i don't think you can you can overstate the impact that this woman had on sheridan's military career on his planning and ultimate success in the shenandoah valley. so with that i want to thank everyone for tuning in. we have some questions that are coming in. i'm gonna stop sharing my screen screen now so i can be a little bit bigger. all right, and so now we have a couple of questions here. so what i'm going to do is i'm going to read them off of the whiteboard so that everyone is aware of the questions and then we'll we'll get into the discussions. so first question is did rebecca wright and tom laws continue to provide intelligence to sheridan or to that service end as union forces moved up the valley. this is a this is a one and done deal for both rebecca wright and tom laws. so, you know, there's no evidence that tom laws had done things prior to this and certainly no evidence. he had done anything after and the same holds true for rebecca wright. there are a lot of individuals i would say significant number. i'm talking, you know scores of people however who slowly but surely, you know research we're being able to tease out. there are individuals. who were not one and done like rebecca wright and tom laws again? there are some individuals in berkeley county. there are some african-american individuals in frederick county and warren county and kind of get these little nuggets of information that's being borne out from southern claims commissions reports. but yeah, it's very interesting. you know, rebecca wright and tom laws. they're they're one and done. but the magnitude of the information they provide really i think is certainly a game changer. because it gives sharon and that success to develop the plan to go and strike at at jubal early's army next question that we have is does rebecca wright have any descendants living today? and i believe the answer to this question is yes. i know that she's on the webinar catherine solenberger. who has also done extensive work on rebecca wright? she has made connections with these descendants. i believe i remember years ago catherine sharing with me a photograph. from the descendants of rebecca wright. they still possess the watch the chain the broach that i showed you that note the message the capsule all these types of really cool artifacts. so, yes, they are still and if i'm not mistaken katherine, you can correct me. i believe they're in kansas and if i'm wrong kathleen you can correct me on that. we have some additional questions. whereas wright's grave is this recorded? and then how do we access it? oh, yeah. so rebecca wright's grave. she is buried. in washington dc at glenwood cemetery section. oh lot 47 site to if you go on i get the question all the time, so that's why i'm able to to rattle that off, but if you can go on to to find a grave calm and you type in rebecca wright her death date 1914. it actually has a nice image of her of her headstone in terms of the session being recorded. yes. it is going to be recorded and the the links to those recordings will be made available to you in a few days. so you'll be able to to look at these and and share them with anyone that you like. and then we have question here about kershaw's troop strength so kershaw's division if you're looking at kershaw and and wilford cutchas artillery battalion in total, you're probably looking at close to i would say in the vicinity of 7,000 men. so this is a considerable force and again as you think about the the size of earliest army you know taking those troops out, you know, if early would have had kershaw and if you would have had cutshaw he would have, you know been somewhere in you know, 25,000 range of soldiers going up against 40,000 whereas he doesn't have that so he's going in with about 17,000 men. at the third battle of winchester we've got a a few more questions that are coming in here and then we'll call it an evening. now the question about whether or not the officer of sheridan scouts is the same scout commander. for the capture of barringer and amazon church during the appomattox campaign. it is not i don't believe so. all right, so i want to thank all of you for tuning in. it's certainly been a pleasure again. we have another question here. see if i can bring up real quick. any other examples of utinus women receiving postwar federal patronage positions? that's good question leonard. yeah, i think from. from the shenandoah valley examples certainly not there might be a scattering of these. but again, i think rebecca wright and and the links that sheridan goes to to help her is probably the exception rather than the rule. and yes catherine has confirmed. those descendants are in, kansas. right. thanks catherine. so i want to thank everyone for tuning in this evening. stay safe. and be well learn more about the people and events that shape the civil war and reconstruction every saturday at 6 pm eastern only on american history tv here on c-span 3 the c-span cities tour travels the country exploring the american story since 2011. we've been to more than 200 communities across the nation like many americans our staff is staying close to home due to the coronavirus. next a look at one of our city's tour visits. well the history of gaming in nevada you could say in a sense begins primarily in reno. the northern part of the state was predominant to up till the 1950s. you have to remember that las vegas wasn't incorporated until 1905. so actually there was very little gaming in the southern part of the state initially. and the gaming in the northern part of the state continued to develop. primarily along a lot of the cities or towns there were along the railroad lines in the state or in mining camps as they develop such as virginia city or manhattan various.