Deborah Sampson was born in 1760 and grew up working on farms to support herself after her father died and mother could not care for her children. She disguised herself as a man named Robert Shurtleff to join the American Revolutionary army since women were not allowed to fight. As a soldier, she bravely served and was wounded but kept her secret until she fell ill and was discovered to be a woman. After an honorable discharge, she married, had children, and received recognition from Congress and her state of Massachusetts for her service in the Revolutionary War.

1. The Life of Deborah Sampson
Deborah Sampson was born in
1760.When she was a child her father
died at sea, and her mother sent all of
her family away. Her mother could not
take care of her children because they
did not have enough of money. After
Deborah was sent away, she worked as a
servant on a farm. She learned to sew,
spin, ride a horse and she could do
carpentry work. She loved to learn, and
she begged the men in the family to teach
her new things. Deborah learned so
much she later became a teacher. She
wanted to help the men in the American
Revolution, but she couldn’t. Women
were not allowed to fight back then so
she pretended to be a man. She practiced
acting like a man and finally got it. She
enlisted in the army and thought up a

2. new name: Robert Shurtleff. She was five
feet and seven inches tall which was tall
for a woman, but her fellow soldiers just
thought she was a short boy. They teased
Robert because he did not shave. She was
a brave soldier and volunteered in
dangerous missions. The other soldiers
were proud of Robert. Deborah became
an aide to the general. Robert served the
general his meals. Everything was going
smoothly until she got wounded in the
head and leg. She let the doctor treat her
head but not her leg. If the doctor treated
her leg, she would be found out. She took
the bullet out of her leg herself. Her leg
never healed all the way but her secret
was safe. She was afraid that if the other
soldiers found out she was a girl they
would shoot her. Later Deborah was sick
with a fever and was put in the hospital.
The doctor found out her secret-that

3. Robert was a woman. The doctor took
her to his house to recover from her from
her illness. The army gave her an
honorable discharge after they learned
her secret. After leaving the army, she
married a farmer named Benjamin
Gannett. They had three children.
Deborah taught at a school and gave
lectures and speeches about what
happened in the war. At the end she
dress up to in her uniform and gun to
show what she looked like as a soldier.
After receiving a letter from Paul Revere,
congress agreed to grant Deborah
Sampson a pension. Massachusetts
general court recognizes her as a hero on
January20, 1792. She received four
dollars a month until her death at age 66.