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— Pvt. Lyons Wakeman Sarah Rosetta Wakeman was a farm girl from central New York state who went to war under the male alias of Pvt. Lyons Wakeman. She served in the 153rd Regiment of the New York State Volunteers in 1862-64 during the Civil War. Only 5 feet tall, her true identity was only told in her letters to her family, ones that describe the experience of a woman disguised as a man during the war. After leaving home to earn money to send back to her family, Wakeman dressed like a man because job opportunities and pay were much better for men. She had a job on a coal barge but soon signed up with the 153rd Regiment in return for more than a year’s wages in order to help her family. Wakeman joined hundreds of women, from both the North and South, who disguised themselves as men and enlisted to fight in the Civil War. Wakeman’s letters to her family expressed her feelings about the war and her determination to perform her duty as a soldier. She wrote frequently about the trials of marching, her pride of performance in her regiment, her feelings toward the military and her inspiration from God. On April 9, 1864, she fought the battle at Pleasant Hill but also contracted an intestinal illness that forced her out of battle and eventually led to her death. However, while she was in the hospital, none of the medical personnel ever revealed her secret identity. She is buried in a grave under her "male name," Lyons Wakeman, in Chalmette National Cemetery in New Orleans. — By Alyson Hudson
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