Women were not allowed to serve in George Washington’s Continental Army.
But evidence shows that at least four women became part of the fighting force. Boys as young as 14 joined the army. So a woman could wear loose clothing and pretend she was a boy. One woman from Maine joined up with her brother in 1775. She served until the war ended in 1781. In 1776, an unidentified Cherokee woman was found dead on a battlefield. She wore face paint like male Cherokee warriors did, and she had a bow and arrows.
