This Day in History: August 5th 1892 — Remembering Harriet Tubman’ Allegiance
On this day in 1892, Harriet Tubman received a pension from Congress for her work as a nurse, spy, and scout during the Civil War.
In the summer of 1865, according to the Harriet Tubman Historical Society;
“In the summer of 1865 Harriet Tubman returned home to Auburn, New York from Virginia where she was serving in a hospital near Fort Monroe. Without a steady income it was difficult for Tubman to make ends meet, she was in charge of her elderly parents and constantly providing for those looking for refuge in her home. Tubman sought compensation for her services during the Civil War which turned into a 34 year ordeal. Because her services as a nurse, cook, spy and scout were not documented compensation was hard to get. All Tubman had received was $200 for 3 years of service.”
Due to her struggles, she appealed to the federal government twice. Once in 1865 and again in 1867. Many of her friends and leaders of the community tried to help spread her name and case on the newspapers. They all believed that she deserved a veteran’s pension.
In 1890, after Tubman’s second husband Nelson Davis had died, the Harriet Tubman Historical Society expressed that, “A law was passed under which Tubman was eligible to receive a war veteran widow’s pension of $8 a month.”
Tubman was extremely appreciative of this pension, yet, as a woman who had been suffering by an undeserved poverty, $8 a month was not enough.
She later tried to obtain more money through an affidavit that was signed by Onim McCarthy and Elsie McCarty. The affidavit stated that she was, “Under the command of Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War, and several Generals,” while she worked as a nurse, cook, and commander for several men during the Civil War. A compensation of $1,800 was requested for Tubman.
Unfortunately, this affidavit was declined yet Tubman was not going to stop trying. On January 19th, 1899, the bill HR4982 proposed, “An increase of her current pension to $25 a month.”
On February 7th, 1899 the Senate Report in response to Bill HR4982, “Determined that the Committee of pensions objected the increase to $25.”
Instead, the committee of pensions decided to increase her pension to $20 a month.
The act was approved by Congress on February 28th 1899 and read:
“Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, that the Secretary of Interior be authorized and directed to place on the pension roll, subject to the provisions and limitations of the pension laws, the name of Harriet Tubman Davis, widow of Nelson Davis, late private in Company G, Eighth United States Colored Infantry and pay her a pension at the rate of twenty dollars per month in lieu of what she is now receiving.”
Regrettably, “ the Act [did] not acknowledge her services in the Civil War and even [decreased] the amount recommended by the Senate. In February 1899, when Tubman was 79 years old and 34 years after her first application, a widow’s pension was granted to Tubman for the sum of $240 per year.”
Tubman was known to have worked at the Freedoms Hospital in Fortress Monroe, Virginia in the spring of 1865 yet the acknowledgment of her work was concealed when receiving her pension and even after she passed away.
She fought hard for a larger earning while according to;
“Some females who served in the military during the Civil War received a pension for their service [as they disguised their identities in the form as changing their gender and identifying as a male].” The women who got away with this were named Sarah Emma Edmonds Seelye and Alberta Cashier. Each of whom posed as a male.
There are many different things that have occurred on this day in history, yet this is one that I believe is not glorified as much. Harriet Tubman was a powerful woman and a camouflaged masterpiece who deserves to be recognized for her kindhearted disposition.
As Harriet Tubman once said; “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” “If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going.”
