Tucked away at the entrance of the West Point Cemetery, adjacent to the Old Cadet Chapel in New York, stands a memorial dedicated to an Irish-American soldier from the 18th-century. The granitic tombstone ornated with a bronze bas-relief captures Margaret Corbin, dwarfing the battlefield beneath her while clutching a ramrod in one hand and a linstock in the other, all the while burdened by a powder horn draped over her.
Facing straight ahead with her face in profile, Corbin stares into the void, her steel gaze resolute, prepared to face her fate for the common good. Her imposing presence could liken her to someone defending the river Neva, as drawn in the style of Soviet-era social realism – an intriguing detail given the cadences of the area and the fact that the Daughters of the American Revolution commissioned the memorial in 1926, a group not exactly renowned for leftist sympathies.
A plaque on the monument recounts Corbin’s participation in the Battle of Fort Washington, Manhattan Island, dated November 16th, 1776. After her husband, John Corbin, a member of the Continental Army’s artillery unit, tragically lost his life in battle, Margaret tenaciously manned the cannon, continuing to fire at the oncoming British and Hessian soldiers.
Following the skirmish, the wounded Corbin was found by the British, who had severely injured her left arm, jaw and chest. Although initially held as a prisoner, she was later released on parole, then was moved to Philadelphia and thereafter cared for by the Continental Army’s regiment for the wounded, providing her with shelter, sustenance, and medical care. Two years on, the Continental Congress granted Margaret a pension equal to half a soldier’s pay for the remainder of her life, marking the first time a woman veteran was recognised by the United States. Thus Margaret Corbin was thereafter known as Captain Molly, an epitome of American heroism.
The 20th-century tribute positioned within the West Point Cemetery paints Captain Molly as a resolute patriot, dutifully succeeding her fallen husband’s role, akin to Marianne of France. Someone aptly noted her dedication to her husband as a depiction of the traits of the women of her Irish homeland. Yet, a more intriguing and complex woman lies behind the veiled outward portrayal.
Margaret Cochran, an Irish emigrant’s daughter, was born in 1751 on the edge of Western Pennsylvania. This area soon became a central battleground of the Seven Years’ War in North America, with the French and Indian War adding to its volatility. As the dangers of the conflict escalated, Margaret’s parents made the choice to send her and her sibling to their uncle’s house when Margaret was merely four. But soon after her departure, her family was attacked by native American fighters in alliance with the French. This event resulted in her father’s death and her mother’s disappearance; Margaret never saw her mother after that unfortunate incident.
At the age of 21, Margaret tied the knot with John Corbin, a farmer from Virginia. After several years, John joined the Pennsylvania Artillery, and Margaret – with a few of her belongings – set off with him, adopting the role of a camp follower. This term referred to the women and kids who moved along with the army, doing everything from preparing food to attending to the injured, in return for very low compensation and minimal appreciation.
The war rendered Margaret a widow and caused severe wounds that compromised her health. She spent her remaining life in West Point, where she became known for her untamed behaviour, excessive drinking, and sharp comments. In 1786, a complaint from West Point’s military store’s commissary to Henry Knox, the then Secretary of War, expressed the caregivers’ reluctance to look after Captain Molly – as she was referred to – owing to her obnoxious behaviour. No empathy was shown towards her for the traumatic loss of her husband and the dreadful injuries she suffered.
Margaret was remembered by fellow acquaintances as a straightforward, red-haired woman, with “no feminine charms”, who often donned an artilleryman’s coat over her traditional women’s garb, and wasn’t one to shy from using profanities.
Margaret Corbin passed away in West Point in the year 1800, with her final resting place being the Highland Falls, not far off. But this wasn’t her final resting place. Corbin was moved to the West Point cemetery due to lobbying by the Daughters of the American Revolution. However, during excavations in 2017, a significant revelation was made – the body that was assumed to be Margaret’s was actually that of a middle-aged man who died between the end of the Revolutionary War and the mid 19th-century. The specifics of her original gravesite and a more detailed narrative of this trauma-affected woman’s life continue to be a puzzling mystery.