JENNIE WADE by Rebecca Wine
Many of you have heard of, and some of you have memorized, the Gettysburg Address. This is a very famous speech given by President Lincoln on the field where the Battle of Gettysburg took place. There, President Lincoln dedicated a cemetery to the memory of the many men who had died in the battle. Hundreds of men had died there...hundreds of men, and one woman -- my friend, Jennie Wade. My name is Corrie, and although I am a writer, at times during the Civil War there was a more desperate need for a nurse than for a journalist. So, during the Battle of Gettysburg, I found myself tending injuries and comforting dying soldiers in the makeshift hospital that had been set up in St. Xavier's Catholic Church in Gettysburg.
On one of the first days I was there I met Jennie. She was a determined, young woman much like myself. I quickly learned that there was very little she was afraid of. When there was a job to do or someone needing help, she was the first one with her sleeves rolled up. We had a great deal in common, which is probably why we hit it off so well. Her sister had just given birth, so she was in Gettysburg caring for her sister and the new baby while still finding the time to bake bread all day for the soldiers and nurses. The third day that we were there, July 3, 1863, was one I'll never forget, nor do I want to relive it. The day began very quietly, with nothing but silence coming from the battlefield. As the day wore on, however, we began to hear more gunshots once again. Most of the local citizens stayed in their cellars. We, of course, were kept busy tending to the ever-increasing stream of injured and dying soldiers. Jennie kept baking bread. In the afternoon, the noise started becoming frighteningly loud and intense.
As I was walking through the church to deliver some fresh supplies and medicine to the head nurse, a volley of gunshots suddenly erupted nearby. It sounded like the bullets had bombarded the wooden boards on the south side of the church! The bishop ordered everyone to get down on the ground. The sounds faded, then suddenly exploded again -- only this time the sound was like bullets hitting brick nearby... BRICK!?!?!...Jennie's house! I looked up in time to see the head nurse who was a friend of Jennie's pushing her way to the door and running across the field to the Wade home. Having seen the fear in her eyes, I ran after her, only thinking of Jennie. I didn't hear the voices behind me, yelling at me to stay, or even the sound of gunshots from the battlefield.
I did hear the scream though. It came from Jennie's house, and stopping me dead in my tracks. Just as I found the strength to continue running toward the house, the head nurse, Janette, came out with her arms out, pushing me away. "Don't go, Corrie. Come back with me," she pleaded. I resisted, trying to get around her. "Is Jennie all right? I want to see Jennie!" I insisted. She tried again: "Please don't look. It's Jennie -- she's dead." Jennie was only 20 when she died; she was the only citizen of Gettysburg to die from the battle. When she was shot, she was baking bread. The bullet went through two doors before hitting and killing her instantly. The rest of the people in the house that day escaped without injury. The Wade house, still intact today, shows the marks of several hundred bullets.
1. Why did President Lincoln speak at Gettysburg? _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
2. What was Jennie Wade doing in Gettysburg? _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
3. How old was Jennie when she died? _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
4. Why is it so unbelievable that Jennie Wade was killed by a bullet? _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
5. Many churches were transformed into makeshift (temporary) hospitals during the Civil War. Why do you think they used churches? _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
6. Do you think Jennie Wade would be considered a heroine? Why? What about Corrie or any of the nurses that helped in the wars? _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
Rebecca Wine Outline
I. Background
A. Gettysburg Address
B. Corrie (the writer)
II. July 3, 1863
A. Introduction to Jennie
1. What she was like
2. Why she was there
B. Day began quietly
C. Bullets bombarding the church
D. Bullets striking the Wade home
E. Following the head nurse
F. Discovering Jennie's death
III. Details
A. Jennie
1. Twenty years old
2. Only citizen
3. Baking
4. Bullet went through two doors
B. Wade house
1. Still standing
2. Several hundred bullets
Answers to Questions:
1. To dedicate the cemetery in honor of the soldiers who died fighting there.
2. Taking care of her sister and the new baby; baking bread for soldiers and nurses
3. 20
4. She was inside; bullet went through two doors first
5. Answers may vary
6. Answers may vary. Discuss.
Source Phillips, Michael. Into the Long Dark Night. Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1992.
Visuals/Activities Two maps given in Phillips book. Also, there are pictures in the back of the book of Jennie, the Wade house, and the Catholic church.