Charlotte Elizabeth McKay facts for kids

Charlotte Elizabeth McKay (born Charlotte Elizabeth Johnson; August 2, 1818 – April 10, 1894) was an American editor and nurse. She worked as a nurse for the Union Army during the American Civil War. She received a special medal called the Kearny Cross for her care of soldiers. McKay was also known for being against the idea of women voting. She was the editor of the first American magazine that shared these views, called The True Woman.

Early Life

Charlotte Elizabeth Johnson was born in Waterford, Maine on August 2, 1818. Her father was Dr. Abner Johnson. In 1854, she married William P. McKay. Sadly, her husband died in 1856. Their only child, Julia, passed away in May 1861.

Helping During the Civil War

Charlotte McKay became a hospital nurse in March 1862. She worked under Dorothea Dix, a famous nurse leader. McKay started her nursing work in Frederick, Maryland. There, she cared for many soldiers wounded in the First Battle of Winchester.

Nursing in Hospitals

In September 1862, Frederick City was filled with soldiers from Stonewall Jackson's army. They were on their way to the battles of South Mountain and Antietam. These soldiers took over the hospital where McKay worked. She treated them kindly, and they respected her.

After the Battle of Antietam, many wounded soldiers filled the hospitals in Frederick. When these soldiers got better, McKay moved to Washington, D.C.. She worked in hospitals there for a while. In January, she went to Falmouth, Virginia. She became a nurse at the Third Corps Hospital. McKay helped make this hospital much better. It went from being one of the worst to one of the best. General David B. Birney and his wife supported her efforts.

On the Battlefield

The battles around Battle of Chancellorsville were very difficult for McKay. She saw the attack on Marye's Heights. While helping the wounded, she learned that her brother had been killed in the fighting at Chancellorsville.

Six weeks later, she was in Washington, D.C. She was waiting for news of another big battle. This was the Battle of Gettysburg. When the news came, she traveled to Gettysburg. She reached her division's hospital on July 7, 1863. This hospital was about five miles from Gettysburg. She stayed there for almost two months. During this time, she cared for 1,000 to 1,500 wounded men.

Later that year, she returned to the Third Division, Third Corps hospital. It was then located in Warrenton, Virginia. After the Battle of Mine Run, she again cared for wounded soldiers. She also managed one of the hospitals at Brandy Station. McKay left the nursing service in March 1865. She stayed in Virginia to help and teach former enslaved people until 1866.

Recognition for Her Work

The soldiers she cared for at the Cavalry Corps hospital gave her a special gold badge and chain. This was a thank-you gift on Christmas Day, 1864. Before that, the officers of the 17th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment gave her a Kearny Cross. They gave it to her because she had cared for them after the Battle of Chancellorsville. She did not receive a military pension for her nursing work. She was also generally not paid for her services.

Speaking Out Against Women's Vote

On February 10, 1870, Charlotte McKay spoke in Washington, D.C. She spoke to a committee of the United States Senate. She read a paper that argued against giving women the right to vote. This paper was later printed as a government document. It was shared widely across the country. Because of this, McKay is known as the first woman to speak out publicly against the women's voting movement.

Editor of The True Woman

The next year, she became the editor of The True Woman. This was the first American magazine that was against women getting the right to vote. It was published in Baltimore, Maryland.

Later Life

Charlotte McKay wrote her memories in Wakefield, Massachusetts. She published them in 1876. In the 1890s, she moved to San Diego, California. She passed away there in 1894.

Her Writings

• 1870, Memorial of C.E. McKay remonstrating against the right of suffrage being granted to women
• 1876, Stories of hospital and camp