How Black Washerwomen Helped Win the Civil War

How Black Washerwomen Helped Win the Civil War

While the women’s suffrage movement pushed for the right to vote, it also reflected a growing rejection by white women of domestic labor, especially washing clothes. Seen as beneath their social status, many white women distanced themselves from tasks like laundry, leaving a critical labor gap during one of America’s deadliest wars.

This had serious consequences. During the Civil War, disease—not battle wounds—was the leading cause of death. Nearly two-thirds of all soldier fatalities were due to illnesses linked to poor hygiene, unsanitary living conditions, and dirty clothes. Clean uniforms and linens were essential to preventing infections, lice, and the spread of deadly diseases like dysentery and typhoid.

It was Black washerwomen who stepped in to fill this gap. As historian Carter G. Woodson documented in his 1930 article "The Negro Washerwoman, a Vanishing Figure", Black women—many formerly enslaved—used their skills in washing and domestic work to support both Black families and the broader community during and after slavery. Even as white women abandoned this labor, Black washerwomen took on the vital task of maintaining clean clothes, which became a silent but crucial form of national service during the Civil War.

Woodson’s work highlights how washerwomen were more than domestic workers—they were central figures in family stability, community building, and even national survival. Their work allowed soldiers to maintain basic hygiene, which directly impacted survival rates and military readiness.

Though their contribution has been overlooked, the Black washerwoman’s role in keeping soldiers healthy through clean clothes was a key, though unrecognized, factor in the Union’s victory. Their labor kept disease at bay, supported the war effort, and filled a void left by white women focused on suffrage and social protest.

---

Sources:

Woodson, Carter G. "The Negro Washerwoman, a Vanishing Figure." The Journal of Negro History, Vol. 15, No. 3 (Jul., 1930), pp. 269-277. JSTOR Link

Woodson, Carter G. A Century of Negro Migration.

Woodson, Carter G. Free Negro Owners of Slaves in the United States in 1830.

National Museum of Civil War Medicine. "Disease in the Civil War."

Centers for Disease Control (CDC). "Historical Disease Burden During U.S. Wars."

McPherson, James M. Battle Cry of Freedom.