On Saturday, November 12 at 2:00 p.m., historian and author Mike Pride will discuss “the long lost story” of Civil War nurse Harriet Dame at the New Hampshire Historical Society in Concord.
Described by The Society’s Elizabeth Dubrulle, director of Education and Public Programs, as one of New Hampshire’s “most determined fighters for the Union,” Dame is the subject of Pride’s recently published book, No Place for a Woman: Harriet Dame’s Civil War. “Dame was quite a woman,” Dubrulle said. “She was one of the few women to accompany the troops into the field, often treating their wounds amidst the fighting.”
Dame served with the Second NH Regiment throughout the war—from the first Battle of Bull Run until the regiment was disbanded in Christmas 1865.
“When her portrait was hung in the NH State House in 1900, she became the first woman so commemorated in the state,” added Dubrulle. “Her portrait was placed among the portraits of dozens of men whose images line the state house walls.”
At the lecture, entitled “‘Self Was Absorbed in Loving Labor’: Harriet P. Dame Goes to War,” Pride will recount his exploration of Dame’s career at the war front and her long postwar life. No Place for a Woman: Harriet Dame’s Civil War will be available for purchase, and Pride will sign copies. The lecture is free, and registration is not required.
For more information about the lecture or The Society, which houses more than 35,000 objects, 2 million manuscript pages, and 250,000 photographs, visit nhhistory.org.
In addition to the New Hampshire Historical Society, the New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail features more than 20 museums throughout New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, Merrimack Valley, and Seacoast. “The Society is a terrific example of one of the roles fulfilled by The Trail, which seeks to preserve and promote an understanding and appreciation for our state’s heritage,” remarked Trail President Jeff Barraclough. “We invite people of all ages to visit The Society and other museums on the Trail this fall and winter season.”
In addition to The Society in Concord, member institutions on the New Hampshire Heritage Museum Trail are located in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, Merrimack Valley, and Seacoast.