Women of West Point: Margaret Corbin

Check out the latest Women of West Point video on Margaret Corbin, courtesy of MAJ Justine Meberg and the Theater Arts Guild. In this video, get to know Margaret Corbin as she was: a brave woman who lived a hard life, like many other Revolutionary camp followers, and who gave much in the service of her country. When British fire killed her husband John, Margaret took over his cannon and continued loading and firing it alone. Grapeshot from a British cannon struck her shoulder, chest, and jaw, and she collapsed. As a result, she permanently lost the use of her left arm because of her wounds. She made her way to the invalid regiment at West Point, where Congress granted her a veteran’s pension in recognition of her service and sacrifice. Margaret remained a poor woman, known for little more than swearing and drinking, a forgotten heroine of the Revolution. Yet Margaret’s day would come. In 1926, the Daughters of the American Revolution in New York State erected this monument on West Point, and today, many West Pointers—female and male—have participated in the academy’s Corbin Forum.