Who is this lady?

[RJNorton]

That's a good guess, Craig, but it's not her.

Hint #2: She spent the Civil War years in Richmond.

[L Verge]

Jennie Cary? I have never been able to find a picture of Jennie, so I sure hope this is her. With her sister, Hetty (whom Henry Kyd Douglas said was the prettiest woman in the Confederacy), Jennie set James Ryder Randall's "Maryland, My Maryland" to the tune of O, Tannenbaum and helped to popularize it as a Confederate fight song.

[Gene C]

Elizabeth Van Lew ?

[RJNorton]

I am sorry, Laurie and Gene. These are certainly good guesses, but unfortunately neither lady is correct.

[BettyO]

OK.....I'm confused....

I've always assumed that this lady's portrait was of CONSTANCE Cary - not Hetty.....was it Hetty who married Pegram or Constance?

According to Thomas de Leon's Belles Beaux and Brains of the 60's - (wonderful book!) This is Hetty Cary not Constance.







This website also says the lady in question is Hetty not Constance....

ironbrigader.com/2012/01/12/hetty-cary/

[RJNorton]

Hint #3: The place in Richmond where this lady worked closed in 1865.

[Rsmyth]

Varina Davis?

[RJNorton]

Good try, Rich, but it's not her.

[L Verge]

Betty - Hetty and Jennie Cary were two sisters from Baltimore who were very strong Confederates. When the heat was on, they escaped to Richmond to live with their cousin Constance and her mother. Constance also assisted in Confederate wartime intrigue. The Carys had very strong ancestral ties to both Thomas Jefferson and the esteemed Randolph families of Virginia.

Hetty is the one who caught Henry Kyd Douglas's eye - and others' also: Henry Kyd Douglas, in I Rode With Stonewall, described Hetty as "the most beautiful woman of her day and generation"[3] and "the handsomest woman in the Southland -- with her classic face, her pure complexion, her auburn hair. her perfect figure and her carriage, altogether the most beautiful woman I ever saw in any land."[4]

Hetty was wholeheartedly a supporter of the South, even when in the North and among Union soldiers. On one occasion, she waved a smuggled Confederate flag from a second-story window as Federal troops marched through Baltimore. An officer of the passing regiment allegedly pointed Hetty out to his Colonel, asking, "Shall I have her arrested?" The Colonel looked at her and replied: "No, she is beautiful enough to do as she pleases."[5]

---

Just one more little link to Hetty and her marriage http://www.patch.net/misc/cary.html. Talk about omens... ladies, get ready to cry.

Now back to Roger's photo. Whoever that lady is, I bet her story can't beat the Cary sisters'.

[RJNorton]

I don't know, Laurie. I have read about this lady's life, and it is most impressive.

Hint #4: The place she worked in Richmond began with the letter "R."

[Eva Elisabeth]

Sally Louisa Tompkins?

[Rsmyth]

Clara Barton - Red Cross?

[L Verge]

Eva has to be correct in guessing Sally Tompkins. I think she worked out of a Judge Robertson's home to care for the many sick and wounded who flowed into Richmond. The home became known as Robertson's Hospital. I have often wondered whether or not the Robertson home still stands -- where's Betty the Richmond Rebel?

[RJNorton]

Brilliant, Eva!! And kudos to Laurie for seconding your correct answer.

Folks can read about this lady here

http://civilwarsaga.com/captain-sally-lo...rate-army/

and here

http://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/medi...23mets.xml

Eva, you win two more tickets to Fred Smith's. You will want to spend days studying there, but just to give you a clue of the wonders you'll see here is a speed tour of the park.

[BettyO]

Eva has to be correct in guessing Sally Tompkins. I think she worked out of a Judge Robertson's home to care for the many sick and wounded who flowed into Richmond. The home became known as Robertson's Hospital. I have often wondered whether or not the Robertson home still stands -- where's Betty the Richmond Rebel?

Working and more than half dead, Laurie! I crashed on the sofa in the den last night at 6 PM and slept through 5 AM this morning.....