Mount Vernon in Knox County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Mary Ann Ball
“Mother Bickerdyke”
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., October 17, 2008
1. Mary Ann Ball Marker
Inscription.
Mary Ann Ball was born in this vicinity in 1817 and began her nursing career at age 20. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Mary at the age of 45 went to the soldiers' aid. Ignoring rank, protocol, and allegiance, she pursued fearlessly and with inexhaustible energy her mission to care for the sick and wounded. Rebel, Union, and Negro soldiers all received the same attention. She risked enemy fire, especially through Grant's Western Campaign and Sherman's Georgia Campaign, to rescue suffering men, often going out at night to hunt for the fallen. When the victorious armies of the North were reviewed in Washington at the war's end, "Mother Bickerdyke" rode her faithful white horse beside the generals and colonels. Veterans along the line of march gave her the loudest cheers.
Mary Ann Ball was born in this vicinity in 1817 and began her nursing career at age 20. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Mary at the age of 45 went to the soldiers' aid. Ignoring rank, protocol, and allegiance, she pursued fearlessly and with inexhaustible energy her mission to care for the sick and wounded. Rebel, Union, and Negro soldiers all received the same attention. She risked enemy fire, especially through Grant's Western Campaign and Sherman's Georgia Campaign, to rescue suffering men, often going out at night to hunt for the fallen. When the victorious armies of the North were reviewed in Washington at the war's end, "Mother Bickerdyke" rode her faithful white horse beside the generals and colonels. Veterans along the line of march gave her the loudest cheers.
Erected 1998 by Ohio Bicentennial Commission, The Longaberger Company, Knox County Renaissance Foundation, and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 3-42.)
N, 82° 29.117′ W. Marker is in Mount Vernon, Ohio, in Knox County. Marker is at the intersection of Main Street (State Highway 3) and High Street (U.S. 36), in the median on Main Street. Marker is on the NW side of the public square. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Mount Vernon OH 43050, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker.
Also see . . . Mother Bickerdyke. Mary Ann Bickerdyke started supporting the armies in 1861. By the end of the war she was held in high regard by many of the leading generals. When a Union surgeon complained she was obstructing his work, General Sherman is said to have responded,
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., October 17, 2008
2. Mary Ann Ball Marker and Civil War Monument
"... I can't help you. She ranks me. You'll have to see President Lincoln." (Submitted on October 20, 2008, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia.)
Credits. This page was last revised on July 24, 2023. It was originally submitted on October 20, 2008, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 3,559 times since then and 50 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on October 20, 2008, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.
