Member-only story
The Woman Who Sent 16 Sons To Fight For The North And South In The Civil War
An Ohio woman named Sarah Brandon had the unusual distinction of having the most offspring to serve in the War Between the States
The American Civil War was a seminal event in the country’s history. There was such a great divide over issues of slavery, economics and states rights that it resulted in this bloody conflict. Many people made heavy sacrifices before peace was achieved. Few were as significant as Sarah Brandon, a woman who lived to be nearly 100 years of age and had a total of 16 sons who fought in the war on both sides.
Sarah Parker was born in Belmont County, Ohio on April 15, 1819 to a farmer and mother who was described as being a “full-blooded Indian.” Sarah suffered a grotesque injury when she was 11, losing her eye after being accidentally shot with an arrow by her younger brother.
Sarah married 74-year-old Charles Brandon when she was just 15. As was fairly common at the time, the marriage was more an arrangement of her keeping house than it was about romance. The couple, buoyed by the 20 offspring he brought to the marriage from two previous relationships, grew to a total of as many as 35 children (15 of which she gave birth to; 14 boys and one girl). Accounts…
