Prior to the Civil War, men usually handled the families’ finances. However, once the men were on the battlefield, women were thrust into the role of both financial handler and financial provider. Not only did they have to handle their family’s finances, but they had to do so in a time of inflation, brought on by a series of monetary schemes the government implemented in order to cover war costs.

As greenbacks were not backed by gold or silver, inflation during the war years rose significantly (1). Congress did try to counter the inflation with taxation legislation, and while new taxes did help to reduce the inflationary effect, the middle-class Northern women were still hit hard by inflation  (2). Now that their husbands, sons and fathers were off at war, women became the primary source of income. They were forced to run the family farms or businesses, or they had to seek jobs in factories. However, for those employed in factories, wage increases did not usually keep pace with inflation, which resulted in a steady decline of real wages (3).

In order to support their families, many women applied for aid. Relying on rumors and stories of how family members and neighbors had received aid, many women penned letters to government officials describing their husbands’ enlistments, tours of duty and how their families were thus affected by it all. For example, Susan Hinckley of Greenfield, Maine wrote a letter to Massachusetts governor John Andrew in which contained the following:

“I have husbon whitch inlisted in that regt and I stand in need of some of his pay whitch I have not rec eny. Hear in this state thear is provisions made for solgers familys and if thear is eny provisions maid in mass by law you would oblige me by writing me”(4).

Hinckley had heard by word of mouth that men enlisting in Maine in July 1862 qualified for an advance on their bonus and that the state paid aid money to soldiers’ wives and families(5).  However, since her husband had enlisted in Massachusetts the previous year, Hinckley wanted to know if there was any way for her to receive aid money from the state of Massachusetts.

In order to attain the best possible aid, men often enlisted in states in which they did not reside. This strategy seemed like the best fiscal choice at the time; however, it proved not to be the most convenient choice when their wives tried to collect their money. Aid for a soldier’s family was administered by local relief boards, which often meant that a woman must uproot her family and travel to the state or city in which her husband enlisted in order to receive her aid money(6). 

Though many women traveled hundreds of miles to collect their aid money, once they arrived in a new state or city, they sometimes did not receive any help. Oftentimes the state or city did not have enough money to administer to the women and their families, leaving the women bereft of their husbands, money and, now, their homes. This fact explains why many women of the Civil War were forced to bring their families to almshouses(7).









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