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Imagine standing on a battlefield during the American Revolution.

Cannons boom in the distance, soldiers hurry back and forth, and the summer sun beats down on their tired faces.

In the middle of it all, a woman runs with a pitcher of water in her hands.

She weaves between soldiers, helping them drink

and cool off. Her name was Mary Ludwig Hayes, but history remembers her as Molly Pitcher,

one of the most famous women of the Revolutionary War. Molly Pitcher was not a soldier in the usual

sense, but she stood alongside the army just the same. Her husband was

a gunner in the Continental Army, and she followed him to the battlefield, helping however she

could. In those days, it was not unusual for wives to travel with the army to cook, clean, and

care for the sick. But Molly went beyond the usual.

At the Battle of Monmouth in 1778,

the summer heat was so intense that men collapsed from thirst.

Molly brought water to the soldiers all day, earning her nickname.

But her most famous moment came when her husband was wounded and could no longer

work the cannon. Without hesitating, Molly took his place and began loading and firing it herself.

She stood in the thick of battle, showing bravery and strength. Later the government recognized her

service and gave her a small pension for her role in the war.

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