Elizabeth Van Lew (1818-1900) was one of the Union’s most successful spies during the American Civil War. While keeping up appearances with Southern high society, she covertly managed a network of spies in the capital of the Confederacy.
All month, we're talking about Spies. Tune in to hear incredible stories of intelligence and espionage!
Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know -- but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Leading Ladies, Activists, STEMinists, Local Legends, and many more. Encyclopedia Womannica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.
Encyclopedia Womannica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Liz Smith, Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, and Brittany Martinez. Special thanks to Shira Atkins, Edie Allard, and Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, and Ale Tejeda.
We are offering free ad space on Wonder Media Network shows to organizations working towards social justice. For more information, please email Jenny at jenny@wondermedianetwork.com.
Follow Wonder Media Network:
Hello, from Wonder Media Network, I’m Jenny Kaplan and this is Encyclopedia Womannica.
Today we’re talking about one of the Union’s most successful spies during the American Civil War. While keeping up appearances with Southern high society, she covertly managed a network of spies in the capital of the Confederacy. Let’s talk about Elizabeth Van Lew.
Elizabeth Van Lew was born on October 12, 1818 in Richmond, Virginia. Despite being born in the South, both of Elizabeth’s parents were from the North. Her mother, Eliza Louise Baker was born in Philadelphia and her father, John Van Lew, was born in New York. John was a hardware salesman, peddling everyday, household items. While mundane on the surface, the business was very lucrative. As a result, the Van Lew family lived in a large mansion in a high-class neighborhood in Richmond.
Despite their prominence in the Richmond community, Elizabeth’s parents chose to have her educated in Quaker schools in the North. It was there that her abolitionist views began to form.
After school, Elizabeth returned to Virginia to live with her recently-widowed mother.
Much of Elizabeth and her mother’s life was underscored by a delicate balance of keeping-up-appearances with Southern high-society, and upholding Union ideals. Like most rich Virginians, Elizabeth’s family enslaved people. But after Elizabeth’s father died, the Van Lew family worked around Virginia law to free them. Throughout the 1850s and 60s, those the family enslaved functioned more as servants. They were allowed to live elsewhere and earned an income for their labor.
When the Civil War broke out and Richmond was named the capital of the Confederacy - the delicate balance grew even more precarious.
Elizabeth made her first foray into espionage when Libby Prison opened just outside of Richmond. The prison was infamous for its horrible conditions. Sympathetic to the Union prisoners inside, Elizabeth and her mother convinced the local Confederate General to let them bring food to the prisoners. They masked their request under the guise of female benevolence. In actuality, Elizabeth and her mother were organizing. They passed messages to the prisoners in a custard dish that included a secret compartment. They hid messages in books and bribed the guards to give the prisoners more food and water. They even organized several successful prisoner escapes, often hiding the fugitives in their own home. All of these efforts were funded with their personal family fortune.
Elizabeth and Eliza’s benevolence didn’t go unnoticed. Confederate neighbors were critical of their interest in the Union soldiers. In her diary, Elizabeth wrote, “I have had brave men shake their fingers in my face and say terrible things. We had threats of being driven away, threats of fire, and threats of death.” In an attempt to counteract these suspicions, Elizabeth and her mother arranged public outings with Confederate soldiers and prison wardens.
In December of 1863, General Benjamin Butler formally recruited Elizabeth as a Union spy.
Elizabeth agreed, and quickly became the head of General Butler’s spy network. She assembled a group of twelve agents to collect information on the Confederates. One of Elizabeth’s most valuable spies was a woman her family previously enslaved, Mary Jane Richards. You can hear Mary Jane’s full story in our episode from last Friday.
Elizabeth’s spy ring passed coded information to both General Butler and General Ulysses S. Grant. Each message was written in colorless liquid that turned black when exposed to milk. General Grant later told Elizabeth, “You have sent me the most valuable information received from Richmond during the war.”
Some of Elizabeth’s missions were more successful than others. In January of 1864 she orchestrated a Union ambush on a prisoner convoy. Unfortunately, her plan was foiled by a mole within the Union army.
But Elizabeth wasn’t stymied for long. The next month, Elizabeth helped 100 Union officers escape via an underground tunnel from Libby Prison. It was one of the largest and most daring prison breaks of the Civil War. Fewer than half of the prisoners were recaptured, marking a hugely successful mission.
When the war concluded, Elizabeth was publically lauded by General Grant and other Union officers. But back in Richmond, her bravery was seen as betrayal. With her personal fortune exhausted and her social status destroyed, Elizabeth was an outsider.
When Grant became President in 1869, he appointed Elizabeth Postmaster of Richmond. She held the role for eight years. During her time, she was known for hiring diverse employees including women and African Americans who were previously excluded from such positions. When Rutherford B. Hayes was later elected President, Elizabeth lost her post.
At that point, in her 70s, Elizabeth was left with few resources. In desperation, she asked one of the Union officers she’d helped during the war, the grandson of the famous Paul Revere, if he could help her financially. He agreed, and Elizabeth subsisted on his relief and the contributions of other Union soldiers for the remainder of her life.
In September 1900, at the age of 81, Elizabeth Van Lew died.
Despite her commitment to the cause, Elizabeth resented being labeled a spy. She wrote, “I do not know how they can call me a spy serving my own country within its recognized borders...for my loyalty am I now to be branded as a spy -- by my own country, for which I was willing to lay down my life? Is that honorable or honest?”
All month, we’re talking about spies.
For more on why we’re doing what we’re doing, check out our newsletter Womannica Weekly.
Follow us on facebook and instagram @encyclopediawomannica.
Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator.
Talk to you tomorrow!