Boyd, Isabella Maria "Belle" (1844-1900)
- Title
- Boyd, Isabella Maria "Belle" (1844-1900)
- Contributor
- Zizelmann, Evelyn
- birthday
- 1844-05-09
- Birthplace
- Martinsburg, VA
- Death Date
- 1900-06-11
- Occupation
- Spy, actress
- Biographical Text
-
Isabella was the oldest child born to Benjamin Reed and Mary Rebecca Boyd. She attended preliminary school in Martinsburg, and went on to the Mount Washington Female College in Baltimore at 12 years old. She came into espionage suddenly, although accounts vary on how, as her story is considered highly fictional. However, she was best known for flirting with the officers she met and relaying the information given to her through her slave, Eliza Hopewell. She additionally gathered information from a Union meeting by hiding in a closet in the room and listening in before giving this information to Stonewall Jackson. She was awarded the Southern Cross of Honor, a captain position, and an honorary aide-de-camp position. As her espionage work continued, she was arrested multiple times, but avoided incarceration until 1862. She was release, and proceeded to attempt to make her way to England. Boyd was stopped and taken to Canada instead, although she did eventually proceed to England. There, she became an actress, and after returning to the U.S., she spent the rest of her life traveling and giving lectures on her job as a spy. She also published her memoir to support her family.
Boyd was married three times; first to Samuel Hardinge in 1864, then to John Hammond in 1869, and finally to Nathaniel High in 1885. With Samuel, she had one daughter, Grace, and with John, she had two songs and two daughters, though her first son died in infancy. Boyd died of a heart attack while on tour in Wisconsin.
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