What role did women have during the Civil War?

During the Civil War, women played the sorts of roles that
were typically available to women in those days.  For the most part, their direct roles
in the war were limited to acting as nurses and as spies.  There were some women who
disguised themselves as men so as to be able to enter the military.  However, this was
not very common at all.

It is believed that something like
400 women served as soldiers in the war.  They had various motives for doing so, ranging
from a desire for adventure to dedication to one side or the other.  However, this small
number of women fighting did not have any great impact on the war or on
society.

It is said that about 3,000 women worked as paid
nurses and many thousands more worked as volunteers.  This was the role that was played
by the largest number of women and it was the most visible
role.

Of course, women also played a role by working in
jobs that men had left to go fight and by keeping families together for the duration of
the war.

Please follow the link for a much more detailed
discussion of this topic.