ABSTRACT
Rose O’Neal Greenhow was a grieving widow and a devoted mother of four children. She spent her days caring for her children, entertaining friends of her dead husband, and spying for the Confederate army. Rose continued her spying, but after the Union defeat at Bull Run, Northern officers became suspicious that Rose was spying. Pinkerton allowed Rose to have visitors in the hope of overhearing information that the Pinkerton Detectives could use to help the North. As Rose’s ship neared the shore, a Union gunboat spotted and began to chase it. The little boat was swamped with ocean water and overturned. Rose had drowned, pulled underwater by the weight of the gold she had sewn into her underwear and hidden in a pouch around her neck.
