Civil War Miscellaneous
1860s "Ladies Aid Society" Rarely Seen Printed Silk Ribbon
c. 1860s Civil War Era, "Ladies Aid Society" Printed Silk Gold on Gold Colored Ribbon with metalic fringe and pinback intact, Choice Very Fine.
This impressively designed Civil War Period printed "Ladies Aid Society" Silk Ribbon measures 7.5" x 2.5". It displays a stylized gold clasp at the top with its pinback complete and intact. The gold colored silk ribbon has imprinted bright gold colored text and design, at bottom a gold metal fringe hangs as trim at the bottom. This is the first "Ladies Aid Society" Printed Silk Ribbon we have offered, being scarce, complete and in highly collectable condition.
Ladies' Aid and/or Soldiers' Aid Societies were women's organizations formed during the American Civil War dedicated to providing supplies to soldiers on the battlefield and caring for sick and wounded soldiers.
Over the course of the Civil War, between 7,000 and 20,000 Ladies' Aid Societies were established. The work these women did in providing sanitary supplies and blankets to soldiers helped lessen the spread of diseases during the Civil War.
In the North, their work was supported by the U.S. Sanitary Commission. At the end of the war, many Ladies' Aid Societies in the South transformed into "Memorial Associations". Free Black Women often formed their own Ladies' Aid Societies, like the "Colored Ladies Soldiers' Aid Society" of St. Louis, Missouri, headed by Mary Meachum, which tended to assist Black Union soldiers at the local hospital.