Darragh, Lydia (1729?-1789), was a patriot spy during the American Revolution (1775-1783). Darragh became the subject of a number of tales regarding her secret work in support of the Americans in their struggle for independence from British rule. Historians have debated the accuracy of many of such stories, though most agree that Darragh provided valuable information to American officers at considerable risk to her own life.
Lydia Barrington was probably born in County Dublin, Ireland, about 1729. She married William Darragh, a tutor and friend of the Barrington family, in 1753. The couple soon immigrated to Britain’s American Colonies, where they settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They had nine children, though four died in infancy. Lydia worked as a midwife and as a maker of graveclothes. A midwife assists women in childbirth. Graveclothes are garments in which the dead are buried. Lydia’s husband found employment as a tutor. In September 1777, during the American Revolution, the British army captured Philadelphia. British officers frequently held meetings in the Darragh house, which stood across the street from the headquarters of General Sir William Howe, the British commander in chief. Howe’s officers allowed the Darraghs to remain in their home, though the couple sent their younger children to live with relatives outside the city.
The Darraghs were Quakers—that is, members of the Religious Society of Friends. Followers of the Quaker faith traditionally reject war, but the Darraghs quietly supported the patriots. Their eldest son, Charles, joined the Continental Army and was stationed outside the city.
On Dec. 2, 1777, according to several written accounts, Lydia Darragh eavesdropped as British officers discussed plans for a surprise attack on General George Washington’s army at Whitemarsh, several miles north of Philadelphia. The British hoped to destroy the main American army before the onset of winter. The next day, Darragh devised her plan. On the morning of December 4, she used a pass from General Howe’s headquarters that allowed her to cross British lines to obtain a supply of flour for her household. According to one early version of the story, Darragh was headed to the Rising Sun Tavern when she met Thomas Craig, an American officer and friend of the family, and asked him to deliver her information. Another version of the story says that she went to the tavern, where she met Elias Boudinot, an American colonel and the Continental Army’s commissary of prisoners. She handed him an old needle book—that is, a small cloth case for holding needles and other sewing materials—that contained a hidden message detailing the British attack plans. Boudinot then relayed the message to General Washington, who readied his army to meet the British advance.
Colorful stories also credit Darragh with sending messages to her eldest son by sewing coded notes into the buttons of another son’s jacket. Some accounts say that Darragh obtained intelligence about the activities of British officer John André—who was hanged by the Americans as a spy—and of the traitorous plans of Major General Benedict Arnold. Arnold was an American officer at the start of the war but later transferred his allegiance to the British.
Darragh shared her experiences with several friends, but her activities in support of the Americans remained largely unknown during her lifetime. She died on Dec. 28, 1789. In 1827, an account of her spying exploits was first published. Her daughter Ann also passed the story on to family members.
