Anna Steele was born on March 29, 1842, one of twelve children born to William and Roxanna Steele. When William Steele died in 1848, Roxanna married John A. Ray. Nineteen-years-old when the Battle of Wilson’s Creek was fought almost literally in her front yard on August 10, 1861, Anna hid in the family’s cellar during the battle, and helped tend to the wounded when her house was occupied as a Southern field hospital. Anna Steele died on September 27, 1862. Although her exact cause of death is unknown, it is likely that she died from typhoid fever, as several children in the area died at approximately the same time from the same disease. She is buried in the Lindsey Cemetery in Republic, Missouri.

Copy of photograph by Unknown Photographer

Image Courtesy Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield; WICR 01793