What did Albert Cashier and Jennie Hodgers have in common and the meaning of “4F”

Early in the Civil War Union states hurried to meet their enlistment quotas. Page 15 (shown below) of the Manual of the Medical Officer of the Army of the United States covers what the medical examination of the recruit should entail- In passing a recruit the medical officer is to examine him stripped; to see that he has free use of all his limbs; that his chest is ample; that his hearing, vision and speech are perfect; that he has no tumors, or ulcerated or cicatrized legs; no rupture or chronic cutaneous affection; that he has not received any contusion, or wound of the head, that may impair his faculties; that he is not subject to convulsions; and has no infectious disorder that may unfit him for military service.

**Page 15** **Manual of the Medical Officer of the Army of the United States**

This was the regulation but in reality governors had to fill their quotas and examining physicians were paid per recruit, as a result exams early in the war were of poor quality. Of a group of 47,417 recruits in 1861 from New York, 5,554 were discharged for disability that same year! It was reported that an entire regiment had no exams at all, and one doctor examined recruits at a rate of 90 per hour.

If a recruit could walk, carry a gun, had a trigger finger and all four canine teeth they were enlisted during that first year in many locations. They needed an index finger to fire the gun but why the 4 front canine teeth? The most common Civil War rifle fired a .58 caliber Minnie ball (shown above). The bullet came in a paper cartridge along with the gun powder to fire it. Guns were muzzle loading so the soldier had to tear open the cartridge with his front canine teeth, allow the gun powder to go into the barrel first followed by the hollowed core bullet (rings down). A ramrod was used to pack the bullet at the base of the barrel. Without front canine teeth one couldn’t load a rifle. This was the origin of the term “4F” used to describe a soldier as unfit for military service- they did not have their four front canine teeth. The only dental procedure at the time that could address a tooth infection was extraction.

To cut corners some physicians examined soldiers with their clothes on. This resulted in the enlistment of over 400 women. On August 6th of 1862 an Irish immigrant named Albert Cashier enlisted in the 95th Illinois. Illinois struggled to meet their draft quota that year and the group of soldiers examined that day were only required to remove their socks. Assigned to the Army of the Tennessee Albert served in the Vicksburg Campaign, Brice’s Crossroads, the battles of Spring Hill, Franklin, Nashville, the Red River expedition and the siege of Mobile. After 3 years of service the regiment mustered out on August 17, 1865.

Albert returned to Illinois and worked numerous jobs mostly as a farmer, church janitor, cemetery worker, and street lamplighter to supplement a veteran’s pension in Saunemin, Illinois. In 1910 a neighbor sent her nurse to check on Albert who was not feeling well. The nurse discovered that Albert was female, but the family kept her secret. Albert was in reality Jennie Hodgers.

In 1911 while cleaning a state senator’s driveway Cashier was accidentally run over and suffered a broken leg. A doctor examined Cashier and the community continued to keep the secret. Now completely disabled the Senator and doctor had Cashier admitted to the Soldier’s and Sailor’s Home in Quincy, Illinois. The home’s superintendent and doctor agreed to continue to keep the secret. Due to declining mental health Cashier was transferred to the State Asylum in Watertown in March of 1914 where Cashier’s secret was discovered and reported in the local press. Pvt. Cashier died on October 11, 1915, and was buried by the Grand Army of the Republic in uniform with full military honors. At a time when women were not allowed to join the military Albert Cashier/Jennie Hodgers served with distinction even escaping from Rebel captors in Vicksburg.