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Antonia
Ford was born in 1838 at Fairfax Court House, Virginia, daughter of
prominent merchant and secessionist, Edward R. Ford.
Her brother, Charles, served in the artillery company of General J.E.B.
Stuart.
Beginning in 1861, she gathered information on Union forces and passed it to
such notables as General Stuart and Colonel John S. Mosby. Antonia was
rewarded by Stuart with a commission as an honorary aide-de-camp dated
October 7, 1861.
The
night before his capture, Union General Edward H. Stoughton had a party for
his mother and sister who were visiting and staying at the Ford home. Secret
Service head Lafayette C. Baker, aware of her reputation at the time of
Mosby’s capture of Stoughton, planted a female counterspy
in Fairfax. Gaining Antonia’s confidence, Frankie Abel was secretly shown
the honorary aide-de-camp paper from General Stuart. Antonia was arrested
on March 13, 1863. Sent to the Old Capitol Prison at Washington, she was
exchanged on May 20. Back in Fairfax, Antonia was re-arrested and
again sent to the Old Capitol.
On March 10, 1864, Antonia married the Union officer
who had arrested her, signed and witnessed her oath of loyalty to the Union, and negotiated her release, Major Joseph C. Willard.
When asked by a friend why she had married a Yankee, Antonia answered, "I
knew I could not revenge myself on the nation, but was fully capable of
tormenting one Yankee to death, so took the Major." She died in 1871
leaving three children and a grieving husband who never remarried.
Many say she had never completely recovered from her times at Old Capitol Prison.
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