Mothers, Sisters, Soldiers, Spies examines the long, continuous history of women's participation in American wars-not as exceptions, but as an essential part of how war has actually been fought and endured. From the Revolutionary War through the modern era, women sustained armies, gathered intelligence, organized logistics, nursed the wounded, labored in war industries, and, at times, fought directly-often without formal recognition or lasting security. Their work was indispensable in wartime and frequently minimized or erased in peacetime. Rather than focusing only on famous individuals, this book explores the unsung service women. It examines how women's labor was used, how military and political institutions defined (and restricted) service, and how race, class, and gender shaped who was permitted to participate and whose sacrifice counted afterward. Women of color are integrated throughout the narrative, revealing how layered forms of exclusion shaped both opportunity and recognition.