People

Emma C. Riely

October 1, 1847 - January 13, 1942
Winchester resident

Only thirteen years old when the war began, Emma was a diarist recording personal experiences. She was once stripped-searched by the wife of a Union officer after returning to Winchester carrying letters. “Corset stays were thoroughly examined,” she wrote. “The shoes taken off, hands run down inside, but thank heavens they came up empty.”

In 1865, Emma married Reuben Conway Macon, an adjutant of the 13th Virginia Infantry. In 1896, Emma co-wrote Reminiscences of the Civil War in 1896 with her husband. She is buried in Graham Cemetery, Orange County, Virginia.