Pancha Carrasco (8 April 1816 – 31 December 1890), born Francisca Carrasco Jiménez, was

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

's first woman in the military. Carrasco is most famous for joining the defending forces at the Battle of Rivas in 1856 with a rifle and a pocketful of bullets. The strength and determination she showed there made her a symbol of national pride and she was later honored with a Costa Rican postage stamp, a Coast Guard vessel, and the creation of the "Pancha Carrasco Police Women's Excellence Award".

Biography

Francisca Carrasco Jiménez was born on 8 April 1816 in

Cartago, Costa Rica Cartago () is the head city of Cartago canton of the Cartago Province, and is composed of the Oriental and Occidental districts as stated in the administrative divisions of Costa Rica. It was the capital of Costa Rica from 1574 to 1824. History ...

, the daughter of Jose Francisco Carrasco and Maria Jiménez. She was of mixed American, African, and European heritage. Pancha was married two times, first in 1834 to Juan Solano, and later to Gil Zúñiga; however, neither of her marriages worked out. In 1856 (age 40), when William Walker and his ''filibusteros'' invaded Costa Rica, Carrasco volunteered as an army cook and a medic. She is most famous for filling her apron pockets with bullets, grabbing a rifle, and joining the defending forces at the Battle of Rivas, becoming Costa Rica's first woman in the military

Legacy

Her strength and determination became a symbol of national pride, and she was commemorated with a Costa Rican postage stamp in 1984.It was issued on 10 April 1984 as the 1.50 Colon value in a four value set honoring national heroes. "Costa Rica", ''Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalog'', 1986, Vol 2, p. 687, column 4. The Costa Rican Security Ministry established a "Pancha Carrasco Police Women's Excellence Award" in her honor."Female Cop Awarded Excellence Award"
, ''Tico Times'', 2 September 2002. The former U.S. Coast Guard cutter ''Point Bridge'' was renamed ''Pancha Carrasco'' in her honor when it was turned over to the Costa Rican Coast Guard in 2001."Decommissioning Ceremony"
, U.S. Coast Guard, 28 September 2001.

References

Sources consulted * Boles, Janet K. and Hoeveler, Diane Long (2004) "Carrasco, Pancha (Francisca) 1826–1890" ''Historical Dictionary of Feminism'' (2nd ed.) Scarecrow Press, Lanham, Md., p. 70,

(Genealogy of Francisca Carrasco Jiménez, Heroine of the National Campaign against the Filibusteros) in Spanish *"Pancha Carrasco Jimenez"
Salón de Beneméritos de la Patria y Ciudadanos de Honor.
Endnotes {{DEFAULTSORT:Carrasco, Pancha 1816 births 1890 deaths People from Cartago Province Women soldiers Costa Rican women Women in 19th-century warfare Women in war in Central America 19th-century Costa Rican people