Abrey Kamoo

Abrey Kamoo (born Abbredalah Kaloss, alias Tommy Kamoo; January/February 1815 – February 21, 1904) was an American physician who was reportedly born in Tunisia. In 1862, during the American Civil War, she was said to have served in disguise as a Union Army drummer boy until her sex was discovered, and then to have served as an army nurse for the remainder of the conflict. No official government or military records or other accounts exist to corroborate her claims, however, and it is likely that many of the more fanciful parts of her life story were fabricated later in life and included in her obituaries.

Biography According to newspaper accounts at the time of her death, Abbredalah Kaloss was born in Tunis in 1815 as a triplet. Similarly, census records show no Kamoo living in New Orleans (or anywhere in Louisiana) in the antebellum period. Additionally, other aspects of Kamoo's claims are dubious: Commodore Perry was neither in Tunisia nor New Orleans in 1838 (and was a captain at the time), as he was instead stationed in New York during this period.