Susie King Taylor was more than a witness to history. She lived it. Born into slavery in Georgia, she became the first Black woman to openly serve as an army nurse during the Civil War, while also teaching formerly enslaved people how to read and write. Her story is one of courage, education, survival, and service during one of the most dangerous periods in American history. From the battlefield to the classroom, Susie King Taylor used knowledge as power and left behind a memoir that still speaks for those who fought for freedom, dignity, and a better future.