List of The Winter of Red Snow characters

Abigail on the cover of the second edition

All of the characters that appear in The Winter of Red Snow by Kristiana Gregory. Several of the characters also appear in the television film.

Main characters

Abigail Stewart

Main article: Abigail Stewart

Elisabeth Rosen as Abigail

Abigail "Abby" Jane Stewart (1766 – 1823) was the daughter of Sarah and Edward Stewart. She had two sisters, Elisabeth and Sally, and one brother, John. Her family lived a relatively quiet life in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania until the Revolutionary War. In late December 1777, the Continental Army began camping near her home. Her family was later hired by General George Washington to do his laundry. Abigail befriended his wife Martha, when she arrived a month later.

Supporting characters

Edward Stewart

Robert Bockstael as Edward

Edward Stewart ("Papa") was the husband of Sarah, and father of Abigail, Elisabeth, Sally, and John. He had three brothers, who lived in Philadelphia. Edward made his living as a shoemaker. He was a Patriot and supported the Continental Army, when they were camped near Valley Forge. Edward made several pairs of shoes to donate to the soldiers. In late January, he visited his relatives in Philadelphia, where the British were camped. However, Edward left upset as none of them felt "ashamed" for selling goods to the enemy. After the Revolutionary War, Edward and his family moved to homestead in the Ohio River Valley.

Elisabeth Stewart

Elisabeth Ann Valentine (née Stewart; c. 1762 – 1825), also called Beth, was the older sister of Abigail, Sally, and John. She was the oldest child of Sarah and Edward. After the arrival of the Patriot forces, Elisabeth sewed a bounty coat and embroidered her name in the collar, hoping the soldier she gave it to would be handsome. Disappointed by the first soldier, she developed a crush on Pierre and sewed him a coat made from her cloak. She was shocked and saddened to find that he gave it to dog, Azor. After meeting the first soldier, named Ben Valentine, again, Elisabeth developed a crush on him. They were married in 1779 and had two sons, Paul and Nathaniel. Elisabeth and Ben passed away together in a house fire.

Helen Kern

Sarah Manninen as Helen

Helen Kern (born c. 1762) was the widow of Mr. Kern, whom she married on March 28, 1777. She followed her husband to Valley Forge where his feet had to be amputated. He eventually succumbed to fever in early March 1778. The Stewart family later located her in the encampment and brought her to stay with them. Once her strength returned, Helen often helped out with chores and spent a lot of time with Abigail and her sisters, who were not much younger than her. She gave birth to a daughter, Olivia in May 1778. Around 1781, Helen married Daniel Kern, the brother of her late husband. They had five children.

Sally Stewart

Tabitha Lupien as Sally

Sally Stewart (born 1771) was the curious younger sister of Elisabeth and Abigail, and older sister of John. She was the youngest daughter of Edward and Sarah. Sally was happiest playing outdoors with her doll. She was only six when the Patriot army was camped near her home in early 1778. Due to her young age, she was often hasty and occasionally disobedient. On one occasion, Sally became stuck in mud after her father forbade her to go outside. She lost her shoes to the mud and had to go the rest of the winter without. In later life, Sally went with her family to homestead in the Ohio River Valley.

Sarah Stewart

Rosemary Dunsmore as Sarah

Sarah Stewart ("Mama") was the mother of Elisabeth, Abigail, Sally, and John. She had a sister named Hannie, who lived in Philadelphia with her husband and six children. Sarah gave birth to a total of nine children, five of which died in infancy. Her youngest child and only surviving son, John, was born in December 1777. The Continental Army arrived later that month, bringing a new workload for Sarah who started taking care of George Washington's laundry. Her family later took in Helen Kern. Sarah helped Helen give birth in May 1778. In 1787, Sarah and her family moved to the Ohio River Valley.

Minor characters

Azor in the film

Shawn Ashmore as Ben

Conrad Coates as Billy Lee

• Alexander Hamilton was one of George Washington's aides who was often spotted speaking with Pierre.
• Azor was a greyhound owned by Baron von Steuben, who took him everywhere. Pierre later gave him the coat Elisabeth made
• Baron von Steuben was a man whom Benjamin Franklin asked to train the Patriot troops. He was accompanied to Valley Forge by his dog Azor, and interpreter Pierre.
• Ben Valentine (died 1825) was an American soldier who received Elisabeth's bounty coat. A romance later developed between them and they married after the war. They had two sons, Paul and Nathaniel.
• Billy Lee was George Washington's slave and personal servant. Abigail and her sister often spoke to him while delivering George's laundry. He always took a moment to tell them the latest news.
• Charles Lee was a general who was held prisoner by British Army for more than a year.
• Mrs. Fitzgerald was the wife of William, who was taken prisoner by the Redcoats. She had eight sons described as "lazy and quarrelsome." She lost five of her sons, Tom, Nate, Phillip, Howard, and Sammy, when they drowned after falling through the ice. She was reunited with her husband, when he was finally freed in June 1778.
• George Washington was the commander of the Continental Army. He rented a house from Mrs. Hewes, while he was camped in Valley Forge. George also employed the Stewarts to do his laundry.
• Hannie was the sister of Sarah Stewart. She operated a bakery in Philadelphia where she lived with her husband and six children, including Matthew Robert. Lucy Smith stayed with her for a few months, after she ran away from home.
• Mrs. Hewes was a widow and neighbor of the Stewarts. George Washington rented her house while his army was camped in Valley Forge. She then stayed with her brother-in-law.
• John "Johnny" Edward Stewart (born December 1, 1777) was the youngest child of Sarah and Edward.
• John Trotter was a dance master that boarded at Colonel DeWees' house. He became acquainted with Mrs. Hewes there. His hope was to teach the officers and their wives how to dance.

Jeff Topping as Mr. Kern

• Mr. Kern (died March 1778) was an American soldier whose feet were amputated. He died from fever, leaving his wife, Helen, a widow.
• Mrs. Loring was William Howe's mistress. She was actually married to an American officer.
• Lucy Knox, the wife of an officer who had twelve children. She gave birth to her thirteenth in 1778.
• Lucy Smith (born c. 1763) was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Smith. In Philadelphia, she sold her hair for nine shillings that later went missing. Lucy was ashamed when her parents found out and ran away to Philadelphia. She stayed with Abigail's aunt Hannie, while waiting for her hair to grow out.

Catherine Disher as Martha

• Martha Washington was the wife of George Washington. In February 1778, she joined her husband in Valley Forge. She later befriended Abigail and her family.
• Olivia Kern (born May 10, 1778) was the daughter of Helen and Mr. Kern. She was born two months after her father died.
• Oney was a slave and personal servant of Martha Washington.

Jesse Nilsson as Pierre

• Pierre Etienne Duponceau was the French interpreter of Baron von Steuben. Elisabeth developed a crush on him and sewed him a coat, which he gave to Azor.
• Mr. and Mrs. Smith were the parents of Lucy. They were neighbors of the Stewart family in Valley Forge. When Lucy sold her hair, they punished her by shaving the rest off and not letting her wear a bonnet. They later regretted their harshness, after she ran away.
• Tom Fitzgerald (c. 1766 – March 6, 1778) was one of Mrs. Fitzgerald's sons. He was the same age as Abigail. Tom and four of his brothers died when they fell through the ice.
• Mr. and Mrs. Walker were neighbors of the Stewarts who had three children. Mr. Walker was a carpenter.
• Colonel William DeWees was Mrs. Hewes' brother-in-law. She stayed with him while she was renting her home to George Washington.
• William Fitzgerald was the husband of Mrs. Fitzgerald. He was captured by the British and was not freed for several months.
• William Howe, also called Billy, was the commander of the British forces. He was camped in Philadelphia during the winter of 1778.

Epilogue characters

• Daniel Kern, the brother of Mr. Kern. He married his brother's widow, Helen. They had five children.
• Hannah Campbell was the daughter of Abigail Stewart and Willie Campbell. She was the first woman doctor of Philip's County.
• Paul and Nathaniel Valentine were the sons of Elisabeth and Ben Valentine. They both became explorers. Paul went on to help map the Missouri River, while Nathaniel sailed to Monterey Bay.
• Willie Campbell (died 1825) was a blacksmith who married Abigail. They had nine children together. He died two years after Abigail from grief.