Although Catharine did not go to college, she considered herself to have been raised in a highly intellectual home:
"I was reared in an atmosphere of high intelligence. My father had uncommon mental vigor. So had my brothers. Their daily habits, and pursuits, and pleasures were intellectual, and I naturally imbibed from them a kindred taste" (Life and Letters of Catharine M. Sedgwick: 46-47).
When she was ten, Catharine could be found during her school lunch hour under her desk munching and reading Rollins’s Ancient History. While her four brothers followed in their father’s footsteps and became lawyers, they encouraged Catharine to pursue her writing, and she published her first book at age thirty-three.
Professionally, Catharine went on to become a successful and prolific author on a wide variety of topics in six novels, over one-hundred short stories and sketches, as well as domestic novellas, advice manuals, biographies, religious tracts, travelogues, and children’s books. She is considered to be one of the founders of American literature and enjoyed national and international renown during her lifetime. It is noteworthy that Catharine and Martha Washington were the only women selected for inclusion in the first volume of the National Portrait Gallery of Distinguished Americans.
The indefatigable Catharine continued to write for forty years publishing her last piece at the age of seventy-two. Catharine also taught at her sister-in-law’s Young Ladies’ School in Lenox, MA and various Sunday schools, including the Isaac T. Hopper Home. In her later years, she volunteered for the Female Department of the New York Prison Association (becoming president from 1848 to 1863), which led to her opening the Home for Discharged Female Convicts.
Personally, Catharine chose to become a member of her siblings’ households instead of marrying various suitors. For most of her life, she lived and worked in New York City and Stockbridge/Lenox, MA and traveled throughout North America and Europe. She also participated in the Berkshire’s literary society and received visits from authors, politicians, activists, and renowned international figures.
Catharine passed away in 1867 at the home of her niece in West Roxbury at the age of seventy-seven. She was remembered as a “true and beautiful soul, a clear and refined intellect, and a singularly sympathetic social nature” (Life and Letters of Catharine M. Sedgwick: 10) with “clear good sense, and graced by a charm of style of which she was the master during her whole life”:
"Her unerring sense of rectitude, her love of truth, her ready sympathy, her active and cheerful beneficence, her winning and gracious manners, the perfection of high breeding, make up a character, the idea of which, as it rests on my mind, I would not exchange for any thing in her own interesting works of fiction" (Life and Letters of Catharine M. Sedgwick: 446).
Catharine was buried in the family plot in Stockbridge next to her beloved nurse, Elizabeth (“Mum-Bett”) Freeman. (Massachusetts Historical Society Collections Online: Witness to America’s Past Description; Sedgwick Pie). Mum-Bett had been the first freed slave in Massachusetts who thereafter earned a living by working in the home of her attorney, Catharine’s father, and became an important mother figure to the family before her father remarried in 1808 (Massachusetts Historical Society Collections Online: Witness to America’s Past Description; Lucinda L. Damon-Bach & Victoria Clements, Catharine Maria Sedgwick: Critical Perspectives at xxiii and xxxiv (2003)).
Catharine had used her gift with words to memorialized Mum-Bett’s noble life in her article “Slavery in New England” in 1853 (Miss Sedgewick [sic], “Slavery in New England,” in XXXIV Bentley’s Miscellany at 417, 424 (1853)). Five years after Catharine’s death, Harper & Brothers would do the same for Catharine by publishing a book entitled the Life and Letters of Catharine M. Sedgwick, which was edited by her life-long neighbor, Mary E. Dewey.
]]>Born in Stockbridge, MA, Catharine Maria Sedgwick was the sixth of the seven surviving children of Theodore Sedgwick and Pamela Dwight Sedgwick. Catharine’s mother was ill for most of her childhood and died when Catharine was seventeen. A year later, her father remarried Penelope Russell. For most of Catharine’s childhood, her father was away from home for more than half of each year pursuing a political career with six terms in the Continental Congress, U.S. House of Representatives, Speaker of the House, Senator from Massachusetts, and a Massachusetts Supreme Court Justice, and then passed away in 1813 when Catharine was twenty-three.
Although Catharine did not go to college, she considered herself to have been raised in a highly intellectual home:
"I was reared in an atmosphere of high intelligence. My father had uncommon mental vigor. So had my brothers. Their daily habits, and pursuits, and pleasures were intellectual, and I naturally imbibed from them a kindred taste" (Life and Letters of Catharine M. Sedgwick: 46-47).
When she was ten, Catharine could be found during her school lunch hour under her desk munching and reading Rollins’s Ancient History. While her four brothers followed in their father’s footsteps and became lawyers, they encouraged Catharine to pursue her writing, and she published her first book at age thirty-three.
Professionally, Catharine went on to become a successful and prolific author on a wide variety of topics in six novels, over one-hundred short stories and sketches, as well as domestic novellas, advice manuals, biographies, religious tracts, travelogues, and children’s books. She is considered to be one of the founders of American literature and enjoyed national and international renown during her lifetime. It is noteworthy that Catharine and Martha Washington were the only women selected for inclusion in the first volume of the National Portrait Gallery of Distinguished Americans.
The indefatigable Catharine continued to write for forty years publishing her last piece at the age of seventy-two. Catharine also taught at her sister-in-law’s Young Ladies’ School in Lenox, MA and various Sunday schools, including the Isaac T. Hopper Home. In her later years, she volunteered for the Female Department of the New York Prison Association (becoming president from 1848 to 1863), which led to her opening the Home for Discharged Female Convicts.
Personally, Catharine chose to become a member of her siblings’ households instead of marrying various suitors. For most of her life, she lived and worked in New York City and Stockbridge/Lenox, MA and traveled throughout North America and Europe. She also participated in the Berkshire’s literary society and received visits from authors, politicians, activists, and renowned international figures.
Catharine passed away in 1867 at the home of her niece in West Roxbury at the age of seventy-seven. She was remembered as a “true and beautiful soul, a clear and refined intellect, and a singularly sympathetic social nature” (Life and Letters of Catharine M. Sedgwick: 10) with “clear good sense, and graced by a charm of style of which she was the master during her whole life”:
"Her unerring sense of rectitude, her love of truth, her ready sympathy, her active and cheerful beneficence, her winning and gracious manners, the perfection of high breeding, make up a character, the idea of which, as it rests on my mind, I would not exchange for any thing in her own interesting works of fiction" (Life and Letters of Catharine M. Sedgwick: 446).
Catharine was buried in the family plot in Stockbridge next to her beloved nurse, Elizabeth (“Mum-Bett”) Freeman. (Massachusetts Historical Society Collections Online: Witness to America’s Past Description; Sedgwick Pie). Mum-Bett had been the first freed slave in Massachusetts who thereafter earned a living by working in the home of her attorney, Catharine’s father, and became an important mother figure to the family before her father remarried in 1808 (Massachusetts Historical Society Collections Online: Witness to America’s Past Description; Lucinda L. Damon-Bach & Victoria Clements, Catharine Maria Sedgwick: Critical Perspectives at xxiii and xxxiv (2003)).
Catharine had used her gift with words to memorialized Mum-Bett’s noble life in her article “Slavery in New England” in 1853 (Miss Sedgewick [sic], “Slavery in New England,” in XXXIV Bentley’s Miscellany at 417, 424 (1853)). Five years after Catharine’s death, Harper & Brothers would do the same for Catharine by publishing a book entitled the Life and Letters of Catharine M. Sedgwick, which was edited by her life-long neighbor, Mary E. Dewey.
The Washington Times supported Mary Emily's 1894 bill "To prohibit expectoration in public places," noting that it "deserves from the general public as serious consideration as it has been given by the Pro Re Nata Club. It has both aesthetic and sanitary claims."
In 1895, she became a member of the Floyd Memorial Association, a group of people who strove to erect a memorial to the noted explorer of the West.
Mary Emily, who was widowed on Christmas Day in 1899, was living at her Washington, D.C. home at the turn of the century. In mid-February of 1904 and 1905, she attended receptions at the White House given by President and Mrs. Roosevelt. Mary Emily passed away in 1906.
Mary Emily Bennett Coues was born in New York, New York on August 26, 1835.
After traveling to and living abroad, Mary Emily married Philadelphia merchant Joseph W. Bates. In addition to their Philadelphia mansion at 1814 Chestnut Street, the couple lived in Yorkshire, England. Joseph passed away in 1886.
The next year, Mary Emily married Dr. Elliott Coues, a scientist and writer, in a ceremony performed by Edward Everett Hale. Mary Emily and Elliot lived at 1726 N Street NW in Washington, D.C.
Mary Emily and Clara Barton were two of the founding members of the Pro Re Nata women's club in Washington, D.C. in 1892. She was one of Pro Re Nata's representatives to the Washington Liberty Bell Association in 1893, helping to promote a performance of "As You Like It" for people in Washington.
In addition, Mary Emily and Elliott were involved with the World Psychical Science Congress in Chicago in 1893, Mary Emily was a member of the Woman's Psychical Congress Committee, along with Frances Elizabeth Willard, Myra Bradwell, and several other women.
The Washington Times supported Mary Emily's 1894 bill "To prohibit expectoration in public places," noting that it "deserves from the general public as serious consideration as it has been given by the Pro Re Nata Club. It has both aesthetic and sanitary claims."
In 1895, she became a member of the Floyd Memorial Association, a group of people who strove to erect a memorial to the noted explorer of the West.
Mary Emily, who was widowed on Christmas Day in 1899, was living at her Washington, D.C. home at the turn of the century. In mid-February of 1904 and 1905, she attended receptions at the White House given by President and Mrs. Roosevelt. Mary Emily passed away in 1906.
Catharine was the legal advisor for the National American Woman Suffrage Association, while also serving as an auditor, and later the Vice-President. At the time of the 1912 Presidential campaign, Catharine insisted that the Republican Party would suffer the wrath of the suffragists if suffrage was not included in the platform.
Later that year, she placed an ad in the Rock Island Argus that she would pay one dollar for every one hundred signatures collected in support of Illinois suffrage. While she toiled mightily for suffrage, Catharine was quite vocal in her opposition to the "militant methods" of British suffrage leader Emmeline Pankhurst. Her efforts were successful and Illinois women gained suffrage in 1913.
Catharine was overjoyed when the Illinois Democratic state convention selected her as a 1916 delegate for Woodrow Wison, commenting, "The Democratic party has, indeed, put itself out to honor womanhood." She continued her efforts for suffrage for Illinois women in February of 1917, arguing for an amendment, against Grace Wilbur Trout, who believed that a convention alone would suffice. Unfortunately for Catharine, the constitutional convention route was chosen by the time September came. According to Free-Trader Journal, Catharine wanted to unify women in the state, so she agreed to support the constitutional convention. Catharine continued to speak in Iowa and other states in support of suffrage.
Once the League of Women Voters was founded in 1919, Catharine was involved with this organization. By 1922, she was the chair of the committee on uniform laws. According to Washington D.C.'s Evening Star, this committee advocated for several issues related to marriage and motherhood.
A 1926 article by Lillian Campbell celebrated Catharine's forty years of having success in her law practice. After mentioning some of her professional accomplishments, it notes, "She is the mother of four children, all university graduates, and two of her sons practice law with their father and mother."
Catharine continued being active in the Democratic Party, speaking at the conventions of the National Woman's Democratic Law Enforcement League in 1929 and 1931, and serving as its Second Vice President from 1929 until at least 1932. She also served her country as a member of the Committee on Cultural Relations with Latin America.
During her long career, in addition to her work in the field of law and her suffrage work, Catharine found time to advocate for temperance, to serve as legal advisor to the W.C.T.U., to write books and plays., and to participate in numerous organizations in the Chicago area.
Catharine passed away in Evanston on April 20, 1945, and was buried three days later in Chicago's Graceland Cemetery.
Catharine Waugh McCulloch was born in Ransomville, New York, on June 4, 1862. She graduated from Rockford Female Seminary, earning both a bachelor's degree and master's degree, and attended Union College of Law.
A temperance advocate from an early age, Catharine was a member of the Young Woman's Christian Temperance Union. Also passionate about suffrage, she passed out a pro-suffrage speech to counter the anti-suffrage speech that her town's Presbyterian minister was giving.
Catharine practiced law with Frank Hathorn McCulloch, a law school classmate whom she married on May 30, 1890, in Winnebago, Illinois. Their firm was known as McCulloch & McCulloch.
Catharine spoke at many events in support of suffrage. At the Cleveland convention in 1896, she and Julia Holmes Smith each presented an argument for the Democratic Party supporting suffrage.
One milestone in Catharine's legal career was on February 21, 1898, when she was admitted to practice before the Supreme Court.
By 1900, Catharine was listed as a lawyer living at 2236 Orrington Avenue in Evanston with her husband and her children, Hugh and Hathorn.
Catharine and Frank filed an argument and brief in Chicago in support of municipal suffrage for women in late May of 1906. The next year, when Catharine was elected justice of the peace for Evanston, and the first female justice of the peace in the country, she changed the marriage contract to omit the wording that a woman must obey her husband.
The McCullochs took a four-month trip to Europe during the summer of 1908 and visited several countries. By this time, their family had had expanded to include two younger children, Catharine and Frank.
Catharine spoke before the Society of Anthropology in 1909, making an argument that "woman was the originator of most of the good things in the world." After praising women from Eve on, she asked her audience to vote on woman suffrage and got a positive result.
Catharine was the legal advisor for the National American Woman Suffrage Association, while also serving as an auditor, and later the Vice-President. At the time of the 1912 Presidential campaign, Catharine insisted that the Republican Party would suffer the wrath of the suffragists if suffrage was not included in the platform.
Later that year, she placed an ad in the Rock Island Argus that she would pay one dollar for every one hundred signatures collected in support of Illinois suffrage. While she toiled mightily for suffrage, Catharine was quite vocal in her opposition to the "militant methods" of British suffrage leader Emmeline Pankhurst. Her efforts were successful and Illinois women gained suffrage in 1913.
Catharine was overjoyed when the Illinois Democratic state convention selected her as a 1916 delegate for Woodrow Wison, commenting, "The Democratic party has, indeed, put itself out to honor womanhood." She continued her efforts for suffrage for Illinois women in February of 1917, arguing for an amendment, against Grace Wilbur Trout, who believed that a convention alone would suffice. Unfortunately for Catharine, the constitutional convention route was chosen by the time September came. According to Free-Trader Journal, Catharine wanted to unify women in the state, so she agreed to support the constitutional convention. Catharine continued to speak in Iowa and other states in support of suffrage.
Once the League of Women Voters was founded in 1919, Catharine was involved with this organization. By 1922, she was the chair of the committee on uniform laws. According to Washington D.C.'s Evening Star, this committee advocated for several issues related to marriage and motherhood.
A 1926 article by Lillian Campbell celebrated Catharine's forty years of having success in her law practice. After mentioning some of her professional accomplishments, it notes, "She is the mother of four children, all university graduates, and two of her sons practice law with their father and mother."
Catharine continued being active in the Democratic Party, speaking at the conventions of the National Woman's Democratic Law Enforcement League in 1929 and 1931, and serving as its Second Vice President from 1929 until at least 1932. She also served her country as a member of the Committee on Cultural Relations with Latin America.
During her long career, in addition to her work in the field of law and her suffrage work, Catharine found time to advocate for temperance, to serve as legal advisor to the W.C.T.U., to write books and plays., and to participate in numerous organizations in the Chicago area.
Catharine passed away in Evanston on April 20, 1945, and was buried three days later in Chicago's Graceland Cemetery.
Also a writer, Anna published the novel What Answer? in 1868. Next, she decided to pursue playwriting and acting. Anna wrote a play called "A Crown of Thorns" and made her debut on the stage. When this career path ultimately failed, she decided to return to lecturing and continued to write plays.
Anna died in Goshen, New York when she was eighty-nine. She is buried at Slate Hill Cemetery, Goshen, New York.
Anna Elizabeth Dickinson was born on October 28, 1842 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her father passed away in 1844, when Anna was two years old. She went to the Friends' Free School, studied hard, and read constantly.
By the age of fifteen, Anna had written her first article on slavery and had spoken at a meeting for the Anti-Slavery movement. She taught in Berks County, Pennsylvania before becoming a professional lecturer. Anna traveled around New England delivering addresses about slavery, temperance,and politics. When Anna gave an address in Washington, D.C. during the early 1860s, she donated all of the proceeds from the event to the Freedmen's Relief Society.
Also a writer, Anna published the novel What Answer? in 1868. Next, she decided to pursue playwriting and acting. Anna wrote a play called "A Crown of Thorns" and made her debut on the stage. When this career path ultimately failed, she decided to return to lecturing and continued to write plays.
Anna died in Goshen, New York when she was eighty-nine. She is buried at Slate Hill Cemetery, Goshen, New York.
She attended the State Normal School in Albany, then began her teaching career in Mamaroneck, New York. Next, Elizabeth became a gymnastics instructor at Vassar College. From there, she moved to Florence, Massachusetts, and met the lawyer Henry Herrick Bond. . They married and became parents to two sons, Edwin Powell Bond, who was born in 1874, and Herrick Tyler Bond, who was born in 1878, but died in infancy.
Elizabeth spent the majority of her life teaching young children, as well as using her home to teach some of her pupils who were struggling in school. Since they were interested in sharing local news and events, Elizabeth and her husband edited “The Northampton Journal.”
Bond was an educator and social activist who fought for women's rights, as well as for the rights of African Americans. In addition, Elizabeth devoted a lot of time and effort to activities related to her Quaker religion. Her personal network included Louisa May Alcott, Ellen Tucker Emerson, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Fanny Garrison Villard, William Lloyd Garrison, and Dio Lewis. Elizabeth was the first Dean of Women at Swarthmore College, a position she held from 1890 to 1906. In 1901, Elizabeth wrote “Words by the Way,” which she dedicated to Swarthmore’s students.
During her later years, Elizabeth enjoyed gardening. She passed away in Germantown, Pennsylvania, on March 29, 1926, and was buried in Spring Grove Cemetery, Florence, Massachusetts.
]]>Elizabeth Powell Bond was born to Catherine Macy Powell and Townsend Powell on January 25th, 1841, in Clinton, New York. She had an older brother named Aaron. When Elizabeth was four years old, the family moved to Ghent, New York where she grew up.
She attended the State Normal School in Albany, then began her teaching career in Mamaroneck, New York. Next, Elizabeth became a gymnastics instructor at Vassar College. From there, she moved to Florence, Massachusetts, and met the lawyer Henry Herrick Bond. . They married and became parents to two sons, Edwin Powell Bond, who was born in 1874, and Herrick Tyler Bond, who was born in 1878, but died in infancy.
Elizabeth spent the majority of her life teaching young children, as well as using her home to teach some of her pupils who were struggling in school. Since they were interested in sharing local news and events, Elizabeth and her husband edited “The Northampton Journal.”
Bond was an educator and social activist who fought for women's rights, as well as for the rights of African Americans. In addition, Elizabeth devoted a lot of time and effort to activities related to her Quaker religion. Her personal network included Louisa May Alcott, Ellen Tucker Emerson, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Fanny Garrison Villard, William Lloyd Garrison, and Dio Lewis. Elizabeth was the first Dean of Women at Swarthmore College, a position she held from 1890 to 1906. In 1901, Elizabeth wrote “Words by the Way,” which she dedicated to Swarthmore’s students.
During her later years, Elizabeth enjoyed gardening. She passed away in Germantown, Pennsylvania, on March 29, 1926, and was buried in Spring Grove Cemetery, Florence, Massachusetts.
Susan Frances Nelson Ferree was born in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, on January 14, 1844, and grew up in Keokuk, Iowa. She married Jerome D. Ferree in 1860 and had several children. From the 1860s to the late 1870s, the family first lived in Keokuk, Iowa, and then moved to Ottumwa, Iowa.
Her A Woman of the Century profile notes:
"Mrs. Ferree is a great lover of poetry, of which she has written much, but she excels in journalism. Some of her newspaper correspondence from Washington, D.C. is exceptionally fine. She is an untiring worker for temperance and for the advancement of woman (sic). She is a member of the Order of the Eastern Star, Woman's Relief Corps, the Iowa Woman's Suffrage Association, and the local Woman's Christian Temperance Union, and a communicant of St. Mary's Episcopal Church of Ottumwa" (287).
In addition, Susan was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She was one of the three Ottumwa, Iowa delegates to the DAR meeting in Washington, D.C. in 1901.
Susan and Jerome were living on Ingraham Street in Los Angeles, California, in 1910, but they moved to San Diego, California, the following year. After she did not accompany him to Arizona, the couple divorced in 1913.
Susan passed away in Monterey, California, on September 30, 1919, and her ashes were buried in the family plot in Ottumwa.
]]>Susan Frances Nelson Ferree is our Woman of the Week. Please view the link in our profile to see links related to Susan.
Susan Frances Nelson Ferree was born in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, on January 14, 1844, and grew up in Keokuk, Iowa. She married Jerome D. Ferree in 1860 and had several children. From the 1860s to the late 1870s, the family first lived in Keokuk, Iowa, and then moved to Ottumwa, Iowa.
Her A Woman of the Century profile notes:
"Mrs. Ferree is a great lover of poetry, of which she has written much, but she excels in journalism. Some of her newspaper correspondence from Washington, D.C. is exceptionally fine. She is an untiring worker for temperance and for the advancement of woman (sic). She is a member of the Order of the Eastern Star, Woman's Relief Corps, the Iowa Woman's Suffrage Association, and the local Woman's Christian Temperance Union, and a communicant of St. Mary's Episcopal Church of Ottumwa" (287).
In addition, Susan was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She was one of the three Ottumwa, Iowa delegates to the DAR meeting in Washington, D.C. in 1901.
Susan and Jerome were living on Ingraham Street in Los Angeles, California, in 1910, but they moved to San Diego, California, the following year. After she did not accompany him to Arizona, the couple divorced in 1913.
Susan passed away in Monterey, California, on September 30, 1919, and her ashes were buried in the family plot in Ottumwa.
After her graduation in 1884, she returned to Ohio. Minnie married Benjamin C. Trago on May 9, 1885, but their marriage was not a happy one. She left in 1886 for two years abroad, in Vienna and Paris, to hone her medical skills. Next, Minnie returned to Portsmouth and became president of the Hempstead Academy of Medicine. She married Dr. Charles F. Dight in 1892, and the couple lived in Faribault, Minnesota, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, New Orleans, Louisiana, Chicago, Illinois, Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, until their divorce in 1899. In addition to her work as a physician, Minnie was involved with social reform.
During the first decade of the twentieth century, Minnie returned to Vienna and Paris. When she came back to the United States in 1913, Minnie lived in New York City and had her summer cottage, Rocky Knoll, in Colebrook, New Hampshire. In 1921, Minnie planned to build a winter home in the Washington suburbs. She passed away in Colebrook on February 8, 1923.
]]>Mrs. Mary A. G.. Dight, also known as "Minnie," was born in Portsmouth, Ohio, on November 7, 1860. A talented musician, she attended the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. When she decided to change career paths to become a physician, Minnie attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
After her graduation in 1884, she returned to Ohio. Minnie married Benjamin C. Trago on May 9, 1885, but their marriage was not a happy one. She left in 1886 for two years abroad, in Vienna and Paris, to hone her medical skills. Next, Minnie returned to Portsmouth and became president of the Hempstead Academy of Medicine. She married Dr. Charles F. Dight in 1892, and the couple lived in Faribault, Minnesota, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, New Orleans, Louisiana, Chicago, Illinois, Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, until their divorce in 1899. In addition to her work as a physician, Minnie was involved with social reform.
During the first decade of the twentieth century, Minnie returned to Vienna and Paris. When she came back to the United States in 1913, Minnie lived in New York City and had her summer cottage, Rocky Knoll, in Colebrook, New Hampshire. In 1921, Minnie planned to build a winter home in the Washington suburbs. She passed away in Colebrook on February 8, 1923.
Mary Allice Glidden Crawford in the Ohio, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1774-1993. Film Number: 000292697. Located on Ancestry.com.
Louisa was involved in many philanthropic and reform activities, including ministering to the sick using the Water Cure, and participating in philanthropy, anti-slavery reform, temperance reform, and suffrage efforts. Louisa utilized her public speaking and journalistic talents on behalf of the causes she believed in.
Before the Civil War, Louisa wrote poetry, contributed articles to the Oxford Democrat, and led anti-slavery efforts in her area As her daughter Christina later remembered, Louisa was very active in the war effort: "During the civil war Mrs. Greene's patriotic labors were untiring. In addition to multitudinous household duties, which were always faithfully performed, she took upon herself the labor of collecting, preparing and forwarding hospital supplies for the boys at the front who were so dear to her heart."
In 1869, Louisa's family moved to Manassas, Virginia, residing at the home they named Birmingham. She became a widow four years later.
Louisa passed away in Washington, D.C. on March 5, 1900, and her ashes were buried in the family plot at St. Paul's Cemetery in Alexandria, Virginia. In addition to Christina's beautiful obituary, Louisa's daughter Estelle also penned a farewell announcement and included a poem that she had written about her mother's passing. Within her tribute, Estelle included Louisa's motto: "Help for the living and hope for the dead."
At the National American Woman Suffrage Association Convention in February of 1902, it was announced that Louisa had bequeathed $100 to the organization.
Louisa Morton Willard Greene was born in Ashburnham, Massachusetts, on May 23, 1819. She worked in a woolen mill in Dedham, Massachusetts, where she began writing, and later taught in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
After marrying businessman and politician Jonas Greene in 1841, Louisa became the mother of a son, Jonas Willard Greene, who was stillborn, two younger sons, Willard Jonas Greene and George Henry Greene, and five daughters, Martha, Estelle, Christina, Wilma, and Charlena. The family lived in Peru, Maine.
Louisa was involved in many philanthropic and reform activities, including ministering to the sick using the Water Cure, and participating in philanthropy, anti-slavery reform, temperance reform, and suffrage efforts. Louisa utilized her public speaking and journalistic talents on behalf of the causes she believed in.
Before the Civil War, Louisa wrote poetry, contributed articles to the Oxford Democrat, and led anti-slavery efforts in her area As her daughter Christina later remembered, Louisa was very active in the war effort: "During the civil war Mrs. Greene's patriotic labors were untiring. In addition to multitudinous household duties, which were always faithfully performed, she took upon herself the labor of collecting, preparing and forwarding hospital supplies for the boys at the front who were so dear to her heart."
In 1869, Louisa's family moved to Manassas, Virginia, residing at the home they named Birmingham. She became a widow four years later.
Louisa passed away in Washington, D.C. on March 5, 1900, and her ashes were buried in the family plot at St. Paul's Cemetery in Alexandria, Virginia. In addition to Christina's beautiful obituary, Louisa's daughter Estelle also penned a farewell announcement and included a poem that she had written about her mother's passing. Within her tribute, Estelle included Louisa's motto: "Help for the living and hope for the dead."
At the National American Woman Suffrage Association Convention in February of 1902, it was announced that Louisa had bequeathed $100 to the organization.
She passed away on August 1, 1921.
]]>Helen Vickroy Austin was born in Miamisburg, Ohio on July 19, 1829. She later lived in Ferndale, Pennsylvania, Richmond, Indiana, and Vineland, New Jersey. Helen married William W. Austin in 1850 and became the mother of three children.
She was a horticulturalist, journalist, philanthropist, reformer, temperance worker, and suffragist.
On May 18 and 19, 1870, Helen, her sister Louise Esther Vickroy Boyd, her brother-in-law S.S. Boyd, and other local women and men led the Mass Convention in the Lyceum Hall in Richmond, Indiana to discuss women's rights. By June of 1872, she was serving as corresponding secretary of the Indiana Womans' Suffrage Association. Helen also served as Secretary for the Woman's Christian Association in Richmond during that decade. By 1874, she was a correspondent for The Daily Independent.
Helen was a member of the Daughters of Temperance, the National Woman's Indian Rights Association, the Indiana Woman's Suffrage Association, the Woman's Christian Associaiton, and The Travelers' League.
She passed away on August 1, 1921.
During Theodore Roosevelt’s 1912 Presidential Campaign, Corinne was chair of the “Georgia Moosettes” for Atlanta’s Fifth Congressional District. She and numerous other Georgian women supported Roosevelt’s Progressive platform because they saw it as a positive force for women.
Corinne was married to Chauncey Smith by 1920, a marriage that lasted until his death in the early 1930s. She lived in Atlanta with her daughter for many years, then she moved to Baldwin in the 1940s. Corinne passed away in Fulton, Georgia on September 11, 1947 and was buried in Atlanta's Crest Lawn Cemetery.
Elocutionist and journalist Corinne Stocker was born in Orangeburg, South Carolina on August 21, 1871, but she lived most of her life in Atlanta, Georgia. She was an extremely intelligent and talented woman. As her A Woman of the Century profile notes:
"At an early age Corinne showed a decided histrionic talent. In her ninth year she won the Peabody medal for elocution in the Atlanta schools over competitors aged from eight to twenty-five years. In 1889, she was placed in the Cincinnati College of Music, where she made the most brilliant record in the history of the school, completing a four year course in seven months."
After graduation, Corinne conducted parlor readings and taught elocution. She was a very popular teacher, but after a year she decided to forge a journalism career and joined the Atlanta Journal.
In March of 1892, when she was just twenty, Corinne's "Field of Woman's Work" was published in Atlanta Journal and then reprinted in The Herald and News.
She was a member of the Governing Board of the Georgia Women's Press Club, where her colleagues included Leonora Beck and Ellen J. Dortch,
During the time of the Atlanta Exposition in 1895, the Waterbury Democrat of Connecticut noted Corinne as one of the "leading women" journalists in Atlanta. It also noted her female colleagues at the Atlanta Journal, Mary Louise Huntley, Brent Whiteside, and Mary Jackson, as well as Emily Verdery Battey and other prominent Georgia women
On June 17, 1896, Corinne married Thaddeus E. Horton, another South Carolina native who had become managing editor of the Atlanta Journal in late 1894, at St. Luke's Church in Atlanta. The couple lived in Atlanta until they moved to New York City in late 1897. The Anderson Intelligencer of October 20, 1897, noted the Atlanta Journal's piece about their move:
"Mr. and Mrs. Thaddeus Horton have scores of friends who will read with mingled emotions of interest, congratulations and regret that they leave soon to make their home in New York. Mrs. Horton has lived in Atlanta all her life and Mr. Horton for the past seven years; and both have warm friends who hate to see them go, and yet who realize that the going means literary advancement. Mr. Horton has accepted a position on the Times, and Mrs. Horton will pursue her literary work at the great center of things with increased advantage."
Unfortunately, their life in New York was not as happy as it was anticipated to be. Thad served as political editor of The New York Times until he died of typhoid fever on November 21, 1899. The next April, Corinne, who had moved back to Atlanta and was living with her mother, gave birth to their daughter, Thaddesia Edgarda.
While raising her infant in 1900, Corinne wrote for the September and October volumes of Ladies' Home Journal. She continued writing throughout the decade, contributing to House Beautiful and Uncle Remus's Magazine.
In 1909, Corinne founded the Atlanta Players' Club and was in charge of a benefit performance at the Grand Opera House. She also directed a performance of an Oscar Wilde play. Corine continued her writing as well, contributing "Old South in American Architecture" to the Uncle Remus's Magazine for October, 1909.
During Theodore Roosevelt’s 1912 Presidential Campaign, Corinne was chair of the “Georgia Moosettes” for Atlanta’s Fifth Congressional District. She and numerous other Georgian women supported Roosevelt’s Progressive platform because they saw it as a positive force for women.
Corinne was married to Chauncey Smith by 1920, a marriage that lasted until his death in the early 1930s. She lived in Atlanta with her daughter for many years, then she moved to Baldwin in the 1940s. Corinne passed away in Fulton, Georgia on September 11, 1947 and was buried in Atlanta's Crest Lawn Cemetery.
Zerelda Gray Wallace was born in Millersburg, Bourbon County, Kentucky on August 6, 1817. She was a temperance reformer, a woman suffragist, a public speaker, and an author.
Zerelda spent her youth in Millersburg and her teenage years in New Castle, Kentucky and Indianapolis, Indiana. At age nineteen, she married Indiana's Lieutenant Governor, David Wallace, and became stepmother to his sons. One of those sons was Lew Wallace, who wrote Ben Hur and used Zerelda as the model for the mother in the book. David was elected to Congress the next year, and Zerelda spent some time in Washington, DC.
She was a member of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, as well as the first President of Indiana's chapter, and Zerelda spoke frequently about the cause. Also very involved in the suffrage movement, Zerelda was an active participant in the Equal Suffrage Society of Indianapolis. Zerelda participated in many conventions, including the National Woman Suffrage Convention in 1880, the first International Convention of Women, the Suffrage Convention in 1887, and the Women's Council in 1888. She also lectured about women's rights. In addition, Zerelda was involved in missionary work for her church, the Central Christian Church. Her publications included A Whole Humanity (1887), Mrs. Wallace on Equal Suffrage (1890), and Suggestions of a Line of Study: For Woman Suffrage Leagues and Good Citizenship Clubs (1891).
Zerelda embarked on a lengthy lecture tour in 1891. After she became seriously ill during a lecture, Susan B. Anthony and Frances E. Willard were just two of many friends who inquired about her health. Fortunately, Zerelda recovered from this illness, as well as another in 1896.
During her later years, Zerelda lived with family members in Cataract, Indiana. She passed away on March 19, 1901.
Later, while she was living in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1883, Rose was awarded an honorary M.A. degree from Hillsdale College. The same year, "Curfew Must Not Ring To-Night" was published as a book.
Due to Mr. Thorpe's health issues, the family then moved to San Antonio, Texas and resided there for four years. In the late 1880s, Rose and her family moved again, this time to San Diego, California. She kept writing, and Ringing Ballads, including Curfew Must Not Ring Tonight made its debut in 1887.
During her long and successful career, Christian Science Journal, Detroit Free Press, Happy Days, Our Continent, St. Nicholas, Wide Awake, and Youth's Companion published Rose's work.
In 1895, "Curfew Must Not Ring Tonight" was published as a song, with music by Stanley Hawley. During the same year, Rose wrote the "Introduction" to As Others See Us, or, The Rules and Customs of Refined Homes and Polite Society. She published The Poetical Works of Rose Hartwick Thorpe, Compiled by the Author in 1912.
When Litchfield, Michigan celebrated its anniversary in 1934, Rose wrote the Centennial Theme Song. In addition, July 21 was designated Rose Hartwick Thorpe Day and the Rose Hartwick Thorpe Memorial was dedicated.
Rose passed away in 1939.
Rose Hartwick Thorpe was born in Mishawaka, Indiana on July 18, 1850, and she spent her teenage years in Litchfield, Michigan.
She became famous for her poem "Curfew Must Not Ring Tonight," which was published in the Detroit Commercial Advertiser in 1870.
Rose married Edmund C. Thorpe in 1871. Their family expanded to include a daughter, and the Thorpe family lived in Chicago, Illinois.
She became the editor of three monthly periodicals, Temperance Tales, Well-Spring, about the home, and Words of Life, a Sunday School monthly, all published by Chicago publisher Fleming H. Revell.
Later, while she was living in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1883, Rose was awarded an honorary M.A. degree from Hillsdale College. The same year, "Curfew Must Not Ring To-Night" was published as a book.
Due to Mr. Thorpe's health issues, the family then moved to San Antonio, Texas and resided there for four years. In the late 1880s, Rose and her family moved again, this time to San Diego, California. She kept writing, and Ringing Ballads, including Curfew Must Not Ring Tonight made its debut in 1887.
During her long and successful career, Christian Science Journal, Detroit Free Press, Happy Days, Our Continent, St. Nicholas, Wide Awake, and Youth's Companion published Rose's work.
In 1895, "Curfew Must Not Ring Tonight" was published as a song, with music by Stanley Hawley. During the same year, Rose wrote the "Introduction" to As Others See Us, or, The Rules and Customs of Refined Homes and Polite Society. She published The Poetical Works of Rose Hartwick Thorpe, Compiled by the Author in 1912.
When Litchfield, Michigan celebrated its anniversary in 1934, Rose wrote the Centennial Theme Song. In addition, July 21 was designated Rose Hartwick Thorpe Day and the Rose Hartwick Thorpe Memorial was dedicated.
Rose passed away in 1939.
Her husband, Reverend Jonathan Towley Crane, was a Methodist Episcopal pastor and the president of Pennington Seminary. Mary Helen was a church worker for the Methodist Episcopal Church, a temperance reformer, a journalist, and the mother of fourteen children. One of those children was the author Stephen Crane. Jonathan passed away in 1880, and three years later Mary Helen purchased a home for her family in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
Mary Helen wrote for several newspapers, including The New York Tribune and The New York World, and she was an active member of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. On January 20, 1888, The New York Tribune's article about a W.C.T.U. convention in New Jersey the previous day noted:
"Mrs. M. Helen Crane, State superintendent of press work, read a paper replete with valuable suggestions on newspaper work."
Mary Helen passed away in Paterson, New Jersey, on December 7, 1891, and was buried in Evergreen Cemetery, Hillside, New Jersey.
Mary Helen Peck Crane, the daughter of Methodist Episcopal minister George Peck and Mary Myers Peck, was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, on April 10, 1827.
Her husband, Reverend Jonathan Towley Crane, was a Methodist Episcopal pastor and the president of Pennington Seminary. Mary Helen was a church worker for the Methodist Episcopal Church, a temperance reformer, a journalist, and the mother of fourteen children. One of those children was the author Stephen Crane. Jonathan passed away in 1880, and three years later Mary Helen purchased a home for her family in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
Mary Helen wrote for several newspapers, including The New York Tribune and The New York World, and she was an active member of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. On January 20, 1888, The New York Tribune's article about a W.C.T.U. convention in New Jersey the previous day noted:
"Mrs. M. Helen Crane, State superintendent of press work, read a paper replete with valuable suggestions on newspaper work."
Mary Helen passed away in Paterson, New Jersey, on December 7, 1891, and was buried in Evergreen Cemetery, Hillside, New Jersey.
Harriet passed away in Amesbury, Massachusetts on August 14, 1921, and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Newburyport, Massachusetts.
]]>Harriet Prescott Spofford, born on April 3, 1835, was an author, biographer, novelist, and poet. A native of Calais, Maine, she attended Pinkerton Academy. Harriet became known in the literary world in 1859 when, as A Woman of the Century notes, "she published her Parisian story, 'In A Cellar,' in the 'Atlantic Monthly,' which at once brought her into notice" (674).
In addition to Atlantic Monthly, she published in several periodicals, including Harper's Magazine, Independent, The North American Review, and Scribner's Magazine.
Talented in a variety of fields, Harriet wrote several different types of books, including Art Decoration Applied to Furniture and The Marquis Of Carabas. Her A Little Book of Friends was about ten of her friends. Most of these women, including Louise Chandler Moulton, are in A Woman of the Century.
In addition to her literary activity, Harriet Prescott Spofford was a wife and mother who was very involved in the National Congress of Mothers.
Harriet passed away in Amesbury, Massachusetts on August 14, 1921, and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Newburyport, Massachusetts.
Married at the early age of twenty to Walter S. Wait, on December 13, 1857. At the outbreak of the Civil War, her husband enlisted and being the sole caregiver for their son, Alfred Hovey Wait, she provided for them both by teaching.
Due to her husband's poor health, she had to forsake teaching and get involved in the Lincoln "Beacon" a reform paper they started in 1880.
She played an active role in the business world, advocated for social change on equality among other pursuits. She died on May 9, 1916.
During her life, Mrs. Wait actively participated in the Lincoln, Kansas Woman Suffrage Association and the Ohio Equal Suffrage Association. Mrs. Anna Wait performed many official roles in thse suffrage organizations as well as in the State Equal Suffrage Association, in 1884. Her advocacy led to the passing of suffrage legislation in Kansas bestowing municipal suffrage on women there.
]]>Born Anna A. Churchill, on March 26, 1837 in Medina County, Ohio, suffargist, orator, teacher and newspaper owner Mrs. Anna C. Wait was a notable woman. An early entrepreneur, from the age of eleven she prided herself in being self-supporting.
Married at the early age of twenty to Walter S. Wait, on December 13, 1857. At the outbreak of the Civil War, her husband enlisted and being the sole caregiver for their son, Alfred Hovey Wait, she provided for them both by teaching.
Due to her husband's poor health, she had to forsake teaching and get involved in the Lincoln "Beacon" a reform paper they started in 1880.
She played an active role in the business world, advocated for social change on equality among other pursuits. She died on May 9, 1916.
During her life, Mrs. Wait actively participated in the Lincoln, Kansas Woman Suffrage Association and the Ohio Equal Suffrage Association. Mrs. Anna Wait performed many official roles in thse suffrage organizations as well as in the State Equal Suffrage Association, in 1884. Her advocacy led to the passing of suffrage legislation in Kansas bestowing municipal suffrage on women there.
She was a member of several organizations, including the Massachusetts Woman Suffrage Association, the Women's Educational and Industrial Union, and the American Peace Society.
Lucia's personal network included Jane Addams, Anna Garlin Spencer, and Edwin Doak Mead, the editor of The New England Magazine who became her husband.
Lucia True Ames, from Boscawen, New Hampshire, was born on May 5, 1856. She was an author, teacher, suffragist, and pacifist who lived in Boston during her adult years.
Lucia's "The Home in the Tenement-House," published in The New England Magazine in 1893, her books, and her public lectures attest to her talent in finding a variety of ways for spreading the word about causes she believed in. In addition, Lucia taught classes to adults on Ralph Waldo Emerson and other authors.
She was a member of several organizations, including the Massachusetts Woman Suffrage Association, the Women's Educational and Industrial Union, and the American Peace Society.
Lucia's personal network included Jane Addams, Anna Garlin Spencer, and Edwin Doak Mead, the editor of The New England Magazine who became her husband.
Josephine was an American Progressive Era women’s rights leader, suffragist, social reformer, and writer. She was a strong advocate for women and was a leading proponent of legislation that would grant married women property rights. Henry lobbied hard for the adoption of the Kentucky 1894 Married Women’s Property Act, and she is credited for being instrumental in its passage. She was the first woman to campaign publicly for a statewide office in Kentucky. Josephine would later die in 1928, but not without leaving an impact on the world and in the eyes of women.
]]>In the 1800s, Josephine Kirby Henry went outside the boundaries of a typical woman during that time by being a women’s rights leader, writer, and political activist.
Josephine was born on February 22, 1843, into the wealthy Williamson family in Newport, Kentucky. She was the daughter of Captain Euclid Williamson, a Virginian, and Mary Kirby Williamson of Leeds, England. Josephine grew up and married Captain William Henry of Versailles, Kentucky in 1868. Captain William Henry was an eminent scholar and one of the most well-known educators in the South. They resided in Kentucky and became deeply involved in state and local affairs. One year later they welcomed their only son, Fredrick W. Henry. Fredrick was a writer and reporter for the Chicago Inter Ocean Newspaper, where he would later die in a train fire while writing an article.
Josephine was an American Progressive Era women’s rights leader, suffragist, social reformer, and writer. She was a strong advocate for women and was a leading proponent of legislation that would grant married women property rights. Henry lobbied hard for the adoption of the Kentucky 1894 Married Women’s Property Act, and she is credited for being instrumental in its passage. She was the first woman to campaign publicly for a statewide office in Kentucky. Josephine would later die in 1928, but not without leaving an impact on the world and in the eyes of women.
Frances passed away on February 17, 1898, and was buried in Chicago's Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum.
]]>Frances Elizabeth Willard, whose lengthy biographical sketch lists her as an "educator, reformer and philanthropist," was one of the editors of A Woman of the Century. She was born on September 28, 1839, in Churchville, New York. Frances graduated from North-Western Female College, where she later taught and served as an administrator.
She became very active in the temperance movement and served as president of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). In addition, Frances was a leader of the National Woman's Council. She was a frequent lecturer and prolific writer, publishing books and contributing to numerous periodicals.
During her very productive life, Frances Willard touched many lives, including those of Julia A. Ames, Matilda B. Carse, Jennie Casseday, Mary Helen Peck Crane, Sarah Doan La Fetra, Zerelda Gray Wallace, and Mary A. Brayton Woodbridge.
Frances passed away on February 17, 1898, and was buried in Chicago's Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum.
Also interested in writing for children, Emma penned “Pieces to Speak.” Lee and Shepard of Boston published this book which received praise from The Morning Call of San Francisco. Similarly, The New Haven Daily Morning Carrier Journal gave a positive review to Emma's The Gregory Guards, another book for young people, calling it: "A story of reaping good by doing good, bright and entertaining and full of life, incident and good sense."
Through her work with the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, Emma was affiliated with Mary H. Hunt. Speaking of her extensive research related to temperance, Benedict's A Woman of the Century profile notes: "There is probably no other person more familiar than she with the whole subject of the nature and effects of alcohol on the human system" (74). She and Hunt exerted a great deal of effort preparing teaching manuals on the topic.
Emma married C. Frederick Transeau in Boston on November 28, 1895. In 1900, she was living in Westwood, Massachusetts, and working as a journalist. During the first decades of the new century, Emma continued her crusade against alcohol by writing articles, non-fiction books, and temperance fiction. In addition, Emma was an officer of the Scientific Temperance Federation. Beginning in 1923, she wrote the “What the Current Magazines are Saying about Prohibition and Law Enforcement” column in The American Issue. Emma published her last book, Knotty Problems Regarding Moderate Drinking, in 1935. She passed away in Boston two years later and was buried in Clifton Park Baptist Cemetery, Clifton Park, New York.
]]>Emma Lee Benedict, born on November 16, 1857, was a native of Clifton Park, New York. She was an editor, educator, author, public speaker, and temperance reformer. Passionate about education from a young age, Emma was a graduate of the State Normal School at Albany and the City University of New York. In addition to teaching, Benedict edited “The New York School Journal.”
Also interested in writing for children, Emma penned “Pieces to Speak.” Lee and Shepard of Boston published this book which received praise from The Morning Call of San Francisco. Similarly, The New Haven Daily Morning Carrier Journal gave a positive review to Emma's The Gregory Guards, another book for young people, calling it: "A story of reaping good by doing good, bright and entertaining and full of life, incident and good sense."
Through her work with the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, Emma was affiliated with Mary H. Hunt. Speaking of her extensive research related to temperance, Benedict's A Woman of the Century profile notes: "There is probably no other person more familiar than she with the whole subject of the nature and effects of alcohol on the human system" (74). She and Hunt exerted a great deal of effort preparing teaching manuals on the topic.
Emma married C. Frederick Transeau in Boston on November 28, 1895. In 1900, she was living in Westwood, Massachusetts, and working as a journalist. During the first decades of the new century, Emma continued her crusade against alcohol by writing articles, non-fiction books, and temperance fiction. In addition, Emma was an officer of the Scientific Temperance Federation. Beginning in 1923, she wrote the “What the Current Magazines are Saying about Prohibition and Law Enforcement” column in The American Issue. Emma published her last book, Knotty Problems Regarding Moderate Drinking, in 1935. She passed away in Boston two years later and was buried in Clifton Park Baptist Cemetery, Clifton Park, New York.
Julia passed away in Boston on December 12, 1891, after having become very ill while participating in a convention. She was just thirty-one years old. Julia was buried in Riverview Cemetery in Streator, Illinois. The year after "Yolande's" death, The Woman's Temperance Publishing Association published A Young Woman Journalist: A Memorial Tribute to Julia A. Ames.
]]>Julia A. Ames, a gifted editor, orator, and temperance reformer, was born in Odell, Illinois, on October 14, 1860. She graduated from Streator High School, Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, and the Chicago School of Oratory.
Julia spent much of her life in the Chicago area. During her early efforts for the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, Julia worked closely with Levancia Holcomb Plumb. Frances Elizabeth Willard and Matilda B. Carse are just two other people in Julia's personal network. Matilda B. Carse gave Julia the nickname "Yolande," after she noted Julia's similarity to the heroine of an 1883 novel by William Black (A Young Woman Journalist, 39).
In addition to her efforts on behalf of temperance reform, Ames wrote for the Chicago Inter-Ocean and edited the Union Signal. She was a member of, and later the president of, the Woman's Temperance Publishing Circle of King's Daughters.
Julia passed away in Boston on December 12, 1891, after having become very ill while participating in a convention. She was just thirty-one years old. Julia was buried in Riverview Cemetery in Streator, Illinois. The year after "Yolande's" death, The Woman's Temperance Publishing Association published A Young Woman Journalist: A Memorial Tribute to Julia A. Ames.
The couple moved to Fenton, Michigan, and Cynthia became a popular lecturer. In her talks, Gorton spoke to her audiences about temperance and other topics she was passionate about.
Professionally, Cynthia was known as "Ida Glenwood," "The Blind Bard of Michigan," and "The Sweet Singer." In addition to penning several books, including Lily Pearl and the Mistress of Rosedale, she contributed to The Christian Herald of Detroit and The Magazine of Poetry.
On August 10, 1894, Cynthia M. Roberts Gorton died at her home in Fenton, Michigan.
]]>Cynthia M. Roberts Gorton was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, on February 27, 1826. While attending Troy Female Seminary, she began to lose her sight. After Cynthia married Frederick Gorton, she became totally blind. However, this determined woman did not let her blindness stop her.
The couple moved to Fenton, Michigan, and Cynthia became a popular lecturer. In her talks, Gorton spoke to her audiences about temperance and other topics she was passionate about.
Professionally, Cynthia was known as "Ida Glenwood," "The Blind Bard of Michigan," and "The Sweet Singer." In addition to penning several books, including Lily Pearl and the Mistress of Rosedale, she contributed to The Christian Herald of Detroit and The Magazine of Poetry.
On August 10, 1894, Cynthia M. Roberts Gorton died at her home in Fenton, Michigan.
Clara Barton, a native of North Oxford, MA, is best known as the founder of the American Red Cross. She was born on December 25, 1821, the youngest child of Stephen and Sara Stone Barton. Clara grew up in North Oxford and lived near her cousin, Martha Elvira Stone. When she was young, Clara taught in North Oxford and worked part-time in a cotton mill.
After teaching in North Oxford for many years, she moved to Clinton, NY to enroll in the Clinton Liberal Institute. She opened a school in Bordentown, NJ and later relocated to Washington, D.C. to work at the United States Patent Office. During the Civil War, Clara tended to wounded soldiers after numerous battles. She became known as "The Angel of the Battlefield." When the war was over, she became very involved with The Office of Correspondence with Friends of the Missing Men of the United States Army in Washington, D.C. In 1867, after meeting Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, Clara became involved in working for suffrage.
Later, while in Europe, Clara learned about the International Red Cross and served as part of the relief corps during the Franco-Prussian War. Clara fought to establish the American Red Cross, and in March of 1881, she became the leader of the American Red Cross.
In addition, Clara, Mary Emily Bennett Coues, and others founded the Pro Re Nata women's club in Washington in 1892.
After many years of work with the American Red Cross, Clara resigned in 1904 and formed the National First Aid Association of America.