Part of the American History & Genealogy Project

Distinguished Literary Women James to Lupton

Alice Archer Sewall James 1870 ~
Daughter of Frank Sewall, an eminent Swedenborgian divine, and Thedia Redelia Gilchrist Sewall, and was born at Glendale, Ohio, in 1870, where her father was in charge of a church. The family removed to Urbana, Ohio, that year, and Doctor Sewall became president of Urbana University. Here Alice received her early education. At sixteen, she studied in the art schools of Glasgow, Scotland, traveling later on the Continent. In 1899, her home was in Washington, D. C, and here she met Mr. John H. James, a prominent attorney of Urbana, Ohio, whom she married. As an artist, Mrs. James' work has received much favorable comment and honors from the New York Architectural League, the Philadelphia Academy of Art, the Chicago World's Fair, the Expositions of Atlanta and Nashville, and at the Salon, Paris. Her illustrative work is of a high order, and she has contributed designs to the Century Magazine, Harper's Monthly, and the Cosmopolitan, She is hardly less noted as a poet than as a painter, and has published several volumes of verses. She was the authoress of the "Centennial Ode" of Champagne County, Ohio.

Annie Laurie Wilson James 1862 ~
Mrs. Annie Laurie Wilson James was born in Louisville, Kentucky, November, 1862. She occupies a very unique position among women, having been considered an authority on the heredity of horses, and horse pedigrees. In 1888 she went to California on a business trip and while there became assistant editor and manager of Breeder and Sportsman, published in San Francisco. In 1888 she married R. B. James, of Baker County, Oregon, and has made her home there for many years.

Marea Wood Jefferis
Mrs. Marea Wood Jefferis was born at Providence, Rhode Island, and is a descendant of William Brewster, of Mayflower fame. Her father is Doctor J. F. B. Flagg, a distinguished physician, who is well known through his work on anesthetics, and to whom is justly due the credit of making them practicable in the United States.
Her grandfather. Doctor Josiah Foster Flagg, was one of the early pioneers in dental surgery in the United States. Mrs. Jefferis' first husband was Thomas Wood; her second husband. Professor William Walter Jefferis, distinguished scientist and mineralogist. Mrs. Jefferis has published a volume of verses in memory of her daughter, the proceeds of which she has devoted to charity. She is a prominent resident of Philadelphia and is actively interested in all charitable work.

Sarah Orne Jewett 1814 ~
Was born in South Berwick, Maine, on September 3, 1814. Her father was Dr. Theodore Herman Jewett, a physician, and her mother was the daughter of Dr. Perry of Exeter, also a prominent physician of that section of New England. Most of the characters and life of the people in her story have been taken from the simple New England life about the little village of Berwick. She frequently went about with her father on his errands of mercy and through these was enabled to gain much data for her stories. Her father was the hero of "A Country Doctor" from her pen. She first wrote short stories for the Atlantic Monthly, and it is said was but fourteen years of age when she wrote "Lucy Garron's Lovers." Her first great success was "Deephaven" which appeared in 1877. Lowell and Whittier were among her friends and admirers as a writer. Whittier attended the Friends' meeting in Berwick, and it was here Miss Jewett met him. The old sea-faring life of these New England towns has been preserved to us by Miss Jewett Her grandfather was a sea captain, and in his home she met and enjoyed the companionship and heard the tales of this old sea captain's friends. Miss Jewett died in 1909.

E. Pauline Johnson 1861 ~ 1913
E. Pauline Johnson was born in Brant County, Ontario, at the city of Brantfort. Her father, George Henry Martin Johnson, was head chief of the Mohawks. Her mother, Emily S. Howells, an English woman, was born in Bristol, England. Her paternal grandfather was the distinguished John "Sakayenkwaeaghton" (Disappearing Mist) Johnson, a pure Mohawk, and the weaker of the Six Nation Council for forty years. During the War of 1812 he fought for the British. His paternal great-grandfather, Tekahionwake, was given the name of Johnson by Sir William Johnson, hence the family name which they now use. Mrs. Johnson is a writer of verse and a contributor too many of the leading papers in Canada and the United States, of the latter the Boston Transcript.

Mary Johnston 1870 ~
The publication of "Prisoners of Hope" brought, in 1898; a new star into the literary firmament, and instantly made Mary Johnston's name famous. At the time of the publication of her first novel Miss Johnston was but twenty-eight years of age. She was born in Buchanan, Virginia, November 21, 1870. Her great-great-great-grandfather, Peter Johnston, came to Virginia early in the Eighteenth Century and was a man of wealth and influence. He donated the land on which the Hampden Sidney College now stands, and Peter, his eldest son, rode in "light-horse," Harry Lee's legion and was the father of General Joseph E. Johnston. Her family numbered among its members some of the most distinguished men of the early Virginia history. "Prisoners of Hope" was hardly more famous than her second book, "To Have and To Hold." The latter established a record of sales among books unprecedented for any work by an American woman. Her latest novel is "The Long Roll," a story of the Confederacy during the war.

Maria I. Johnston 1855 ~
Mrs. Maria I. Johnston was born in Fredericksburg, Virginia, May, 1855. Her lather was Judge Richard Barnett, of Fredericksburg, who later removed to Vicksburg, Mississippi, and here Mrs. Johnston was a resident during the terrible forty days' siege of that city during the Civil War. That experience was made the subject of her first novel, "The Siege of Vicksburg." She was a contributor to the New Orleans Picayune, The Times Democrat and to the Boston Women's Journal. Since the death of her husband, Doctor W. R. Johnston, Mrs. Johnston has supported herself by her pen. She has educated her children, one son, a graduate of Yale, becoming a Judge of the Circuit Court of Montana. She was editor at one time of St Louis Spectator, a weekly family paper. She has made her home in St. Louis, Missouri, for some time.

Cornelia Jane Matthews Jordan 1860 ~
Mrs. Cornelia Jane Matthews Jordan was born at Lynchburg; Virginia, in 1830. Her father was Edwin Matthews and her mother, Emily Goggin Matthews. Her parents dying when she was young, she was brought up by her grand-mother. In 1851 she married F. H. Jordan, a lawyer of Luray, Virginia. She is the author of many poems and some quite stirring lyrics of the Civil War. Her book of poems entitled "Corinth, and other Poems," published after the surrender was seized by the military commander of Richmond and suppressed. She has published a volume entitled "Richmond, Her Glory and Her Graves." Has also contributed many articles to magazines and newspapers, the best of which are "The Battle of Manassas," "The Death of Jackson and Appeal for Jefferson Davis." She is a member of the Alumni of the Convent of the Visitation, Georgetown. District of Columbia, her Alma Mater.

Elizabeth Jordan 1867 ~
Was born May 9, 1867, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Daughter of William Francis Jordan and Marguerita Carver Jordan. Soon after her graduation she accepted a position on the staff of the New York World, with which she was connected for ten years as interviewer and writer on questions of the day, doing some of the "biggest features" of the World. While engaged in this work she wrote her first story, "Tales of the City Room," which was suggested by her experiences as a reporter and editor. She made quite an extensive investigation of the tenement conditions in New York, and wrote of them under the title, "The Submerged Tenth." Later, she made a study of sociological conditions in London and Paris, which furnished material for other books. In 1900 Miss Jordan became one of the editors of Harper's Bazar, a position which she holds at the present time. She is the author of "Tales of the Cloister," a convent story; "Tales of Destiny," "May Iverson, Her Book," "Many Kingdoms," and author in "The Whole Family," written in conjunction with William Dean Howells, Henry James, Henry Van Dyke, Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, Alice Brown and others. She took a special course at the Sorbonne, in Paris, in 1902, and in 1903 she received the blessing of the pope, Leo XIII, for her services in literature.

Ruth Ward Kahn 1870 ~
Mrs. Ruth Ward Kahn was born in August, 1870, in Jackson, Michigan. She is a contributor to magazines and local newspapers. She is one of the youngest members of the Incorporated Society of Authors, of London, England. She is a member of the Authors' and Artists' Club, of Kansas City, and the Women's National Press Association.

Kate Fisher Kimball 1860 ~
Miss Kimball was born at Orange, New Jersey, February 22, 1860. Daughter of Horace and Mary D. Kimball. Has been editor of the Round Table of the Chautauquan Assembly since October, 1899, and has written the reports of that circle for general circulation.

Grace Elizabeth King 1852 ~ 1932
Miss King was born in New Orleans, in 1852, and is the daughter of William W. and Sarah Ann King. She has attained a distinguished reputation as the writer of short stories of Creole life. Among them are: "Monsieur Mottee," "Tales of Time and Places" "New Orleans the Place and the People," "Jean Baptiste Lemoine, Founder of New Orleans," "Balcony Stories," "De Soto and His Men in the Land of Florida," "Stories from the History of Louisiana."

Ellen Olney Kirk 1842 ~
Mrs. Ellen Olney Kirk was born November 6, 1842, at Southington, Connecticut Her father, Jesse Olney, was at one time state comptroller, and is the well-known author of a number of text books, particularly so as the author of a geography and atlas, a standard work in the American schools for many years. Her mother was a sister of A. S. Barnes, the New York publisher. Her first work was a novel, entitled "Love in Idleness," which appeared as a serial in Lippincott's Magazine in 1876. She has written a great deal since then. Since her marriage her home has been in Germantown, Pa., and the scenes of two of her books are laid in the region surrounding this city. One of her most noted books is entitled "The Story of Margaret Kent." Among her other books may be mentioned "Queen Money," "The Daughter of Eve," "Walfred," "Narden's Choosing" and "Ciphers."

Adeline Grafton Knox 1845 ~
Mrs. Adeline Grafton Knox was born in Saccarappa, February 8, 1845. Her father was the Rev. Mark Grafton, a Methodist clergyman of New England, where she passed her early life. At the beginning of the Civil War her father held a pastorate in Albany, New York, and later one in Washington, D. C, while serving as a member of the House of Representatives. Miss Grafton began her literary career in 1860, publishing a few stories and sketches under a fictitious name in the Republican, of Springfield, Massachusetts. In 1874 the novel "Katherine Earl" ran as a serial in Scribner's Monthly; another, "His Inheritance," in the same magazine. In 1889 she wrote a novelette, which appeared in book form under the title of "Dorothy's Experience." In this year Miss Grafton became the wife of the Honorable Samuel Knox, a distinguished lawyer of St Louis, Missouri.

Mary Hannah Krout 1857 ~
Born in Crawfordsville, Indiana, November 3, 1857. Daughter of Robert K. and Caroline (Brown) Krout; sister of Caroline Krout; was the associate editor of the Crawfordsville Journal in 1881, and the Terre Haute Express in 1882; served ten years on the staff of the Chicago Inter-Ocean; was correspondent from Hawaii, New Zealand, Australia and England; writer of syndicate letters for daily papers; also several books on Hawaii; prepared for publication the autobiography of General Lew Wallace in 1906.

Lucy Larcom 1826 ~ 1893
Miss Lucy Larcom was born in Beverley, Massachusetts, in 1826. Her father died when she was but a child. In her early life Miss Larcom worked in the factories in Lowell, Massachusetts, and in her books "Idyls of Work" and a "New England Girlhood" she describes the life in these places. During her work she had constantly before her text-books to further her education, and in 1842 the operatives in the Lowell mills published a paper known as the Offering, Miss Larcom became one of the corps of writers for this paper and in it appeared many of her first poems; also verses and essays which were afterwards collected and published in book form. Miss Larcom holds an honored place among the women poets of America. Among her earliest contributions to the Atlantic Monthly was the "Rose Enthroned" which was attributed to Emerson, as it was published anonymously. "A Loyal Woman's Party" attracted considerable attention during the Civil War; also her poems entitled "Childhood's Songs." She was at one time a teacher in one of the young women's seminaries of Massachusetts. She was also a contributor to Our Young Folks, and at one time was the associate editor and later the editor of this periodical. She also collected and published in two volumes a compilation from the world's greatest religious thinkers, under the title of "Breathings of the Better Life." She was the author of a number of religious works. Her death occurred in Boston, April 17, 1893.

Elizabeth Wormeley Latimer 1822 ~ 1904
Mrs. Elizabeth Wormeley Latimer was born in London, England, in July, 1822. Her father was Rear Admiral Ralph Randolph Wormeley of the English navy, and her mother was Caroline Preble, of Boston, Massachusetts. In 1842 she was a member of the family of George Ticknor, of Boston, and her first literary work was the appendix to Prescott's Conquest, of Mexico. Her father's death occurred at Niagara Falls, in 1852. In 1856 Miss Wormeley married Randolph Brandt Latimer and they later made their home in Howard County, Maryland. Mrs. Latimer's works have been quite numerous. Among them are "Cousin Veronica," "Amabel," "My Wife and My Wife's Sister," "A Chain of Errors," and "France in the Nineteenth Century." Mrs. Latimer died in 1904.

Margaret H. Wynne Lawless 1847
Was born at Adrian, Michigan, July 14, 1847. Daughter of John and Jane Meehan Wynne. After graduating from school she taught for several years, and in 1873 married Dr. James T. Lawless, of Toledo, Ohio, where she has since made her home; has contributed to the Catholic World, Ave Maria, Rosary Magazine, Pilot, New World, and conducted the children's department for a number of years of the Catholic Universe; has also contributed to Frank Leslie's Weekly, Democrats, American Magazine, Lippincott's, Golden Days, Detroit Free Press and Traveler's Record. Both she and her husband have been active workers in the cause of Catholic education and the development of Catholic charitable, literary and socialistic societies and institutions. Mrs. Lawless incorporated and took out a charter for the Catholic Ladies of Ohio, the first insurance and benevolent society for women in the United States, and was for six years secretary of this organization.

Jennette Lee 1860
Born in Bristol, Connecticut, November 10, 1860. Daughter of Philemon Perry and Mary Barbour Perry. In 1896, married Gerald Stanley Lee. At one time was a teacher of English at Vassar College, and also of English in the College for Women, Western Reserve University. Professor of English language and literature in Smith College since 1904. Author of several books, a few of which are "Kate Wetherell," "A Pillar of Salt," "The Son of a Fiddler," and many other sketches and short stories.

Mrs. Frank Leslie 1851 ~
Was born in 1851 in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. Her maiden name was Miriam Florence Folline. She became the wife of Frank Leslie, the New York publisher, who died in January, 1880. This name, Frank Leslie was the name used in signing his articles written for the London press, his real name being Henry Carter. When he came to the United States he assumed legally the name of Frank Leslie. Miss Folline was engaged in literary work on the Ladies' Magazine, and through the illness of one of its literary editors. Miss Folline succeeded to the position. After the death of her husband, she continued the publication of his periodicals and brought success out of what seemed failure at the time of her husband's death. She is an extensive traveler and prominent

Graciana Lewis 1821 ~
Was born near Kimberton, Chester County, Pennsylvania, October, 1821. Daughter of John Lewis and Esther Lewis. They were descended from Quaker stock, her father's ancestors coming to this country in 1682. Her mother was the oldest child of Bartholomew Fussell and Rebecca Bond Fussell. Bartholomew Fussell was a minister in the Society of Friends. Her father died when she was but three years old and her mother supported the family by teaching. Miss Lewis' greatest work has been in the field of natural history. She prepared a "Chart of a Class of Birds" also ''A Chart of the Animal Kingdom," "Chart of the Vegetable Kingdom" "Chart of Geology with Special Reference to Paleontology." Microscopic studies, including frost crystals and the plumage of birds, as well as the lower forms of animal and vegetable life. She also issued a pamphlet showing the relation of birds to the animal kingdom. In 1876 she exhibited in the Centennial Exposition a model along with her chart of the Animal Kingdom, which caused commendation from Prof. Huxley and other prominent naturalists. One of her pamphlets, "The Development of the Animal Kingdom" was published by Professor Mitchell and extensively circulated among scientific people. In 1870, Miss Lewis was elected a member of the Academy of Natural Science, Philadelphia. Is also honorary member of the Women's Anthropological Society of America and the various scientific societies of Rochester and Philadelphia. Active in the Woman's Christian Temperance work and many of the forestry associations.

Jennie Gould Lincoln
Mrs. Lincoln is the daughter of the late Judge George Gould of the New York Court of Appeals and the wife of Dr. Nathan Smith Lincoln, of Washington, D. C., now deceased. She is the author of quite a number of short stories and a contributor to magazines. Is one of the prominent society women of Washington who have made a name for themselves in the literary field.

Mary Johnson Bailey Lincoln 1844 ~ 1921
Born at Attleboro, Massachusetts, July 8, 1844. Daughter of Rev. John Milton and Sarah Morgan Johnson Bailey. In 1865 she married David A. Lincoln, at Norton, Massachusetts, who is now deceased; is a writer and lecturer on domestic science, and was the first principal of the Boston Cooking School; culinary editor of the American Kitchen Magazine in 1893; is now a noted lecturer on cookery in the seminaries of the large cities of the United States; author of the "Boston Cook Book," "Peerless Cook Book," "Carving and Serving," and other works on domestic science.

Laura A. Linton 1853 ~
Scientist Was born April, 1853, at Alliance, Ohio. Daughter of Joseph Wildman Linton and Christiana Craven Beans. Her father's family were Quakers, and her mother was descended from a prominent Dutch family of Pennsylvania. Her parents moved to Minnesota in 1868 where she received her education. She was at one time professor of natural and physical science in Lombard University of Galesburg, Illinois. She assisted Professor S. F. Peckham in the preparation of the monograph on petroleum for the reports of the Tenth Census of the United States. She is a member of the American Society for the Advancement of Science and the Association for the Advancement of Women.

Sarah Jane Lippincott 1823 ~ 1905 (Grace Greenwood)
Better known as "Grace Greenwood." A writer of stories for children, and former editor of Little Pilgrim. She was born in Pompey, New York, September 23, 1823, and spent her early youth in Rochester, but in 1842 the family removed to New Brighton, Pennsylvania. She married Leander K. Lippincott, of Philadelphia, in 1873. Although during her early youth she had written verses and short stories, it was not until 1844 that her first publication appeared under her nom de plume, "Grace Greenwood." She lectured, and was also a contributor and correspondent for several newspapers. She was the author of several books, the titles of some of which are "Greenwood Leaves," "History of My Pets," "Volume of Poems," "Recollections of My Childhood," "Haps and Mishaps of a Tour in Europe," "Mary England," "Forest Tragedy, and Other Tales," "Stories and Legends of Travel," "History for Children," "Stories From Famous Ballads," "Stories of Many Lands," "Stories and Sights in France and Italy," "Records of Five Years," "New Life in New Lands," and her best-known poem, "Ariadne." Mrs. Lippincott died in 1905.

Mary Smith Lockwood 1831 ~
Mrs. Lockwood was born at Hanover, New York, October 24, 1831. The daughter of Henry and Beulah Blodgett Smith. In September, 1851, she married Henry C. Lockwood. She was one of the founders of the D. A. R., Commissioner-at-Large of the World's Fair in Chicago, and was the first historian-general and is the vice-president for life of the D. A. R. Prominent member of the Woman's Suffrage Club, Historical Association, Woman's Press Union, one of the committee which prepared the history of women's work at the Chicago Exposition, and is the author of several books, "Historic Homes of Washington," "Handbook of Ceramic Art," "Story of the Records of the D. A. R.," one of the editors of at D. A, R. Magazine, and edits the D. A. R. reports to Smithsonian Institution.

Celia Logan 1840 ~ 1904
Was born in 1840, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. When quite young she filled a highly responsible position as critical reader of manuscripts in a large publishing house of London. While here she was a regular correspondent of the Boston Saturday Evening Gazette and the Golden Era of San Francisco, and was well-known as a writer of short stories for magazines in the United States and England. After the war, on her return to America, she became associate editor of the Capital, Don Piatt's paper published in Washington, District of Columbia. She did a great deal of translating from French and Italian. She was a writer of plays, the first of which was entitled "Rose," followed by "An American Marriage." In one of her plays Fay Templeton made her appearance and won success as a child actress. She wrote several stories and arranged and adapted from the French several plays. Her first husband was Minor K. Kellogg, an artist. After his death she married James H. Connelly, an author. She died in 1904.

Hulda Barker Loud 1844 ~
Was born in the town, which is now Rockland, Massachusetts, September, 1844. In 1884 she undertook to publish and edit the paper established in her own town, which was called the Rockland Independent, of which she has long remained the editor and chief and sole proprietor, superintending the business department and job printing as well as occupying the editorial chair. This paper has been made the vehicle of her reforms - social and political In 1887 she represented the Knights of Labor in the Women's International Council held in Washington, and spoke before the Knights of Labor and the Anti-Poverty Society. She frequently addresses associations and woman suffrage organizations, and is conspicuous in this line of work.

Eliza O'Brien Lummis
Daughter of William and Anne O'Brien Lummis, and was born in New York City; was one of the prominent members of the Society of the Children of Mary, and founder of the People's Eucharistic League, an organization in connection with the Catholic Cathedral of New York City, and one of the largest Catholic organizations of New York. She assisted in organizing the Corpus Christi Reunion for Men; was instrumental in the installation of the Fathers of the Blessed Sacrament in the Church of Jean the Baptiste, and in the establishment of the first public throne of exposition in New York. She founded, edited and published the Sentinel of the Blessed Sacrament, a Eucharistic monthly and the organ of the Priests' Eucharistic League; is also the founder of the Society of the Daughters of the Faith. Miss Lummis is the author of "Daughters of the Faith," "A Nineteenth Century Apostle," several poems and magazine articles dealing with the questions of the day. She is one of the leading Catholic women of the United States.

Mary Josephine Lupton
Was born in County Down, Ireland; is an associate editor of the New World, Chicago; translator of "The Child of the Moon" and "The Task of Little Peter," from the French, and is a contributor to the Rosary Magazine, the New World and Church Extension.

Women of America

Source: The Part Taken by Women in American History, By Mrs. John A. Logan, Published by The Perry-Nalle Publishing Company, Wilmington, Delaware, 1912.