19th century – Women's History and More

Rani Lakshmibai – Warrior Queen

Lakshmibai was the queen of the state of Jhansi in northern India at the time of the Indian Rebellion of 1857, also known as India’s First War for Independence. She was a leading figure in the rebellion and a symbol for her people of resistance to British rule in India. She was young and is remembered as fearless in battle. And, she made the list of Time’s Top 10 Bad-Ass Women in 2011.

Childhood and Marriage

Born into a Brahmin family, her given name was Manikarnika and she was nicknamed Manu. Her mother died when she was four, but she was well taken care of by her father and officials at the court of Peshwa Baji Rao II at Bithur where he worked. Educated at home and given more freedom than many girls her age, she trained in archery, horseback riding, and martial arts.

Manu’s birth year is given as various dates from 1827 to 1835, but sources agree that she married the Maharaja of Jhansi, Raja Gangadhar Rao in 1842. She was given the name Lakshmibai and as the Rani of Jhansi was called Rani Lakshmibai.

Lakshmibai around the time of her wedding. (source)

In 1851, she gave birth to a son named Damodar Rao. Unfortunately, he only lived to be four months old. After their son’s death, the Raja and Rani adopted a boy named Anand Rao, the son of Gangadhar Rao’s cousin. The adoption of Lakshmibai’s son took place in the presence of a British official. At the time he was given a letter from the Raja requesting that after his death the boy be treated with kindness as the heir, and Lakshmibai be appointed regent. The day before the Raja died in November 1853, Anand Rao was renamed Damodar Rao.

Annexation of Jhansi

Gangadhar’s grandfather had signed a treaty in 1817 with the British assuring his successors title to Jhansi and they had been pro-British since that time. But, in spite of the official precautions that the Raja took, and the long standing right of an Indian sovereign to choose his own successor, the British East India Company refused to abide by the agreement. Because Damodar Rao was adopted, they chose to apply the Doctrine of Lapse.

The Doctrine of Lapse stated that any territory under the power of the British East India Company would be automatically annexed if the ruler died without a direct heir. The policy had been used previously, but under the Governor General Lord Dalhousie between 1848 and 1856 the company took over eight different states. This contributed to a growing sense of discontent all over India.

Lakshmibai wrote at least three letters protesting the annexation and consulted British counsel John Lang, but was unsuccessful in getting it reversed. After her third appeal, April 22, 1854, an appeal was made to the Court of Directors in London. This also failed and she was given a monthly pension, the state jewels, and moved to the palace Rani Mahal.

Rani Mahal (Photo credit: Allen Copsey, source)

Even though the government changed hands, Lakshmibai was still recognized by the people as Rani and was probably one of the wealthiest people in Jhansi. She still had responsibilities to her son and the people and was respected, although she may have annoyed the British officials with her petitions. She also continued her practice of daily exercise including horseback riding and shooting.

The Rebellion of 1857

In May of 1857, word reached Jhansi of mutiny among sepoys in the army at Meerut. Lakshmibai asked for permission to raise a small force as bodyguard for her own protection. British officials agreed, but failed to take the same precaution themselves. On June 5^th, sepoys in the Jhansi garrison rebelled, looted, released prisoners from the local jail and took possession of one of the forts in the town.

At least two British officers were killed and the rest took refuge in the other fort with their families. Two days later, the fort was besieged and they surrendered. Although promised safe passage by the mutineers, once the British were out of town one of the rebel leaders ordered their deaths. They then turned their attention to Lakshmibai and demanded money.

There was little Lakshmibai could do at the time, she complied with the demands of the rebels for money under threat of violence and as soon as they left the area on June 11^th she reported the situation to British authorities. At this point, there was no government, so she took steps to stabilize the situation and three days later sent another letter to a Major Erskine who encouraged her to take charge until another official could be sent.

Over the next six months, Lakshmibai worked to protect the town and keep the situation stable. She had to defend against a rival for the throne as well as attacks from neighboring towns taking advantage of the absence of troops, and in one case claiming to act on behalf of the British. Throughout this time, she made repeated requests for help from the British and got no response. She also found it necessary to deal with the rebels in order to obtain the weapons she needed to build up her fighting force.

After spending most of her money and doing all she could, Lakshmibai wrote one last time to the British authorities. She closed her letter dated January 1, 1858, with this statement: “I beg you will give me your support in the best way you can, and thus save myself and the people who are reduced to the last extremity and are not able to cope with the enemy.”

The Final Showdown

There are conflicting reports of when Lakshmibai decided to oppose the British. To protect herself and Jhansi, she had been forced to cooperate with those opposed to the British; they had taken her throne from her, and the people were opposed to many things about British rule. They also received reports from villages and towns where the British had regained control. Some commanders were lenient, but others executed anyone they suspected of being a rebel, looted the towns and left the wounded to die.

The British force which marched toward Jhansi on January 5, 1858 was led by Sir Hugh Rose. He was apparently of the opinion that no leniency should be offered. One of his subordinates wrote to his parents, “Sir Hugh knows no native language so pays little heed to what a prisoner says. His first question is ‘Was this man taken with arms in his hands?’ If the answer is ‘yes’, ‘Then shoot him’ says Sir Hugh.” Hearing reports from other towns, Lakshmibai had no other choice but to expect the worst. So she prepared.

The siege began on March 21, 1858. She was given a chance to surrender, but the Rani knew that many of her supporters would be executed, so with the support of the people she refused. The British were outnumbered, but had a distinct advantage in weapons and training. The fort was surrounded and bombarded until finally a breach was made in the wall on March 30^th.

At the same time, a rebel force of 20,000 under the command of Tatya Tope arrived, forcing Rose to delay entering the fort. Even though Rose was forced to split his forces, he was able to keep continued bombardment on the breach to prevent escape while pursuing the newly arrived rebels to the Betwa river where he defeated them.

Although they were delayed, on the morning of April 3^rd, the British entered the fort at Jhansi with orders to kill any male over sixteen. Vishnu Godse, a Hindu priest, wrote of the experience that it was four days of destruction of property and people “without distinction.” The fighting was intense and the Rani was in the middle of it, just as she had frequently been seen on the walls during the siege.

In spite of Rose’s precautions, sometime on April 3^rd or 4^th Lakshmibai was able to escape. There is a legend that says, once she knew her capture was inevitable, she tied her son to her back, mounted her horse and leapt over the cliff. The horse died, but she escaped and rode 100 miles to Kalpi. At Kalpi, she met with other rebels, but Rose pursued them and again forced them to retreat, this time to Gwalior.

The point from which Lakshmibai supposedly jumped from the battlement on her horse. (source)

The fort at Gwalior was considered impregnable and Maharaja Sindia had remained pro-British throughout the rebellion. The British expected them to disband, but instead about 11,000 rebels advanced on Gwalior. After the first few shots, most of the Maharaja’s army defected and he fled to safety. Another Maharaja, Rao Sahib, was crowned and Lakshmibai was given a priceless pearl necklace.

On June 17^th, they faced the British in battle. Lakshmibai was given command of the eastern flank, supposedly the most difficult position to defend. There are several accounts of how she died. You can read several of them at Lakshmibai, Rani of Jhansi: Mutiny, but the one I like the best is from Saul David’s book Indian Mutiny 1857, and taken from the diary of Edward Grey, a veterinary surgeon with the 8^th Hussars:

“The Rani was on horseback … when the British cavalry [8th Hussars] made their surprise appearance, causing her escort to scatter … she boldly ‘attacked one of the 8th in their advance, was unhorsed and wounded’, possibly by a sabre cut. A short while later as the British retired … she recognised her former assailant as she sat bleeding by the roadside and fired at him with her pistol. Unfortunately she missed and he ‘dispatched the young lady with his carbine’. But because she was ‘dressed as a sowar’, the trooper never realised ‘that he had cut off one of the mainstays of the mutiny, that there was a reward of a lac [lakh] on his victim’s head, or that at that moment she was wearing jewels worth a crore of rupees’.”

Rani Lakshmibai’s statue in Solapur near the Kambar Talav (Sambhaji Talav). Author: Dharmadhyaksha. Legend says that she escaped with Damodar tied to her back. (source)

Resources

Lakshmibai, Rani of Jhansi: Early Life
Lakshmibai, Rani of Jhansi: Annexation
Lakshmibai, Rani of Jhansi: Mutiny
Rani Lakshmibai: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 08:18, May 24, 2013.

Florence Harding – Wild Child

In 1920, when Warren G. Harding was running for President of the United States, he had secrets to hide, many secrets; and they all had female names. In fact, one of his mistresses is the only person, that we know of, to successfully blackmail a presidential nominee. But, he wasn’t the only one with a past that they wanted to keep hidden. His wife Florence had a few indiscretions of her own.

Florence Kling Harding was supposed to be a boy, at least in the mind of her father. When Amos Kling and his wife, Louisa, were expecting their first child, he told everyone around town in Marion, Ohio, that the child would be a boy. Aside from just wanting a boy, Amos owned a successful hardware store which required much of his time; a son could work along side him and eventually take over the business. So on August 15, 1860 when Florence Mabel, Flossie, was born, although Amos resented the fact that she wasn’t a boy, he had a practical solution. He would raise her as if she were a boy.

From the time Flossie could walk, Amos took her with him to the store. It became an environment that she would always be comfortable in, the sights, smells, sounds, and the company of men. As she grew, Amos trained her in the running of the store and his other businesses as they came about. By the time Flossie was a teenager, Amos had expanded into banking, real estate, and land/tenant management. He had also become a very wealthy man.

Florence’s education was extensive, including subjects not always studied by women such as math, rhetoric, logic, Greek, and Latin. She was also very active physically, running and playing with the neighborhood boys. Her favorite outdoor activity was horseback riding. Many of her Marian neighbors commented that she was the best horsewoman they had ever seen. (I suspect she was better than many of the men as well.)

All of this continued in spite of the fact that Florence had two younger brothers. Amos never switched his training to the boys. He was a tyrant in the home and it seems that Louisa and the two boys were more submissive, and thus less like Amos in personality than Florence. She was just as competitive and driven as he was and perhaps that’s why he seemed to favor her, but as is the case with many strong-willed children of overbearing parents, there came a time when Florence rebelled against Amos’ demands.

Florence also showed a talent for music. She spent hours practicing the piano, one time for eight hours, until her fingers bled. Music for the sake of art didn’t mean anything to Amos, but he was a firm believer that a woman should be able to provide for herself if necessary. For this reason, he allowed Florence to enroll at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, so that she would have a means to support herself by giving piano lessons. Her ambition, however, was to become a concert pianist.

Cincinnati was the country’s center of culture in the west and it opened up a new world to Florence. A world that she reveled in, a world with new people and experiences, but more importantly, a world of independence. After only a year, Amos called Florence home. Whether it was to take care of things at home while her mother was ill, as he said, or because he wanted to reign in his newly liberated daughter, I don’t know. But whatever the reason, he released a tiger that he couldn’t put back in the cage.

Amos tried to impose his own standards on Florence once again and their arguments were long and loud, sometimes lasting all night and heard in the street outside their home. More than once he locked her out of the house when she didn’t return before curfew. Sometimes she crawled into the window of her best friend Carrie Phillips, but other times who knows. Amos particularly disliked the fact that she was *gasp* hanging around the new roller rink in town.

Roller skating was a new fad that was sweeping the country. It gave young men and women a chance to socialize and listen to music, and if a few proprieties were breached well, you had to keep your balance, right? In fact the Philadelphia Inquirer in 1885 passed on a minister’s warning that roller skating rinks “corrupt the morals of all who associate with them.” As might be expected, it wasn’t long before Florence became interested in a young man, Henry De Wolfe, Pete to his friends. Amos was livid, which of course made Pete that much more attractive.

For young women who feel trapped at home, there is one way of escape which has often been used, although it can sometimes have dire consequences. Florence had never expressed a desire to marry or have children and a family like her mother. She had been greatly inspired by Clara Baur, the unmarried founder of the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music who was a proponent of careers for women. But at the end of 1879, she found herself in trouble. Trouble that could provide a way out of her father’s house.

Kathleen Lawler, Florence’s long-time assistant said that Florence became pregnant to get away from Amos. Florence herself didn’t admit it, but in her diary early in 1880, she makes a cryptic statement: “Vice often comes in at the door of necessity, not at the door of inclination.”

Pete was fun-loving and handsome, and he drank to excess. Just a year older than Florence, they grew up across the street from each other. Pete’s father, Simon, was one of the few men in town who wasn’t afraid of Amos Kling and there was no love lost between the two, so when Pete and Florence took up with each other people held their breath waiting for the explosion which was sure to occur. Neither family approved, but Simon was a different kind of man than Amos and when Pete told him that he had gotten Florence pregnant, Simon told him to take her up to “Columbus, and get married as soon as possible.” So in March 1880, Florence and Pete eloped to Columbus to get married. But, they didn’t.

Carl Anthony, Florence’s biographer, states in his book that there is no record of a marriage between a Kling and a DeWolfe for 10 years before or after 1880 in Franklin County (Columbus), Marion County, or in Crawford County, where they soon set up housekeeping. Florence may or may not have wanted it that way, but Amos had to believe that they were married to prevent him trying to force her back home. And it worked. Not only did Amos leave Florence to her “marriage”, he cut her off and refused to talk to her.

Life with Pete was difficult. They tried to run a roller skating rink, but failed, and Pete didn’t adjust well to the responsibility of a family. He would be gone for days at a time and finally, before their son Marshall was two years old, he deserted them. Florence had no choice except to return to Marion. A friend’s father was kind enough to allow her to stay at their house as she began to teach piano lessons, until she finally was able to raise enough to get a small apartment of her own.

Even though Florence’s marriage was from all appearances a common law marriage, she did finally get a divorce from Pete in 1886. At that time there was some communication between Amos and Florence and he offered to provide for Marshall. The conditions were that Marshall would live in the Kling home and take the Kling name. Florence agreed.

Amos may have hated losing control of Florence, and hated the choices she made, but he had given her the tools to make them. She was now on her own, independent, free of responsibility for anyone but herself, and she set out to start over. She also set her sights on the dashing young publisher of The Marion Star, Warren G. Harding.

Resources
First Ladies: From Martha Washington to Michelle Obama by Betty Caroli
Florence Harding: The First Lady, The Jazz Age, and the Death of America’s Most Scandalous President by Carl Sferrazza Anthony
Presidential Wives: An Anecdotal History by Paul F. Boller Jr.
The Library Company of Philadelphia: “Roller Skating Fun“

Celebrating Black History Month Part 3

Here’s one last post of the women we’ve highlighted on the Saints, Sisters, and Sluts Facebook page for Black History Month. There are many more women who have made considerable contributions and done amazing things. It’s impossible to include them all. I know I have learned a lot though and have a basis to build on for future blog posts. I hope you’ve learned something along the way as well.

Nannie Helen Burroughs (1879 – 1961) was an educator, orator, religious leader, and business woman. She helped found the National Association of Colored Women and worked within the National Baptist Convention. In 1909, she founded the National Training School for Women and Girls. The school emphasized preparation for occupations, but also stressed being proud black women. To this end students were required to take a class in African American history and culture.

Willa Brown (1906 – 1992) was a teacher, social worker, pilot, and flight instructor, the first black woman officer in the Civil Air Patrol and the first black woman to hold a commercial pilot’s license in the US. With Cornelius R. Coffey (her husband and flight instructor) she established the Coffey School of Aeronautics to train pilots and mechanics.

She helped found the National Airmen’s Association of America in 1939 and lobbied for integration of black pilots into the Army Air Corps and the Civilian Pilot Training Program. The Coffey School was selected by the US Army to provide black trainees for the Air Corps pilot training program at the Tuskegee Institute.

Sissieretta Jones (1868? – 1933) was an American soprano who sang both opera and popular music. After beginning in the choir of her father’s African Methodist Episcopal church, Sissieretta went on to sing for 4 consecutive US Presidents and the British Royal Family.

Sissieretta Jones was sometimes referred to as "The Black Patti" — Sissieretta Jones was sometimes referred to as “The Black Patti”

She studied at the Providence Academy of Music and the New England Conservatory of Music. In 1888, she came to the attention of Adelina Patti’s manager who suggested that she tour with the Fisk Jubilee singers. Adelina Patti was a successful Italian opera singer. Sissieretta was sometimes referred to as “The Black Patti.”

Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin (1842 – 1924) was an African American publisher, journalist, civil rights leader, suffragist and the founder and editor of Women’s Era, the first journal written by and for African American women. Together with her husband George Lewis Ruffin (who had a number of first’s to his name, including first African American male graduate from Harvard Law School,) Josephine worked to recruit black soldiers to the Union cause during the Civil War and to support the men in the field.

In 1869, Josephine joined with Julia Ward Howe and Lucy Stone to form the American Woman Suffrage Association. In 1895, she organized the Nation Federation of Afro-American Women which later merged with the Colored Women’s League to form the National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs with Mary Church Terrell at its head.

“The Ruffin Incident” occurred when Josephine intended to attend the meeting of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs in 1900. She was representing two integrated groups (the New England Woman’s Club and the New England Woman’s Press Club) and one all black group, the New Era Club. When southern leaders discovered that the New Era Club was an all black organization they refused to let her represent them, but said she could participate as a representative of the other groups. She refused to compromise. The incident was widely reported across the country with much support for Ruffin.

Fannie Lou Hamer (1917 – 1977) was a voting rights advocate and civil rights activist. In 1962, in spite of the danger, she joined a group of people inspired by James Bevel and traveled to Indianola MS to register to vote. It was a very dangerous thing for African Americans to attempt to vote in the South at the time, so to bolster the groups courage she began to sing Christian hymns. This became her trademark as she organized other groups to register. Her courage brought her to the attention of leaders in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee who recruited her to speak and organize.

Hamer is probably best known for her speech given to the Credential’s Committee at the Democratic National Convention in 1964. The Mississippi Democratic Party sent an all white and anti-civil rights delegation. In response Hamer with others formed the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Committee to challenge the all white delegation as not representing all of Mississippi. Ultimately, the compromise offered by the Convention was unacceptable to the MFDC, but the Democratic Party adopted a clause demanding equality of representation from all state delegations. Fannie Lou Hamer was selected as a delegate to the 1968 Convention.

There are several women I highlighted on the FB page, but not in these posts because they already appear in other blog posts. If you’re interested here are the names and links.

Marian Anderson
Mary McLeod Bethune
Mary Ann Shadd

Celebrating Black History Month Part 2

I want to continue sharing brief information on the black women I’ve learned about during Black History Month. The more women I’ve researched this month, the more I have discovered. There is an embarrassment of riches in this area that has been unknown to me. One reason is the overshadowing, during their time, of black women by white women they worked jointly with such as Josephine Ruffin who worked with Julia Ward Howe and Lucy Stone to form the American Woman’s Suffrage Association. There is also the simple fact that women and African Americans are not fully present in the typical history curriculum. To anyone who thinks that we don’t need to emphasize Black History or Women’s History, I challenge you to do what I have done this month and search the internet for one person they have never heard of each day. You may be surprised.

Now for more black women from the SSS Facebook page. There are two women who should be remembered as the earliest African American female physicians: Rebecca Lee Crumpler and Rebecca Cole.

Rebecca Lee Crumpler (1831 – 1895) was the first African-American woman to become a physician. She graduated in 1864 from the New England Female Medical College. After graduation and the end of the Civil War, she worked with the Freedmen’s Bureau and other community groups to provide medical services to freed slaves in Richmond, VA. Later she returned to practice in her home in Boston, MA. Most of what we know about her comes from the introduction to her book “Book on Medical Discourse,” written from her clinical notes and published in 1883.

Rebecca Cole (1846 – 1922) was the second African-American female doctor. She graduated in 1867 from the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania and received her clinical training at Elizabeth Blackwell’s New York Infirmary for Women and Children. She practiced medicine for over 50 years working primarily with destitute women and children.

Sarah Jane Woodson Early (1825 – 1907) was the first African American women to become a college faculty member. She graduated from Oberlin College in 1856 and two years later took a position at Wilberforce College. The college had to close during the Civil War due to lack of funds, but for the next 40 years Sarah Jane was a teacher and school principal in Ohio and, after the war, in the South.

In 1868, Sarah Jane married the Rev. Jordan Winston Early, an African Methodist Episcopal minister, and continued teaching and working with him in his ministry. She also traveled and lectured as the national superintendent of the Black division of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. In 1894, she published a biography of her husband including both his life as a slave and his ministry.

Fannie Williams (1855 – 1944) was a teacher, lecturer, and social reformer. She helped organize Provident Hospital and its Training school for Nurses in Chicago (both interracial institutions.) After speaking at both the World’s Congress of Representative Women and the World’s Parliament of Religions, held in conjunction with the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893, she was in great demand as a lecturer.

Fannie helped found the National Association of Colored Women, was among the founding members of the NAACP, and became the first Black member of the Chicago Woman’s Club. She wrote frequently for Chicago newspapers and in 1924 became the first African American and the first woman to be named to the Chicago Library Board. She also believed in a fully integrated women’s movement and was chosen as the only African American to eulogize Susan B. Anthony at the 1907 Women’s Suffrage Convention.

Edmonia Lewis (1844 – 1907) was an American sculptor of African American and Native American descent. She attended Oberlin College where she began sculpting and quickly became successful. She held her first solo exhibition in 1864 and produced popular works such as medallion portraits of John Brown and William Lloyd Garrison.

In 1865 Lewis went to Rome to study where she spent much of her adult life working and studying. One of her major works was a marble sculpture called “The Death of Cleopatra.” It was displayed at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. Unfortunately, this monumental piece (3000 lbs) was lost for almost 100 years. It was rediscovered, although covered in paint, and finally restored and donated to the Smithsonian American Art Museum in 1994.

Gwendolyn Brooks (1917 – 2000) was a Pulitzer Prize winning poet. Raised in Chicago, she had approximately 75 published poems by the time she was 16. In 1943, she received her first award and in 1945 her first book “A Street in Bronzeville” was published to critical acclaim.

“Very early in life I became fascinated with the wonders language can achieve. And I began playing with words.” Gwendolyn Brooks on Poetry

In 1950, Brooks became the first African American to win a Pulitzer Prize for Poetry with her book “Annie Allen.” She received many other awards including the Robert Frost Medal for lifetime achievement, the National Medal of Arts, and was honored as the first Woman of the Year chosen by the Harvard Black Men’s Forum.

Mary Frances Berry, born Feb 17, 1938, was Provost at the University of Maryland, Chancellor at the University of Colorado at Boulder, and Assistant Secretary for Education in the US Dept of Health, Education, and Welfare. She received her education at Howard University, and the University of Michigan, obtaining Ph. D. and J. D. degrees.

Berry was one of the founders of the Free South Africa movement and she was arrested and jailed several times due to her support of the cause. She was in Capetown in 1990 to greet Nelson Mandela when he was released from prison.

In 1980, Berry was appointed by President Jimmy Carter as a Commissioner on the US Commission of Civil Rights. She was later fired by President Reagan for criticizing his stand on civil rights and won her reinstatement through the federal courts. She was appointed Chairperson of the Commission by President Clinton and served until her resignation in 2004. Since then she has been a professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania.

Audre Lorde (1934 – 1992) was an American poet, essayist, and activist of Caribbean descent. She was politically active in civil rights, anti-war, and feminist movements. Later she also became active in lesbian and gay rights causes. She co-founded “Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press” with author Barbara Smith, the first US publisher specifically for women of color. She was the State Poet of New York.

“I am defined as other in every group I’m part of”, she declared, “the outsider, both strength and weakness. Yet without community there is certainly no liberation, no future, only the most vulnerable and temporary armistice between me and my oppression.”

Lorde described herself as a “black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet.” She believed that the typical feminist approach of defining things and issues based only on gender was simplistic, if perhaps necessary, and that there were other issues of difference that needed to be addressed.

Violette Neatley Anderson (1882 – 1937) was an African American attorney and judge with many “firsts” to her name. Anderson was born in London and moved to the US as a young child with her family. After graduating from Chicago Law School in 1920, she became the first African American woman admitted to the Illinois bar, the first female city prosecutor in Chicago, the first African American woman to practice law in the US District Court Eastern Division, and the first African American woman admitted to practice before the US Supreme Court.

Pearl Bailey on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1968

Pearl Mae Bailey (1918 – 1990) was known as an actress and singer, but she was much more. She wrote 4 books and at 67 earned a degree in Theology from Georgetown University. At 15, she won an amateur contest and decided to pursue a career in entertainment. Beginning in vaudeville, she made her Broadway debut in 1946 in St. Louis Woman. She won a Tony Award for the lead role in the all-black production of Hello Dolly in 1968. Her career was varied including both movie and television, voices for animation, even commercial jingles. During WW2, Bailey sang with the USO; she also sang in nightclubs with some of the greats including Duke Ellington.

One more post tomorrow will let me finish up the brief information I’ve posted on these women for the month. If you missed them be sure to read Part 1 and Part 3.

Harriet Lane – The “Democratic Queen”

Harriet Lane was one of a number of women who served as the official White House hostess without being married to the President. She was greatly admired and well-liked even though by the end of his term her uncle James Buchanan was almost universally disliked. Referred to as the “Democratic Queen” and the “first lady of the land,” Lane was a superb hostess with a self-confidence that allowed her to push the boundaries and set new trends. She was also a woman of great warmth and generosity whose legacy is still felt today.

Harriet Lane was born on March 4, 1830 to Elliot Tole Lane and Jane Ann Buchanan Lane. The youngest of four children, her mother died when she was 9 years old and her father died when she was 11. Her father was a successful merchant, leaving the children with adequate resources, but at 11 years old Harriet needed a guardian. Her brothers were old enough to make their own way and her sister was already in boarding school, but Harriet didn’t adjust well to boarding school, so she went to live with her bachelor uncle James Buchanan.

Harriet’s mother, Jane, was Buchanan’s favorite sister and he knew and loved her children. He gladly took Harriet into his home and tended to indulge her and her sister who came to him during holidays from school. Harriet did go to boarding school later at Charles Town, Virginia and at the Academy of the Visitation Convent in Washington, D.C. where she graduated with honors. She was an outgoing, friendly girl who enjoyed the social activities which went along with her uncle’s position as a senator and from 1845 to 1849 as Secretary of State in Polk’s administration. But her most advantageous experience was as Buchanan’s companion when he was appointed Ambassador to the Court of St. James in 1854.

Harriet was a great success in London. She served as her uncle’s hostess and they dined often with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. The Queen even gave her the title of “Honorary Ambassadress” to the Court with the courtesies generally given to the wife of the Ambassador and called her “the dear Miss Lane.” London society was the perfect preparation for her time at the White House.

James Buchanan was elected President of the United States in 1856. Out of the country for the preceding 4 years, he was one of the few experienced politicians who had not become embroiled in the controversy over slavery in the territories. With experience as Ambassador to both Russia and England, many hoped that his diplomatic skills could prevent the breakup of the Union. This wasn’t the case. He became increasingly unpopular as his term went on and by the time Lincoln took office, the Confederate States had formed and elected Jefferson Davis as their President.

414px-Harriet_Lane — Harriet shocked society matrons by having her neckline lowered for the inaugural ball, but dressmakers all over the city soon began to get similar requests.

In spite of her uncle’s unpopularity, Harriet Lane became one of the most well-liked First Ladies since Dolly Madison and brought elegance to the White House that wouldn’t be seen again until Jacqueline Kennedy. She gave new life to Washington society which had been very somber while Jane Pierce was First Lady. Ships and babies were named after her; she set fashion trends; and she established new customs for the White House.

As mistress of the house, Harriet dismissed all of the slaves on staff whose owners were receiving money for their service, and hired a new staff. She invited artists and musicians to the White House and set up large tents on the lawn for concerts and served refreshments for all who came. For State dinners, Harriet carefully determined seating arrangements to seat Northern and Southern guests at different tables and to separate guests who were on bad terms.

Only 26 when she went to the White House, Harriet possessed the self-confidence and grace of an older woman. She seemed equal to any social situation from soothing angry Congressmen, to entertaining members of the royal families of both Japan and England. But it would be a mistake to assume she was just an ornament to her uncle. While Harriet presided as White House she was determined to make a difference in people’s lives. Her three favorite causes were hospital reform, prison reform, and the needs of American Indians. The Chippewa called her “the Great Mother of the Indians” for her work in obtaining medical and educational services for them.

Wheatland – James Buchanan’s home which he opened up to Harriet Lane when her parents died

Once her time in the White House and the Civil War were over, Harriet could focus on herself. She had always had admirers, but none made a great impact until she met Henry Eliot Johnston. They were married in January of 1866 when Harriet was 35 years old. In spite of the death of James Buchanan, this was a happy time as Harriet and Henry had two sons born in November 1866 and 1870.

She spent her time being a wife and mother, and contributing to her causes, until tragedy struck Harriet’s life again. In March 1881, their oldest son James Buchanan Johnston died of rheumatic fever, followed in October 1882 by the loss of their second son Henry Eliot Johnston Jr. to the same disease.

As a memorial to their sons, the Johnston’s set up The Harriet Lane Home for Invalid Children which eventually became the Teaching and Research Center of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Then in May of 1884, Harriet unexpectedly found herself alone when Henry died of pneumonia.

St Albans School — Harriet founded St. Albans School

Harriet Lane’s life had always been active, taking care of her uncle and his guests, cantankerous Congressmen, visiting dignitaries and then her family. This part of her personality wouldn’t change. In 1886, Harriet sold their home in Baltimore, Wheatland which she had inherited from her uncle, and many of her possessions. She found a home in Washington, D.C. in the center of the action and resumed her life in society. Beginning with a dinner at the White House where she put the young First Lady, Frances Cleveland at ease, for the next fifteen years no guest list would be complete without the name of Harriet Lane Johnston.

When Harriet was the First Lady she greatly impressed one visiting dignitary, the Prince of Wales. It only seems fitting that the last major event she attended was the coronation of the Prince when he became King Edward VII of England in August 1902. After she returned that fall she was diagnosed with cancer. She spent the next few months getting her affairs in order, then traveled to her summer home in Rhode Island where she wanted to spend her last days. Harriet Lane Johnston, America’s “Democratic Queen” died July 3, 1903.

John Henry Brown, Harriet Lane Johnston, 1878, watercolor on ivory, 4 3/4 x 3 1/2 in. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Bequest of May S. Kennedy

Resources
First Ladies: From Martha Washington to Michelle Obama by Betty Caroli
First Ladies: The Saga of the Presidents’ Wives and Their Power 1789 – 1961 by Carl Sferrazza Anthony
Harriet Lane, America’s First Lady by Milton Stern

Jane Pierce – “The Shadow in the White House”

Today it’s difficult to imagine a First Lady who isn’t actively involved in her husband’s career. Whether it’s involvement in politics, actively pursuing causes of her own, or at the very least serving as the White House hostess, the First Lady of the Land is scrutinized and judged based on her demeanor and activities. While this has always been the case to a degree, during the first half of the 19th century the public seemed to accept and sympathize with several First Ladies who stayed out of the public view for various reasons. Jane Pierce never had robust health and personal tragedies prior to her husband’s tenure in the White House caused her to withdraw from almost all public contact. She was described as beautiful, but so sad.

Jane was born on March 12, 1806 to Elizabeth Means Appleton and Jess Appleton, a Congregational minister and the President of Bowdoin College in Maine. Jane had a religious upbringing which continued after her father died in 1819 and she moved into her maternal grandparent’s home in Amherst, New Hampshire. Not much is known about her upbringing, but she was apparently well educated for a girl of the time, though she would have received all of her education at home.

We also don’t know how Jane met Franklin Pierce, but her family was against the match. Jane came from an elite family with Whig sympathies; Franklin was a Democrat and Jane’s family considered him of lower social standing in spite of his father’s tenure as the New Hampshire governor. Jane was quiet, introverted, and of “delicate” health, while Franklin was the opposite, outgoing and robust with a tendency to drink, or “tipple” as they would say. Nevertheless after a long courtship, Jane had her way and she and Franklin were married on November 19, 1834. Franklin was within days of turning 30 and Jane was 28 which may have had something to do with her family finally agreeing to the match.

Another reason Jane’s family considered Franklin a poor choice for a husband was his career in politics. He had graduated from Bowdoin College and studied law, but left his law practice to serve in the New Hampshire legislature. In 1832, he was elected to the US House of Representatives and in 1836 to the US Senate. He was a northerner with southern sympathies. Andrew Jackson was a family friend and something of a mentor to Franklin, and he was life long friends with Jefferson Davis.

After they were married, Jane went to Washington with Franklin, but she hated it. She didn’t like the atmosphere or the social activity and spent much of her time in their room at the boardinghouse where they lived. The birth of their children provided her with a reason to remain at home in New Hampshire or with relatives. When Franklin’s term in the Senate ended in 1842, she convinced him to retire from public life and resume his law practice.

Jane had always been described as having a “melancholy” personality, but these early years of their marriage brought tragedy which would have caused depression in even the most healthy of individuals. Their first son, Franklin Pierce Jr., born in 1836, lived only three days. Two more sons were born in 1839 (Frank Robert) and 1841 (Benjamin.) Then Frank Robert died at the age of four from disease. Now Jane’s life revolved primarily around Benjamin or Benny as he was called. She saw to his early education putting a heavy emphasis on religion. She insisted on daily family worship, prayer and Bible reading, and of course regular attendance at church on Sundays.

Franklin was devoted to Jane and did what he could to make her life easier. He hired a couple to manage their household and told Jane that he wouldn’t go back to work for the government except in the event of war. He stayed true to this promise turning down the Democratic nomination for Governor of New Hampshire and even declining an appointment as Attorney General of the United States when President Polk offered him the position. But when the US entered into the Mexican war, he felt he had to do his duty and volunteered.

Franklin acquitted himself well during the war, rising to the level of Brigadier General and officials in the Democratic party saw an opportunity to promote him as a local war hero. During the 1852 Democratic convention the four major candidates were still grid-locked after the 34^th ballot, so Franklin’s name was put forth as an alternative presidential candidate. He won the nomination and told Jane that he felt he must accept it. At the time Franklin was very well-liked, known as a fair and honest man, and a brilliant lawyer; his positions were not very well-known and he won the election in a landslide.

Jane was horrified at the thought of Franklin becoming President and she and Benny both prayed that he would lose the election and wrote letters to Franklin saying the same. She also felt betrayed when she found out that even though Franklin hadn’t sought the nomination, that he really did want it and had let his friends put his name forward. After he won the election, she had resigned herself to going back to Washington when tragedy struck again.

On January 6, 1853 the Pierce family was in a train wreck. After getting Jane out of the wreckage, Franklin went back to look for Benny and found him trapped under a beam with his head crushed. The death of the last of their sons hit both of them very hard, but Jane never seemed to recover.

Jane Pierce and bennie — Jane Pierce with her son Benny

Jane couldn’t bring herself to go to Franklin’s inauguration, but did eventually join him at the White House. He hired a couple to oversee the household and organize the obligatory social events, and he brought Jane’s widowed aunt to stay with them as a companion to Jane and to be his hostess until she felt up to it. For the first two years Jane remained in seclusion upstairs and appeared in public only to attend church. She saw only a few friends, Nathaniel Hawthorne a close friend of Franklin’s, Jefferson Davis and his wife, Varina Davis, who was Jane’s close friend.

Jane’s first official appearance was at the New Year’s Day reception in 1855 and she did appear from time to time after that, but for someone prone to melancholia, what we would call depression today, she just wasn’t able to recover. She continued to wear black during her time in the White House and often wrote letters to her dead son Benny. She believed that Benny’s death was a result of Franklin’s political ambitions and that God had taken him so that he wouldn’t be a distraction to Franklin while in office.

Franklin was not a successful President and although very popular when he went in to office, he was so hated at the end of his term that he became the first incumbent President not to receive his party’s nomination for a second term. After being escorted out of the White House under guard for his own safety, Franklin took Jane to Europe hoping to help her recover both physically and emotionally.

Nothing seemed to help Jane and she died on December 2, 1863, probably of tuberculosis, which would explain her life-long “delicate” condition. She lived a very sad adult life and the society of the time was forgiving of First Ladies who weren’t up to the task. Because she was seen so rarely and then always seemed to have a smile that didn’t successfully cover her sadness, she was referred to by some as “the shadow in the White House.”

800px-Piercemanse — The house where Jane and Franklin lived with their children.
Attribution: Craig Michaud at en.wikipedia

Resources
First Ladies: From Martha Washington to Michelle Obama by Betty Caroli
Presidential Wives: An Anecdotal History by Paul F. Boller Jr. Life
Portrait of Franklin Pierce – C-Span American President Series

Caroline Herschel – 18th Century Astronomer

As a girl, Caroline Herschel’s expectations were limited, but she had a quick mind and the ability to learn. Although most of what Caroline learned would be to benefit and help her brother, she went on to become a brilliant astronomer in her own right, discovering nebulae, star clusters, and eight comets.

Caroline Herschel was born March 16, 1750 in Hanover (now in Germany.) She was the fifth of six children born to Isaac Herschel and Anna Moritzen. Her parents were industrious and hard-working, her mother a housewife and her father a gardener and musician. Her mother saw no need to educate a girl, but Caroline was able to learn the basics of reading and writing, and because of the family talent for music, her father insisted that she learn to play the violin.

Caroline suffered a couple of childhood illnesses that left their mark; smallpox when she was three left her with scars and a damaged left eye; typhus at the age of ten stunted her growth, leaving her with an adult height of 4′ 3″. Her mother showed her little affection and envisioned Caroline as her housekeeper. Her father reminded her frequently that she was unlikely to find a husband because she had no fortune or beauty. She was probably looking at a bleak future.

In 1767, Caroline’s father died and her favorite brother William, who had moved to England, suggested that she come live with him. William’s intention was to make his living as a musician and to study astronomy, and he wanted Caroline to come keep his house. At first her mother refused to give up the work that Caroline did for her, but she agreed when William promised to send her the money to get a maid to make up for Caroline’s absence. So in 1772 at the age of 22, Caroline returned with her brother to England.

Telescope made for Caroline by William in 1795 (Photo: Wikipedia user Geni, source)

Even though she still kept house, Caroline’s life was completely different with her brother. She studied math for the first time, so that she could keep his household accounts. William gave her voice lessons and she learned to play the harpsichord so that she could accompany him. Soon she became well-known for her singing and began to get engagements for solos, although she refused if William couldn’t be the conductor. William also insisted that she take lessons in dancing and how to conduct herself in society. She thought many of the people she met in society shallow, but the lessons would serve her well because she and William soon came to the attention of King George III for their work in astronomy.

William’s astronomy work began to take up more and more of his time. Displeased with the telescopes available he began to build his own and was soon selling them to others. Caroline and their brother Alexander ground by hand the mirrors needed for the telescopes, and Caroline did William’s calculations, carefully cataloging his observations in the night sky.

On March 13, 1781, William spotted what he thought was a new comet, but after careful observation realized that it was a planet. His discovery of the planet Uranus brought him to the attention of the King. The next year William was made the official astronomer of King George III and received a pension of £200. Caroline was no longer just a helper, but an apprentice and would soon be credited with her own discoveries. This also brought with it more visibility in society and with the royal family. William and Caroline were often invited to Windsor, and Caroline got to know the princesses Sophia and Amelia as she patiently answered their questions about the stars.

Caroline never wanted to outshine her brother, but in 1783 while he was away she discovered 3 nebulae. Then on August 1, 1786, she discovered her first comet. This discovery brought her to the attention of the scientific community and The King gave her a small salary for her work as William’s assistant. It was only £50, but she wrote in her diary that it was the first money she had ever received that she felt she could spend on whatever she wished.

Sir William Herschel c. 1805 by James Sharples (source)

Around this time William got married and Caroline began doing more work on her own. Between 1788 and 1797, she discovered seven more comets and began work on revising Flamsteed’s star catalog. She verified the information, made corrections, and added 560 stars that she and William had observed. She submitted this catalog to The Royal Society for publication. But her most impressive and recognized work was The Reduction and Arrangement in the Form of Catalogue, in Zones, of All the Star-Clusters and Nebula Observed by Sir William Herschel in His Sweeps. For this work, the Royal Astronomical Society awarded her a Gold Medal calling it “a work of immense labor” and “an extraordinary monument to the unextinguished ardor of a lady of seventy-five in the cause of abstract science.”

The medal from the Royal Astronomical Society was awarded to her in 1828, six years after William’s death and after she had returned to Hanover. She also received medals from the King of Denmark and the King of Prussia, and in 1835, the Royal Astronomical Society bestowed honorary membership on two women for the first time, Caroline Herschel and Mary Somerville. The extract for the award stated that “the time is gone by when either feeling or prejudice, by whichever name it may be proper to call it, should be allowed to interfere with the payment of a well-earned tribute of respect.”

For Caroline, however, her crowning achievement probably came only a few months before she died. The work mentioned above was the basis for her nephew’s study of his fathers work. William’s vast undertaking, The Survey of the Heavens, was completed when his son Sir John Herschel completed and published the survey of the heavens in the southern hemisphere. She received a copy of Cape Observations just months before she died on January 9, 1848 at the age of 97.

Even in her death she was concerned for her brother’s fame. Her epitaph, which she composed, states in part “The eyes of her who is glorified were here below turned to the starry heavens. Her own discoveries of comets and her participation in the Immortal labors of her brother, William Herschel, bear witness of this to future ages.” Working with her brother, she advanced the science of astronomy and the recognition of women in science.

Resources
Women in Mathematics by Lynn Osen
Women in Science: Antiquity through the Nineteenth Century by Marilyn Bailey Ogilivie
Women in Science by H. J. Mozans

Read about other Famous Women in Math and Science

Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt – First Lady

Everything about Theodore Roosevelt was larger than life. He had an enormous amount of energy and approached everything with exuberance and enthusiasm, whether it was physical exercise, hunting, reading, charging up San Juan Hill, or continuing a speech while bleeding after an assassination attempt. He wasn’t particularly self-aware and often talked too much. In many ways he needed an anchor, someone who could bring him back to reality and be a grounding influence. Edith Carow was that person. They had an immensely satisfying marriage and she was the perfect counterpoint to Theodore’s outgoing, almost overwhelming personality. Edith also was a superb and well-liked First Lady of the United States.

Edith Kermit Carow was born in Norwich Connecticut on August 6, 1861 to Charles Carow and Gertrude Elizabeth Tyler Carow. Edith had impeccable social credentials; she could count an American Civil War general, two British Prime Ministers, and the famous preacher Jonathan Edwards as her ancestors. Her father worked in the family shipping company, but was not as successful as many of his colleagues; however, at the time Charles and Gertrude married, he was still relatively well off and they settled in Manhattan just a few blocks from his childhood friend Theodore Roosevelt, Sr.

Edith was born within a few weeks of Corinne Roosevelt, Theodore’s younger sister, and was friends with the children in the Roosevelt family almost from birth. She and Corinne considered themselves the best of friends as children, although the relationship became strained by the time Theodore became president. The Roosevelt children were taught at home by their Aunt Anna Bullard and Edith was included in the lessons. She was a quiet, serious, somewhat introverted child who loved to read. At 10, she attended Miss Comstock’s finishing school re-enforcing her strong moral sense and her love of literature. Although math and science were not part of her formal education, she loved nature and learned to identify many different varieties of flowers. Charles taught Edith and her sister Emily, her only sibling to survive infancy, sports and the local flora and fauna.

TR and Edith Corrine and Elliot — Edith (on the ground) with TR, Elliot, and Corrine

Whether from inability or lack of inclination, Edith’s father couldn’t seem to overcome the bad times that inevitably occurred in the shipping industry in the 19th century. He also struggled more and more with alcoholism as he got into his 30s, around the time he married and his children were born. In spite of his problems, Edith was very close to him and they shared interests in learning, literature, and the theater. As their financial circumstances worsened, the family had to depend on relatives more and more for money and sometimes a place to live. When Charles died in 1883, he left the family in reduced circumstances that eventually required a move to Europe where they could live more cheaply.

Although Edith was friends with all of the Roosevelt children, by her early teens she had developed a special friendship with Theodore, Teedie to the family, and they were often together during family outings on Oyster Bay during the summer. Even though she was 3 years younger, when Theodore went to Harvard she appeared often in his diary and visited him at school. During the summer between his first two years, however, there was a disagreement between the two of them that neither explained with the exception of a reference that Theodore made to the fact that they both had tempers. Whatever happened, the end result was that Edith disappeared from Theodore’s diary and at sometime in his junior year, he met and instantly fell in love with Alice Hathaway Lee. He and Alice were married in 1880, a few months after his graduation from Harvard.

In spite of, or perhaps because of, Edith’s home life, she had developed into a determined and confident young woman, although somewhat reticent and hard to get to know. If anyone thought that she would avoid Theodore and his new bride, they were mistaken. She went to the wedding and encountered them in other social situations without hesitation. She even gave Theodore a party when he was elected to the State Assembly in 1882. The situation was different however, when Alice died, on Valentine’s Day 1884 only two days after giving birth to their daughter, also named Alice. Both Theodore and Edith took pains to avoid each other. He was heartbroken and took off to the Badlands.

471px-Alice_Hathaway_Roosevelt_1 — Alice Hathaway Lee around the time of her marriage to TR

Although Theodore had a strong aversion to second marriages and saw them as being disloyal to the first wife, a chance encounter brought him and Edith back together in the fall of 1885. Within a few months, they had rekindled their relationship and become secretly engaged. Edith’s family financial situation was such that they had decided to move to Europe and she felt that she had to get them settled prior to getting married, so after the move Theodore joined her in London and they were wed on December 2, 1886. The newlyweds took their honeymoon in France and then returned to the home which Theodore had built for his first wife at Oyster Bay, although he did change the name from Leeholm to Sagamore Hill.

Baby Alice was being raised by Theodore’s sister Anna, Bamie to the family, and they had become very attached. He really didn’t have much to do with the baby, and usually referred to her as Baby Lee rather than by the name Alice. Although Theodore had offered to leave the baby with Bamie, Edith wanted her to come live with them. Five more children were born within the next ten years, giving Edith a large brood of children to manage, plus Theodore. Edith seemed to take it all in stride.

622px-Theodore_Roosevelt_and_family,_1903 — Roosevelt Family in 1903 with Quentin on the left, TR, Ted, Jr., Archie, Alice, Kermit, Edith, and Ethel

Unlike some First Ladies, Edith wasn’t interested in politics, but she knew that it was the life that Theodore had chosen. At the Republican National Convention in 1900, she was hoping that someone else would be nominated for Vice President other than Theodore. She knew that he would be bored simply presiding over the Senate, but it was a good move for him. He had served as Civil Service Commissioner, Police Commissioner in New York City, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, the Rough Rider war hero “Colonel Roosevelt”, Governor of New York and Vice President was a logical next step. What neither of them could have known was that the job would be short-lived and he would find himself the President within a few months.

Edith was extremely organized in managing her household and handling the family finances. She carried these same skills into the White House and in many ways made it her own. She was the first First Lady to add a social secretary to the payroll; she oversaw the renovation of the White House, the building of the West Wing, and separating the private quarters from public offices. When the family moved into the White House in 1901 the children ranged in age from 4 to 17 and Edith wanted to make their lives as normal as possible. This included numerous pets from dogs and cats to Alice’s pet snake, horseback riding, lessons, debuts for Alice and Ethel, and Alice’s wedding in 1906. She handled all of it with a grace that impressed the staff and even the media. White House aide W. H. Crook said that she handled all of her duties “without losing health, strength, or the youthful, vivacious, charming presence that made her personality as remarkable as that of her husband.”

Even though Edith was known for her efficiency, she was a warm and caring person attuned to the feelings of others. During one social event at the White House, she noticed a young woman, whose family had met with financial problems requiring her to take a job as a sales clerk, being ignored. As the woman was about to leave, Edith caught her and led her to a sofa to engage her in conversation. But she was no doormat either. When writing to Ted, his oldest son, just before his marriage, Theodore said that “when necessary [Edith] pointed out where I was thoughtless and therefore inconsiderate and selfish, instead of submitting to it. Had she not done this it would in the end have made her life very much harder, and mine very much less happy.” Even Alice, who was not an easy child to raise, when writing about Edith in her autobiography Crowded Hours, wrote, “That I was the child of another marriage was a simple fact and made a situation that had to be coped with, and Mother coped with it with a fairness and charm and intelligence which she has to a greater degree than almost any one else I know.”

Edith lived a long life. After Theodore died in 1919, she traveled extensively and enjoyed her children and grandchildren. She never was completely free of politics. In 1936, she supported Alfred Landon against her husband’s “distant cousin” Franklin Delano Roosevelt, vehemently objecting when anyone tried to compare FDR to Theodore. Unfortunately, she also had to endure the sorrow of seeing three of her children die; one of whom suffered with alcoholism as her father had, ultimately committing suicide. When Edith died on September 30, 1948 at the age of 87, Life magazine called her “one of the strongest-minded and strongest-willed presidential wives who ever lived in the White House.”

First_ladies-roosevelt-edith — Edith’s official White House portrait

Resources
Edith Kermit Roosevelt: Portrait of a First Lady by Sylvia Jukes Morris
The Roosevelt Women by Betty Boyd Caroli
Presidential Wives: An Anecdotal History by Paul F. Boller, Jr.
TR: The Last Romantic by H. W. Brands

Lola Montez – “Countess for an Hour”

Joseph_Karl_Stieler-Lola_Montez1847 — Lola Montez by Joseph Karl Stieler (1781 – 1858)

There are contradictions and unknown facts surrounding the fascinating life of Lola Montez. Many of these were generated by Lola herself through two small autobiographies. She also wrote several performance scripts about her own life. She claimed to have been born in Limerick Ireland on June 23, 1818. At least that is the date on her tombstone, but her birth certificate came to light in the late 1990s correcting the first of many misconceptions about Lola.

Eliza Rosanna Gilbert was born to Elizabeth Oliver and Edward Gilbert February 17, 1821. Elizabeth was fourteen when she married Edward on April 29, 1820 in Cork, Ireland, so it’s clear that Elizabeth was not pregnant with Eliza when she married as some have alledged. Edward, an Ensign in the 25^th Foot Regiment was stationed in India in 1823 and took his family with him. Later that year, he died of cholera, and Elizabeth soon married Lieutenant Patrick Craigie.

Both her father and stepfather were good to Eliza, but when she was sent to Scotland for school, she didn’t adjust very well. She first lived with Craigie’s father, then with his sister, and then was sent to boarding school. One of her teachers described her as elegant, graceful, and beautiful, with an “air of haughty ease.” She was also extravagant, impetuous, and had a violent temper. But at this point, her misbehavior was limited to putting flowers in the wig of the man in front of her in church, and supposedly running through the streets naked.

When Eliza was reunited with her mother in 1837, her mother proposed an arranged marriage with a 64 year old widower. Her response was to elope with 31 year old Lieutenant Thomas James. Eliza and Thomas were properly married in Dublin by his brother, and headed back to India where Thomas was stationed. The marriage didn’t last long, however. We don’t know which of them, if either, strayed from the marriage, but when Lola left India, she took up with George Lennox on the ship on the way home. They were not very discreet and were observed both on the ship and in a London hotel together.

At the age of 20, Eliza, or Mrs. Betty James as she called herself, was estranged from her mother and had begun to develop a scandalous reputation by eloping, abandoning her husband, and then having an illicit affair. She also needed a way to support herself, so she decided to become a Spanish dancer. She took dance lessons and then traveled to Spain to learn Spanish and Spanish dance. On June 3, 1843, she made her debut at Her Majesty’s Theatre in London, billed as Donna Lola Montez.

Lola’s talent was questionable, but she was considered to be extraordinarily beautiful with a fabulous figure. Unfortunately, she was recognized by someone in the audience who shouted her name calling her Betty James. Deciding that because of her reputation, London wasn’t the right place to perform, she left and began to tour Europe. In 1844, she met and had an indiscreet affair with Franz Liszt, the Hungarian composer. When the affair died out, she decided to go to Paris.

In Paris, Lola’s career was not successful, but she had some success as a courtesan beginning an affair with Alexander Dujarier, a young newspaper editor and owner. With Dujarier she was part of a literary crowd where she met and was rumored to have an affair with Alexander Dumas, pere. In 1845, Dujarier died in a duel unrelated to Lola. After the trial where his assailant was acquitted, she left Paris to go to Munich.

Presenting herself to the Bavarian court as a Spanish noblewoman, Lola became acquainted with King Ludwig I. He was captivated by her and made her his official mistress. Ludwig lavished gifts on Lola including a house with all the trappings and a substantial income. On his birthday, February 17, 1847, he went so far as to make her Countess Marie von Landsfeld, and bestow Bavarian citizenship on her.

Not content to be only a mistress, Lola began to give him advice about politics, typically siding with the middle class and students. This didn’t sit well with his aristocratic advisers and councilors, but in time, Lola’s extravagant lifestyle even turned the lower classes against her. Faced with evidence of her duplicity, Ludwig stood by her, but revolution was in the making and Lola was forced to flee the country after a mob destroyed much of her home. Eventually, Ludwig was forced to abdicate and go into exile. Although Lola continued to write passionate letters to Ludwig (and ask for money), they weren’t reunited and Lola returned to London.

At this point, Lola’s exploits were being followed in the press, and satirized in the theater. In April 1848 “Pas de Fascination, or Catching a Governor” premiered in London as “Lola Montez or Countess for an Hour” by J Sterling Coyne. When she returned to London, Lola may have kept a low profile, but that didn’t stop her from marrying George Trafford Heald in 1848. The problem was, that although Thomas James had gotten an official separation from the Church of England, divorces at the time could only be granted by an act of Parliament, so Lola wasn’t officially divorced. George’s aunt became suspicious and brought a bigamy suit against her. With a warrant out for Lola’s arrest the couple was forced to flee. For a couple of years, they lived in France and Spain, but soon the relationship faltered and Lola once again took off to reinvent herself, this time to the United States.

By this time, Lola was no longer an unknown. Her life had been widely reported in the English speaking world. Nevertheless, she traveled and performed in the eastern US from 1851 to 1853 before heading off to San Francisco, arriving in May 1853. In July, Lola entered into her third “marriage” to a reporter named Patrick Purdy Hull. The marriage lasted less than 3 months and she bought a mine in northern California where she settled down for a while until 1855.

Lola had always been volatile, but her raving seemed to increase during this time. She was suffering from severe headaches and poor health. She specifically railed against the Jesuits, accusing them of trying to poison her and shooting at her. A number of humorous plays had been written about her life and performed in Europe, and these were performed in California. She also wrote her autobiography which was filled with misinformation, possibly to try to counteract some of the negative things that had been written about her in the press and for the stage. It’s possible that her delusions of grandeur and feelings of paranoia at this time were the result of syphilis spreading to her brain.

In June of 1855, Lola decided to resume her career with a tour of Australia. She met with mixed reviews. In Melbourne, the theater audience began to decline after a review saying that her performance was “utterly subversive to all ideas of public morality.” At Castlemaine, however, she received rave encores from a crowd of miners and the members of the Municipal Council. At one point, she attacked a reporter with a bullwhip in response to a bad review.

On May 22, 1856, Lola left Australia to return to San Francisco. On the return voyage, the man she had been involved with during her tour, and who had been acting as her manager, Frank Folland, fell overboard. It is unknown whether or not it was an accident or suicide, but his death seemed to have a profound impact on Lola. She sold her jewelry and gave the money to Folland’s children in an act that seemed out of character for her.

Either because of Folland’s death, or because she was tired of the constant battles for the affection of the public, she gave up performing and began writing and lecturing, usually on topics related to beauty and the evils of Catholicism. She lectured in the US, Ireland, and London. Briefly, she tried to reestablish herself in London, but went into debt and fled creditors by returning to New York. For the last two years of her life, she joined the church and began the life of a reformer, working with prostitutes. She lived these years largely in poverty and after a series of strokes died on January 17, 1861. Her tombstone read Mrs. Eliza Gilbert.

Lola was portrayed by Carol Martine in the film Lola Montès (1955) directed by Max Ophüls. The film was refurbished and re-released in 2008 and featured at the Telluride and Cannes film festivals. You can see the trailer here.

Lola Montès trailer

Resources
Notorious Australian Women by Kay Saunders

Frances Willard – Forgotten Feminist

Often when we think about the temperance movement it’s limited to Prohibition, mobsters, and the roaring twenties. Temperance was an idea that was tried and failed in the sense that it didn’t work well for the country resulting in the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment via the Twenty-first Amendment. Because it is an idea that came and went, it is easy to forget the individuals who made their mark in history through the temperance movement. One of these individuals is Frances Willard.

But Frances Willard was much more than a temperance worker. She was a feminist and an advocate for women’s rights in the broadest sense. Her motto: ‘Everything is not in the Temperance Movement, but the Temperance Movement should be in everything‘ was her way of rallying a large number of women all across the country to work for reform in many different areas, but always with temperance at the core.

The Temperance movement was born out of the Second Great Awakening of religious fervor in America in the early nineteenth century. One of the people who found a renewed spirituality and a call to serve was Josiah Willard. In 1841, in order to study for the ministry under Charles Finney, Josiah and his wife Mary took their two children, Oliver and two year old Frances, and moved to Oberlin Ohio. He and Mary both studied at Oberlin College for the next four years until Josiah’s health required a move to the country.

In 1846, the family moved to a farm outside Janesville, Wisconsin, where Oliver, Frances, and younger sister Mary, born in Oberlin, spent 13 happy years. Frances’s talents began to emerge during this time. Mary was more artistic; Oliver played “fort” and wanted to explore; but Frances wanted to play “city” and organize. Their mother taught them at home until public schools were available in the area and was aware of and promoted each of her children’s strengths. When Frances was 17 she went to the Milwaukee Seminary where her aunt taught. In 1858, the family moved to Evanston Illinois where Frances attended the Evanston College for Ladies and graduated valedictorian in 1859.

Between 1859 and 1868, Frances taught school at various places before returning to the Evanston College for Ladies as the President, making her the first woman college president in the United States. When the college merged with Northwestern University in 1871, she became the Dean of Women. This was an ideal position for Frances to use her considerable organizational skills, but it was short lived. She resigned in 1874 after having her influence and responsibilities greatly reduced by the President of Northwestern, Charles Fowler. These may have been typical university political struggles, but they were complicated by the fact that Frances had previously been engaged to Fowler and broken the engagement. This experience left Frances distraught and at a loss as to how to proceed in her life. She had no desire to go back to one small schoolhouse after the other teaching. She also believed that God would use her.

WillardGordon — Willard with Anna Gordon and Mary Willard.

These years had been difficult for Frances in other ways as well. Both her father and her younger sister Mary died of tuberculosis and her brother Oliver began to drink heavily and gamble. She found herself without work and her mother’s sole source of support, so after leaving the University, she decided to go on the lecture tour for the cause of temperance. Frances was tireless, over the next ten years she averaged 30,000 miles and 400 lectures a year. Never domestically inclined, this suited the independent non-conformist side of Frances, but she was also ambitious.

In 1874, Frances became the corresponding secretary of the newly formed Women’s Christian Temperance Union, the President of the Chicago chapter, and head of the WCTU publications committee. During her lectures, Frances also began to speak in favor of women’s suffrage. Just as Lucy Stone and Susan B. Anthony found in the abolition society, this created a conflict with the leadership, in Frances’s case Annie Wittenmyer, the first WCTU president.

This is where Frances’s brilliance as a strategist began to show. As corresponding secretary, no problem or concern was too small to receive a letter from her. Through her travels and letter writing, with the help of long-time companion Anna Gordon, she made personal contacts all over the country. When the time was right, in 1879, Frances ran for president of the national WCTU, and won. She held this position until her death in 1898.

Many women in the WCTU were conservative and involved in the fight against alcohol because they believed that indulgence was sinful and because of the impact it had on the family. The fight for temperance was seen as fighting for the home, family, and motherhood thus an acceptable cause for women to work outside their homes, but many saw suffrage as too radical. Frances had the same values with regard to alcohol; she had seen its devastating effects in her brother’s life, but she also believed that the way for women to affect change in their domestic lives was to have the vote. She insisted that women not view themselves as the “weaker sex” and that they had a place in politics.

Wittenmyer had insisted on uniformity among the chapters of the WCTU. Frances preferred a more liberal approach. As long as the chapters took the temperance pledge and paid their dues they had the flexibility to work for the causes appropriate to their location. “Do everything,” was her motto. This led to work in many different areas, such as free school lunches, 8 hour work days, anti-rape laws, protection for children against abuse, and work relief for the poor. Although some thought that too broad a focus would fracture the organization, Frances’s organizational skills, her intense travel schedule, and prolific correspondence prevented this from happening.

315px-Frances_Willard — Frances Willard was the first woman to be represented in the Statuary Hall in the United States Capitol.

Frances Willard’s profound belief that she was called by God for this task, her excellent speaking skills, and even her feminine demeanor made her and her message acceptable to some who rejected the message of other suffragists of the time. At the time of her death in 1898, the WCTU had grown to approximately 150,000 women, making it the largest women’s organization in the world at the time, and making Frances one of the most famous women in the nation. She truly had an impact on the fight for women’s rights and should be remembered for her considerable contribution.

Frances was also a prolific writer. Some of her works were
• Woman and temperance, or the work and workers of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, 1883
• Glimpses of fifty years: the Autobiography of an American Woman, 1889
• How to Win: A Book for Girls, 1886
• Woman in the Pulpit, 1888
• Do everything: a Handbook for the World’s White Ribboners, 1895
• A Wheel within a Wheel: How I Learned to Ride the Bicycle, 1895

Resources
Sisters: The Lives of America’s Suffragists by Jean H. Baker
Glimpses of fifty years: the Autobiography of an American Woman, 1889
The Beautiful Life of Frances E. Willard by Anna Adams Gordon