Elaine Goodale

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Elaine Goodale Eastman (1863 - 1953) and Dora Read Goodale (1866 - 1915) were American poets, sisters, who were born in Mount Washington, Massachusetts and grew up on their father's farm. They showed remarkable poetic precocity. Poems of Elaine appeared as early as her eighth year, in Sky Farm Life, a monthly conducted by herself. In 1887 verses of both sisters began to appear in Saint Nicholas and their contributions to periodicals were thereafter frequent. The most noteworthy of their books are:

Apple Blossoms (1878)
In Berkshire with the Wildflowers (1879)
All Round the Year (1880)
Verses from Sky Farm (1880)

In 1881 Elaine published The Journal of a Farmer's Daughter. Two years later she became teacher in the Hampton (Va.) Institute for the education of Indians and negroes, and in 1885 made a tour of observation through the Sioux Reservation.

In the next year she received a government appointment to teach Indians at the White River Camp, and in 1890 was made superintendent of all Indian schools in that State.

In 1891 she married Dr. C. A. Eastman, a Sioux doctor, with whom she had six children. She witnessed many monumental events in Sioux history such as the fallout from the Wounded Knee Massacre, which scarred her deeply. Her marriage was unhappy and the couple separated after three decades.

Elaine Goodale Eastman also wrote a book about her experiences as a Sioux school teacher called "Sister to the Sioux." She published her last book of poems, "The Voice at Eve," in 1930; it includes a generous biographical essay entitled "All the Days of My Life."

Dora Read Goodale wrote Heralds of Easter (1887).

This article incorporates text from an edition of the New International Encyclopedia that is in the public domain.

[edit] External links

[1]: Elaine Goodale Eastman and the Failure of the Feminist Protestant Ethic, Great Plains Quarterly, Spring 1988, Dr. Ruth Ann Alexander, Prof. Emerita at South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota.