Marietta Holley

Marietta Holley

Marietta Holley (16 July 1836 – 1 March 1926), was an American humorist who used satire to comment on U.S. society and politics. Holley's writing was frequently compared to that of Mark Twain and Edgar Nye.

Holley was the youngest of Mary Tabor and John Milton's seven children. The family lived on a small farm in Jefferson County, New York.^[1] At 14 she ended her formal education in order to supplement the family income by giving piano lessons. At 17 she converted to the Baptist faith and joined the Adams Village Baptist Church. Her father died when she was 25, and Holley took charge of the farm and care of her sick mother and sister. After she became a successful novelist, she built a mansion called "Bonnie View" near her family's home in Pierrepont. Holley never married. She died in 1926 at age 89.

Holley enjoyed a prolific writing career and was a bestselling author in the late 19th century, though she was largely forgotten by the time of her death. Her first poems were published locally in the Adams Journal, which led to successes in more prominent periodicals such as Peterson's Magazine. In 1872, her first novel, My Opinions and Betsey Bobbet's, was released by the American Publishing Company. She wrote over 25 books, including one collection of poems, two dramas and one long poem, between 1873 and 1914. Among her novels was a 10-book series that detailed the travels and married life of Samantha and Josiah Allen as they journey outside Samantha's rural hometown, which was similar to Holley's own. Holley herself spent most of her life close to her family's farm; aside from Saratoga and Coney Island, she never actually visited the places to which she sent her fictional protagonists; she instead depended on maps, guidebooks, and descriptions for the necessary details.^[2]

Many of Holley’s writings share themes of prohibition and women's rights. Many contemporary writers and suffragists held her in high regard; her famous friends included Susan B. Anthony, Twain, and Clara Barton. Anthony frequently asked Holley to give speeches at suffrage conventions because of Holley's support of women's suffrage, but she refused public appearances.

Along with Frances Miriam Whitcher and Ann S. Stephens, Marietta Holley is remembered as one of America's most significant early female humorists.

Publications

Advertisement in the Jan, 1896 issue of McClure's Magazine for Samantha in Europe

''My Opinions and Betsey Bobbet's: Designed as a Beacon Light, To guide Women to Life Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, But which May Be read by Members of the Sterner Sect, Without Injury to Themselves or The Book. Josiah Allen’s Wife. Hartford Conn., : American Publishing Company, 1873, c. 1872
Josiah Allen’s Wife as a P.A. and P.I.: Designed as a Bright and Shining Light, To Pierce the Fogs of Error and Injustice That Surround Society and Josiah, And to Bring More Clearly to View the Path That Leads Straight on to Virtue and Happiness. Josiah Allen’s Wife. Hartford, Conn.: American Publishing Company, c. 1877
Betsey Bobbet: A Drama. Adams, N.Y.: W. J. Allen, 1880
The Lament of the Mormon Wife. Josiah Allen’s Wife. Hartford, Conn. : American Publishing Company, 1880
My Wayward Pardner; or, My Trials with Josiah, America, the Widow Bump, and Etcetery. Josiah Allen’s Wife. Hartford Conn., American Publishing Company, 1880
Miss Richard’s Boy and Other Stories. Hartford, Ct.: American Publishing, 1883
Sweet Cicely: Josiah Allen as a Politician. New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1885
Miss Jones' Quilting and Other Stories. New York: J.S. Ogilvie, 1887
''Poems. New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1887
Samantha at Saratoga or Flirtin’ with Fashion. Philadelphia: Hubbard Brothers, 1887
Samantha Among the Brethren. New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1890
Samantha on the Race Problem. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1892; republished 1898 as Samantha Among the Colored Folks
Tirzah Ann's Summer Trip and Other Sketches. New York: F. M. Lupton, 1892
Samantha at the World’s Fair. New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1893
Widder Doodle’s Love Affair and Other Stories. New York: F. M. Lupton, 1893
Josiah's Alarm and Abel Perry’s Funeral. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1895
Samantha in Europe. New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1895
Samantha at the St. Louis Exposition. New York: G. W. Dillingham, 1904
Around the World With Josiah Allen’s Wife. New York: G. W. Dillingham, 1905
Samantha Vs. Josiah: Being the Story of the Borrowed Automobile and What Became of It. New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1906
Samantha on Children’s Rights. New York: G. W. Dillingham, 1909
Josiah’s Secret. Watertown, N.Y.: Hungerford-Holbrook, 1910
How I Wrote My First Books. Harper’s Bazaar (September 1911)
Samantha at Coney Island and a Thousand Other Islands. New York: Christian Herald, 1911
Samantha on the Woman Question. New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1913
Josiah Allen on the Woman Question. New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1914
What Is Behind Ouija? The World Magazine (27 June 1920): 5,13
The Story of My Life, Published serially. Watertown Daily Times, Watertown, N.Y., 5 February to 9 April 1931

References

↑ Lauter, Paul. "The Heath Anthology of American Literature".
↑ "Harvard University Library Open Collections Program". Harvard University. Retrieved 1 May 2011.

External links

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