Sarah Josepha Hale nee Buell
Personal Information
Born: 1788
Died: 1879
Country of Birth: USA
Nationality: USA
Ethnicity: White
Education
was home-schooled by her mother and elder brother Horatio & self-taught
""The great error of those who would sever the Union rather than see a slave within its borders, is, that they forget the master is their brother, as well as the servant; and that the spirit which seeks to do good to all and evil to none is the only true Christian philanthropy." (Wikipedia); "Physical health and its attendant cheerfulness promote a happy tone of moral feeling, and they are quite indispensable to successful intellectual effort." (Wikipedia); "I owe my early predilection for literary pursuits to the teaching and example of my mother. She had enjoyed uncommon advantages of education for a female of her times – possessed a mind clear as rock-water, and a most happy talent of communicating knowledge.” (pilgrimhall.org); ” We commenced, soon after our marriage, a system of study and reading which we pursued while he lived. The hours allowed were from eight o‟clock in the evening till ten; two hours in the twenty-four: how I enjoyed those hours! In all our mental pursuits, it seemed the aim of my husband to enlighten my reason, - strengthen my judgment, and give me confidence in my own powers of mind, which he estimated much higher than I. But this approbation which he bestowed on my talents has been of great encouragement to me in attempting the duties that have since become my portion.” (pilgrimhall.org); for additional quotes see: https://libquotes.com/sarah-josepha-hale"
— Sarah Josepha Hale nee Buell
Professional Life
Field of Study: Author; poet; editor
Institution/Corporation: None found
Degrees & Memberships: Member: Ladies’ Medical Missionary Society (1851), which merged with the Woman’s Union Missionary Society in 1860; Boston Ladies’ Peace Society;
Awards & Achievements
Awards: 1860 medal "for distinguished services in the cause of female education" from Baltimore Female College;
Achievements: made popular the Christmas tree, the white wedding dress and the Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie; influenced American fashion and taste as long-time editor of Godey’s Lady’s Book, the biggest women’s magazine before the Civil War; wrote the poem Mary Had a Little Lamb and dozens of books; helped with the founding of Vassar College, the restoration of Mount Vernon and the completion of the Bunker Hill Monument; 1823 published a collection of her poems titled The Genius of Oblivion; 1827 her first novel was published in the U.S. under the title Northwood: Life North and South and in London under the title A New England Tale; her collection Poems for Our Children, which includes "Mary Had a Little Lamb" (originally titled "Mary's Lamb"), was published in 1830; founded the Seaman's Aid Society in 1833 to assist the surviving families of Boston sailors who died at sea; Louis Antoine Godey of Philadelphia bought the Ladies' Magazine, now renamed American Ladies' Magazine & merged it with his magazine, Godey's Lady's Book & she became editor in 1837; beginning in the 1840s, she also edited several issues of the annual gift book The Opal; in her role as editor from 1852 she created a section headed "Employment for Women" discussing women's attempts to enter the workforce; wrote several editions of Woman's Record: Sketches of All Distinguished Women, from the Creation to A.D. 1854 (1855) it had 2500 entries that made an encyclopedic effort to put women at the center of world history; 1834–36 edited the Juvenile Miscellany magazine for children; founded a private school when she was 18; wrote & published Traits of American Life (1835) and Sketches of American Character (1838); wrote her autobiography titled The Ladies‟ Wreath of 1837; 1835 published a book of short stories entitled Traits of American Life; also wrote cookbooks, such as The Good Housekeeper, or The Way to Live Well and to Be Well While We Live; 1852 she introduced the word "lingerie" as a euphemism for undergarments; 1853 published Liberia, which proposed repatriation of enslaved people to Africa; established an Infant's School, or kindergarten, to include her youngest son;
after trying to convince 4 prior presidents to declare Thanksgiving a national holiday, she convinced Abraham Lincoln to do so as a unifying tactic during the Civil War (1863)
her parents believed in equal education for both genders
married David Hale in her father's tavern in 1813 & he died in 1822, she wore black for the rest of her life as a sign of perpetual mourning
her late husband's Freemason lodge financially helped her publish her 1st book of poems & was supportive of her for the remainder of her life
was one of the first novelists to write a book about slavery, as well as one of the first American woman novelists
her 1st book described how while slavery hurts and dehumanizes slaves absolutely, it also dehumanizes the masters and slows their world's psychological, moral and technological progress
preferred the title "editress"
1828 until 1836 served as editor of the Ladies' Magazine in Boston
while working for Godey's she insisted she edit from Boston while her youngest son, William, attended Harvard College
was an editor at Godey's for forty years, retiring in 1877 when she was almost 90
published nearly fifty volumes of poetry & novels by the end of her life
was an advocate for play and physical education as important learning experiences for children
was an early advocate of higher education for women
she argued that the woman was "God's appointed agent of morality." (Wikipedia)
did not support women's suffrage
was nicknamed "Mother of Thanksgiving"
raised $30,000 in Boston for the completion of the Bunker Hill Monument
was honored as the fourth in a series of historical bobblehead dolls created by the New Hampshire Historical Society and sold in their museum store in Concord, New Hampshire
is featured on a New Hampshire historical marker (number 6) along New Hampshire Route 103 in Newport
is commemorated on the Boston Women's Heritage Trail
a box of her correspondence, containing 28 folders, is in the collections of the Athenaeum of Philadelphia (https://omeka.philaathenaeum.org/collections/collections/show/10)
her poems were printed over the signature Cornelia in local journals and were gathered in The Genius of Oblivion (1823)
after the death of her husband after only 9 years of marriage she was left to care for her 5 children & ran a hat shop & returned to teaching for a while before she began writing
the Richards Free Library in Newport, RI bestows the annual Sarah Josepha Hale Award on a New England writer & the first honoree was Robert Frost in 1956
she fought for property rights for married women and improvements in women’s wages
was a supporter of Elizabeth Blackwell and her medical training and practice
supported married women's property rights
came to write that men were evil and women were good, by nature, with women's mission to bring that goodness to men
she wanted to eliminate the use of "female" as a noun
1811 her father built the Rising Sun Tavern which still stands near South Church in Newport NH
advocated for women as teachers in the public schools
always used the term “domestic science” for the housewife’s job
was one of the first to publish Edgar Allen Poe
also published Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Lucretia Mott, Emma Willard, Susan B. Anthony