Month: November 2008
Famous Mothers

Jane Randolph Jefferson

• Maggie

Mother of Thomas Jefferson Image: Shadwell Plantation Home of Jane and Peter Jefferson and birthplace of Thomas Jefferson. On February 1, 1770, a fire destroyed the plantation house, and Thomas Jefferson built a substantial, but smaller dwelling for his mother Jane and his siblings at Shadwell, which then became part of the Monticello Plantation. The mill at Shadwell (pictured left) began to operate after the canal that enslaved men had worked on for so many years was finally completed. Moses, a slave hired from Caroline County, was the miller. According to the Jefferson family bible, Jane Randolph was born February 20, 1720, in Shadwell Parish, London. The parish register of St. Paul’s notes her baptism on February 25, 1721, as…

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Civil War Women, Diaries and Letters

Emma Balfour

• Maggie

Civil War Diarist of Vicksburg Vicksburg, Mississippi is located on a well-fortified west-facing cliff overlooking the Mississippi River. The Siege of Vicksburg was initiated by the Union Army under General Ulysses S. Grant, whose aim was to gain control of the Mississippi River by capturing this Confederate riverfront stronghold and defeating General John C. Pemberton’s Confederate forces stationed there. Emma Harrison was living with her brother Dr. Thomas Harrison and his wife at their plantation in Alabama after the death of her first husband, when she met Dr. William Balfour of Vicksburg, Mississippi. Emma later married Dr. Balfour, who had attended medical school with her brother, and moved with him to Vicksburg. Emma Balfour wrote one of the most accurate…

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Indian Captives, Native American Women

Marguerite Kanenstenhawi / Eunice Williams

• Maggie

Captured at the Deerfield Massacre Image: Depiction of Eunice Being Led Away from Deerfield Eunice’s captor hurried her toward the north gate Illustration copyright Francis Back Eunice Williams was born in Deerfield, Massachusetts, on September 17, 1696, the daughter of Puritan minister the Reverend John Williams and his wife Eunice Mather Williams. The girl who would grow up to become the most famous “unredeemed captive” had a conventional New England Puritan upbringing until the age of seven. Her family’s wealth and prominence made her early life a bit more privileged than that of other young Deerfield girls, and her fate as an adopted Kanienkehaka (Mohawk) better known. On February 29, 1704, in the pre-dawn hours, a force of about 300…

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Famous Mothers

Mary Ball Washington

• Maggie

Mother of George Washington Mary Ball Washington, the mother of George Washington, was an intrepid 18th century woman who raised five children alone. The oldest became the first President of the United States. George Washington paid his last visit to his mother at the house in Fredericksburg in April 1789, en route to New York for his inauguration. Early Life Mary Ball was born in 1708 in Lancaster County, Virginia. She was the only child of Joseph Ball and his second wife, Mary Johnson. Joseph died a few years after his daughter was born, and soon after, Mary Johnson Ball married Richard Hewes.
Civil War Women, Generals Wives

Martha Ready Morgan

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Wife of Confederate General John Hunt Morgan Martha Ready was born near Murfreesboro, Tennessee, on June 21, 1840. She was the sixth of eight children, and the second of four girls born to Colonel Charles Ready, Jr. and Martha Strong Ready. Affectionately known as “Mattie,” she was described as a “very attractive young woman of medium height, with a shapely figure, a fair, creamy complexion, large blue eyes, and dark hair.” Mattie attended the very prestigious Soule College in Murfreesboro and the Nashville Female Academy during the 1850s where young ladies could receive a traditional Southern education in cultural studies and social graces. As the teenage daughter of Charles Ready, a U.S. Congressman from Tennessee, Mattie Ready was caught up…

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Famous Mothers, Poets and Writers

Esther Edwards Burr

• Maggie

Writer and Mother of Aaron Burr From 1754 through 1757, Esther Edwards Burr – daughter of theologian Jonathan Edwards, wife of Aaron Burr, Sr. and mother of the infamous Aaron Burr – wrote a daily letter-journal to her friend Sarah Prince. Burr’s journal stands as an account of current events and of her daily activities and interactions with a wide circle of family, friends, acquaintances, and her husband’s students and colleagues. Esther interprets her life through the primary cultural institution in her life, the Puritan evangelical church. Her religion shapes her sense of self; everything she is and does, everything that happens to her, she puts within the context of her faith and her God.
Colonial Women, Women in Education

Ann Wager

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Tutor and Mistress of the Bray School in Williamsburg Ann Wager’s origins are unknown, except that she was born by 1716. Ann was educated by her father, despite her mother’s wishes – it wasn’t considered ‘proper’ for a young woman to learn or support herself. Her mother discouraged her education, but her father persevered. Ann married William Wager of Williamsburg, Virginia, and they had two children. Their son, also named William, was born by 1733; by 1760 he was a justice of the peace in Elizabeth City County, and by 1756 he represented that county in the House of Burgesses.
First Women, Journalists, Publishers

Ann Franklin

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Colonial Newspaper Printer and Publisher Little is known about the early life of Ann Smith, other than she was raised in Boston, and had a solid education. At the age of twenty-seven, she married James Franklin, printer and publisher of The New England Courant. James’ hostility toward church and government authorities resulted in a jail term for printing “scandalous libel.” After his release from prison, James was ordered to cease printing the Courant, and publication of the newspaper was turned over to James’ apprentice and younger brother, Benjamin Franklin.
Civil War Women, Philanthropists

Rosanna Osterman

• Maggie

Jewish Civil War Nurse and Philanthropist Rosanna Dyer was born February 26, 1809 in Germany. Her parents, Isabella and John M. Dyer, moved the family to Baltimore when Rosanna was very young. Her family was very active in the Baltimore Jewish community, and were part of the group that built Baltimore’s first synagogue. At age 16, Rosanna married Joseph Osterman, a Dutch-born merchant and silversmith. In 1838, after experiencing some financial reversals, the Ostermans moved to Galveston to establish a business in the new Republic of Texas. Rosanna and Joseph Osterman were pioneer citizens of Galveston, Texas. They opened a mercantile store that traded with all parts of Texas and abroad. They were so successful that by 1842 they were…

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