Ann Eliza Smith (
pen name, Mrs. J. Gregory Smith; October 7, 1819 – January 6, 1905) was an American author. She was president of the board of managers for the
Vermont woman's exhibit at the
Centennial Exposition
The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...
of 1876, at
Philadelphia, and was frequently chosen in similar capacities as a representative of Vermont women. During the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policie ...
, she coordinated a response to the
Confederate raid on St. Albans on October 19, 1864. In 1870, Governor
Peter T. Washburn, who had served as
adjutant general
An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer.
France
In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in sta ...
of the Vermont Militia during the war, recognized her efforts and presented her with an honorary commission as a
lieutenant colonel on his military staff.
Early life and education
Ann Eliza Brainerd was born in
St. Albans, Vermont St. Albans, Vermont may refer to:
* St. Albans (town), Vermont, established 1763, a town in Franklin County, Vermont, U.S.
*St. Albans (city), Vermont, established 1902, a city in Franklin County, Vermont, U.S.
See also
* St. Albans Bay, Vermont, ...
on October 7, 1819. The daughter of
Senator Lawrence Brainerd
Lawrence Brainerd (March 16, 1794May 9, 1870) was an American businessman, abolitionist and United States Senator from Vermont. A longtime anti-slavery activist, after leaving the Jacksonians in the 1830s, Brainerd was active in the Whig, Lib ...
and Fidelia B. Gadcombe, she was raised and educated in St. Albans.
Career
In 1842, she married
J. Gregory Smith, who served as
Governor during the Civil War. They were the parents of six children, including
Edward Curtis Smith
Edward Curtis Smith (January 5, 1854 – April 6, 1935) was an American attorney, businessman, and politician from Vermont. A Republican, he was most notable for his service as the 47th governor of Vermont from 1898 to 1900.
Early life
Edward Cu ...
, who also served as governor.
Author
Smith wrote essays, poems and other works, and is best known for her three novels, ''Seola,'' ''Selma,'' and ''Atla.''
Her first published work, ''From Dawn to Sunrise'' (1876) dealt with the historical and philosophical religious ideas of mankind. Its success caused Henry K. Adams, author of ''A Centennial History of St. Albans Vermont'' to call it "
e smartest book ever written in Vermont." Her second work was ''
Seola'' (1878), which was written as an
antediluvian
The antediluvian (alternatively pre-diluvian or pre-flood) period is the time period chronicled in the Bible between the fall of man and the Genesis flood narrative in biblical cosmology. The term was coined by Thomas Browne. The narrative tak ...
diary. The next novel published was ''Selma'' (1883), a
Viking love story. The third novel,
''Atla'' (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1886), was about the sinking of the legendary lost island called
Atlantis
Atlantis ( grc, Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, , island of Atlas) is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and ''Critias'', wherein it represents the antagonist naval power that b ...
. At least one reviewer, ''The Churchman'', was highly critical of it:—
In 1924, ''Seola'' was revised by the "Bible Students"—later known as
Jehovah's Witnesses—and retitled ''Angels and Women''. Smith usually wrote under her married name, Mrs. J. Gregory Smith, but both ''Seola'' and ''Angels and Women'' were published anonymously; they were later ascribed to her by the
Library of Congress.
St. Albans Raid
On the afternoon of October 19, 1864, the northernmost land event of the Civil War occurred, the St. Albans Raid.
Confederates infiltrated the town, robbed several banks, wounded two citizens (one mortally), and fled north to Canada. Since he was serving as governor, the home of J. Gregory Smith was a target of the raid. Governor Smith was not at home, and when Mrs. Smith appeared in the front doorway carrying an unloaded pistol (the only weapon she could find), the raiders decided to bypass the house. She then worked to organize the people of St. Albans to mount a pursuit of the raiders, which unsuccessfully attempted to prevent them from escaping to Canada.
For her actions in defending the Smith home and efforts to rally the people of St. Albans in pursuing the raiders, Governor Washburn named Mrs. Smith a
brevet
Brevet may refer to:
Military
* Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay
* Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college
* Aircre ...
lieutenant colonel on his staff. Washburn, who served as governor from 1869 until his death in 1870, had served in the
Union Army early in the Civil War, and then spent the rest of the conflict as Adjutant General of the Vermont Militia. Under Washburn's direction, units of the militia had attempted to pursue the Confederate raiders, and later patrolled the border with Canada to ensure there were no further efforts to conduct Confederate activities in Vermont.
Smith wrote of her personal reminiscences of the St. Albans Raid in ''The Vermonter'':—
Death and legacy
Smith died in St. Albans on January 6, 1905. She was buried in Greenwood Cemetery. The town of
Brainerd, Minnesota was named in her honor.
Selected works
* ''Seola''
* ''The iceberg's story'', 1881
* ''Selma'', 1883
* ''Notes of travel in Mexico and California '', 1886
* ''Poems : "gather up the fragments"'', 1889
* ''Lines to a cricket, holograph poem found in the... by J Gregory Smith, Mrs.'', 1901
* ''Atla : a story of the lost island'', 1886
* ''From dawn to sunrise : a review, historical and philosophical of the religious ideas of mankind'', 1876
* ''Personal reminiscences of early life in Vermont : published in the St. Albans Daily Messenger, starting November 22, 1924 ''
* ''Angels and women''
References
Attribution
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Bibliography
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External links
*
"In Search of Mrs. J. G. Smith"* ''Angels and Women''
:
Online text:
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Ann Eliza
1819 births
1905 deaths
19th-century American novelists
19th-century American women writers
American fantasy writers
American women novelists
People from St. Albans, Vermont
Novelists from Vermont
People of Vermont in the American Civil War
Women science fiction and fantasy writers
First Ladies and Gentlemen of Vermont
Pseudonymous women writers
Union Army officers
19th-century pseudonymous writers