Alice Brown (December 5, 1857 – June 21, 1948) was an American novelist, poet and playwright, best known as a writer of local color stories. She also contributed a chapter to the collaborative novel, '' The Whole Family'' (1908).

Biography

She was born in

Hampton Falls, New Hampshire Hampton Falls is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 2,403 at the 2020 census. History Archaeological excavations have confirmed that what is now Hampton Falls has been occupied by humans for roughly 1 ...

and graduated from Robinson Female Seminary in

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

in 1876. She later worked as a school teacher for five years, but moved to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

to write full-time in 1884. She first worked at the Christian Register and then, starting in 1885, the ''

Youth's Companion ''The Youth's Companion'' (1827–1929), known in later years as simply ''The Companion—For All the Family'', was an American children's magazine that existed for over one hundred years until it finally merged with '' The American Boy'' in 19 ...

''. Brown is believed to have had a long-term relationship with

Louise Imogen Guiney Louise Imogen Guiney (January 7, 1861 – November 2, 1920) was an American poet, essayist and editor, born in Roxbury, Massachusetts. Biography The daughter of Gen. Patrick R. Guiney, an Irish-born American Civil War officer and lawyer,''The ...

and wrote of their travels together in her book ''By Oak and Thorn'' (1897) and later wrote the biography ''Louise Imogen Guiney — a Study'' (1921). Brown was a prolific author for many years, but her popularity waned after the turn of the 20th century. She produced a book a year until she stopped writing in 1935. She corresponded with Rev. Michael Earls of the

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by educators Benedict Joseph Fenwick and Thomas F. Mulledy in 1843 under the auspices of the Society of Jesus. ...

and with Father J. M. Lelen of

Falmouth, Kentucky Falmouth is a list of Kentucky cities, home rule-class city in, and the county seat of, Pendleton County, Kentucky, Pendleton County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 2,169 according to the 2010 United States Census, 2010 cens ...

, with whom she also exchanged poems. Yale University and Holy Cross now have the only sizable collections of her letters, since she ordered that most of her personal correspondence should be destroyed after her death. Brown died in Boston, Massachusetts in 1948.

Works

* ''Fools of Nature'' (1887) novel * ''Sunrise on Mansfield Mountain'' (1895) (Harper's New Monthly Magazine Oct 1895) * ''Meadow-Grass: Tales of New England Life'' (1896) stories * ''The Rose of Hope'' (1896) * ''Mercy Warren'' (1896

* ''The Day of His Youth'' (1897) novel * ''By Oak and Thorn'' (1897) travelog * ''Tiverton Tales'' (1899) stories * ''Kings End'' (1901) novel * ''Margaret Warrener'' (1901) novel * ''The Mannerings'' (1903) novel * ''High Noon'' (1904) stories * ''Paradise'' (1905) novel * ''The Country Road'' (1906) stories * ''Rose MacLeod'' (1908) novel * '' The Whole Family'' (1908, collaborative novel) * ''The Story of Thyza'' (1909) novel * ''John Winterbourne's Family'' (1910) novel * ''Country Neighbors'' (1910) stories * ''Golden Baby'' (1910)
In 2009,

The Library of America The Library of America (LOA) is a nonprofit publisher of classic American literature. Founded in 1979 with seed money from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Ford Foundation, the LOA has published more than 300 volumes by authors ...

selected this story for inclusion in its two-century retrospective of American Fantastic Tales, edited by

Peter Straub Peter Francis Straub (; March 2, 1943 – September 4, 2022) was an American novelist and poet. He had success with several horror and supernatural fiction novels, among them ''Julia'' (1975), ''Ghost Story'' (1979) and ''The Talisman'' (198 ...

.American Fantastic Tales: Terror and the Uncanny from Poe to the Pulps.
Ed. Peter Straub. . ''The Library of America.'' Retrieved July 28, 2013. * ''The One-Footed Fairy'' (1911) stories
Secret of the Clan'' (1912)
* ''My Love and I'' (1912) novel * ''Robin Hood's Barn'' (1913) * ''Vanishing Points'' (1913) stories * ''Joint Owners in Spain'' (1914)Brown, Alice
''Joint Owners in Spain'' - A Comedy in One Act.
''Google Books.'' Retrieved July 28, 2013. * ''Children of Earth'' (1915) play * ''Bromley Neighborhood'' (1917) novel * ''The Prisoner'' (1916) novel * ''The Flying Teuton'' (1918) stories * ''The Black Drop'' (1919) novel * ''Homespun and Gold'' (1920) stories * ''The Wind Between the Worlds'' (1920) novel * ''One-Act Plays'' (1921) * ''

— a Study'' (1921) biography * ''Old Crow'' (1922) novel * ''Ellen Prior'', (1923) verse * ''Dear Old Templeton'' (1927) novel * ''The Diary of a Dryad'' (1932) novel * ''The Kingdom in the Sky'' (1932) novel * ''Jeremy Hamlin'' (1934) novel * ''The Willoughbys'' (1935) novel hose titles not classified are individual short stories. Another book by Alice Brown is ''The Patient Sufferer'', A Story For Youth. It was written for the American Sunday-School Union, and revised by the Committee of Publication. Also noted on title page: Philadelphia: American Sunday-School Union, No. 146 Chestnut Street. This book also has a sketch on the preceding page with the title "Where Alice Brown lived".

Notes

References

External links

* * * *
Guide to the Alice Brown Papers, 1876-1947 (University of New Hampshire Library)
*
Full text of "The Secret of the Clan"
Macmillan Company, 1912. * Alice Brown Papers. Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. {{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Alice 1857 births 1948 deaths People from Hampton Falls, New Hampshire American women novelists 19th-century American novelists American women dramatists and playwrights Novelists from New Hampshire American women poets 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers 19th-century American women writers 20th-century American poets 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 19th-century American dramatists and playwrights