Asenath Nicholson

Asenath Hatch Nicholson (born Asenath Hatch; February 24, 1792 – May 15, 1855) was an American writer, philanthropist, and early advocate of veganism. She is best known for her firsthand account of the Great Famine in Ireland, as well as her efforts in social reform and humanitarian work. Nicholson authored some of the earliest works on vegetarianism in the United States, including the first American vegetarian cookbook, ''Nature's Own Book'' (1835). She was also a strong proponent of a diet free from animal products, which she advocated in her later work, ''Kitchen Philosophy for Vegetarians'' (1849). Additionally, Nicholson was a prominent figure in the relief efforts during the famine in Ireland, distributing food and aid to those suffering from the crisis. Throughout her life, she was committed to physical wellness, pacifism, and promoting social equality.

Biography

Early and personal life

Asenath Hatch was born in Chelsea, Vermont, on February 24, 1792, the daughter of early settlers Michael (–1830) and Martha Hatch (1745–1837). Her family were Congregationalists, and she was named after the biblical Asenath, the daughter of Potipherah and wife of Joseph.

She trained as a teacher and worked successfully in her hometown before marrying Norman Nicholson around 1825. He was a widower with three children, and the couple relocated to New York.

Vegetarianism

In New York, the family adopted the vegetarian and coffee-free regimen promoted by Sylvester Graham. In 1835, Nicholson authored ''Nature's Own Book'', the first American vegetarian cookbook. She stated that "good bread, pure water, ripe fruit, and vegetables are my meat and drink exclusively." The book utilized some recipes with dairy, but Nicholson personally advocated against its use.

In the 1840s, the couple operated a boarding house that served meals in accordance with Graham's dietary principles. Nicholson also promoted physical exercise and occasional fasting. She was the first to publish recipes based on Graham's teachings.

''Kitchen Philosophy for Vegetarians''

Nicholson authored the cookbook ''Kitchen Philosophy for Vegetarians'', published by William Horsell in 1849. A review in ''The'' ''Vegetarian Advocate'', noted that "butter and eggs are excluded" from the recipes. The Vegan Society have cited the book as the first animal product-free cookbook.

Ireland

Nicholson was widowed in 1841. In May 1844, she left New York for Ireland. Upon arrival, she travelled extensively on foot, visiting nearly every county. She observed that many people were unemployed and relied heavily on the potato as their primary food source. In August, she departed for Scotland, having witnessed conditions in Ireland shortly before the onset of the Great Famine. After returning to the United States, she published, she wrote ''Ireland's Welcome to the Stranger; An Excursion through Ireland in 1844 and 1845'', which was published in 1847.

During her travels, Nicholson frequently commented on social inequality and exploitation. While exploring the grounds of Clifden Castle in Connemara, she described discovering a grotto and reflected on the contrast between such luxuries and the poverty experienced by the local population:

Now appeared a fairy castle, a house with variegated pillars and open door, made of shells of the most delicate shades, arranged in stars and circles of beautiful workmanship. These showed exquisite taste in the designer, and must have been done with great cost and care. I found that a laboring peasant was the architect of this wonderful fabric, but he was kept most religiously in his rank, laboring for eight pence a day.

In Roundstone, Nicholson recorded a conversation in which a local man expressed strong resentment toward the potato, describing it as "the greatest curse that ever was sent on Ireland", and attributing its introduction to Walter Raleigh. He argued that the crop allowed landowners to exploit labourers, as it demonstrated that they could survive and work on minimal sustenance:

The blackguard of a Raleigh who brought 'em here, entailed a curse upon the laborer that has broken his heart. Because the landholder sees we can live and work hard on 'em, he grinds us down in our wages, and then despises us because we are ignorant and ragged.

Nicholson reflected that this was "a pithy truth, one which I had never seen in so vivid a light as now."

Nicholson returned to Ireland in 1846, during the second of five consecutive years of potato crop failures, which, along with widespread unemployment, was creating a national crisis. Concerned that she would only be a witness to the suffering, she wrote to the ''New-York Tribune'' and '' The Emancipator'', appealing for assistance. As a result, support was mobilized from their readers. In July of that year, five barrels of corn arrived from New York. The same ship also carried 50 barrels intended for the Central Relief Committee, but Nicholson chose to act independently.

Later life and death

Nicholson left Ireland in the fall of 1848, feeling her mission there was complete. She then traveled to England, where she wrote ''Lights and Shades'' ''of Ireland'', with the section on the famine being published in the United States in 1851 as ''Annals of the Famine''. She also joined pacifist Elihu Burritt’s delegation to the International Peace Congress in Frankfurt and toured Europe. After spending the winter of 1851–2 in Bristol, she returned to the United States in 1852. Her last book, ''Loose Papers'' (1853), details her European travels.

Nicholson lived the remainder of her life in relative obscurity, dying from typhoid fever in Jersey City, New Jersey, on May 15, 1855. She was interred at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.

Selected publications

''Nature's Own Book''
(1835)
''Ireland's Welcome to the Stranger: Or An Excursion Through Ireland, in 1844 & 1845, for the Purpose of Personally Investigating the Condition of the Poor''
(1847)
*''Kitchen Philosophy for Vegetarians'' (1849)
*'' Lights and Shades of Ireland'' (1850)
''Annals of the Famine in Ireland in 1847, in 1848 and 1849''
(1851)
*'' Loose Papers: Or, Facts Gathered During Eight Years' Residence in Ireland, Scotland, England, France, and Germany'' (1853)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholson, Asenath
1792 births
1855 deaths
19th-century American non-fiction writers
19th-century American philanthropists
19th-century American women philanthropists
19th-century American women writers
Activists from Vermont
Abolitionists from Vermont
American Christian pacifists
American Christian writers
American cookbook writers
American food writers
American social reformers
American travel writers
American veganism activists
American vegetarianism activists
American women food writers
Burials at Green-Wood Cemetery
Christians from Vermont
Fasting advocates
Great Famine (Ireland)
People from Chelsea, Vermont
Philanthropists from Vermont
Vegetarian cookbook writers
Vegan cookbook writers
Writers about Ireland
Writers from Vermont
Deaths from typhoid fever
Infectious disease deaths in New Jersey