Emma Bugbee (May 19, 1888 – October 6, 1981) was an American suffragist and journalist. She participated in and reported on the 1912 Suffrage Hike from New York City to Albany, New York and reported on Eleanor Roosevelt for 34 years. She was one of the founders of the New York Newspaper Woman's Club, now called the Newswomen’s Club of New York.

Biography

She was born in

Shippensburg, Pennsylvania Shippensburg is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Cumberland and Franklin County, Pennsylvania, Franklin counties in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Settled in 1730, Shippensb ...

. She later moved to New York. She graduated from

Barnard College Barnard College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college affiliated with Columbia University in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a grou ...

in 1909, where she was the student correspondent for the ''

New York Tribune The ''New-York Tribune'' (from 1914: ''New York Tribune'') was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s ...

'', later the ''

New York Herald Tribune The ''New York Herald Tribune'' was a newspaper published between 1924 and 1966. It was created in 1924 when Ogden Mills Reid of the '' New York Tribune'' acquired the '' New York Herald''. It was regarded as a "writer's newspaper" and compet ...

,'' and taught Greek courses at a high school in

Methuen, Massachusetts Methuen () is a 23-square-mile (60 km2) city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 53,059 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Methuen lies along the northwestern edge of Essex County, just east of Midd ...

. She became a reporter for the ''New York Tribune'' in 1910 She was the first woman reporter to be hired for the ''Herald''s city room. In 1976, Bugbee moved to Warwick, Rhode Island. She died on October 6, 1981, in

Warwick, Rhode Island Warwick ( or ) is a city in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States, and is the third-largest city in the state, with a population of 82,823 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Warwick is located approximately south of downtown Pr ...

Career

Expanding the role of women in journalism

In 1914, she covered the

Suffrage hike The Suffrage Hikes of 1912 to 1914 brought attention to the issue of women's suffrage. Florence Gertrude de Fonblanque organised the first from Edinburgh to London. Within months Rosalie Gardiner Jones had organized the first American one whic ...

from

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...

. From 1924 to 1952, she covered national political conventions from women's points of view, and was known for trying to find the women's angle to any story she was assigned. She was present for the first convention in which women were voting delegates in 1924. Bugbee was first credited with a byline after four years of writing. It was not until 1915 in which she was granted a desk in the newsroom alongside the male reporters. Her fictional 'Peggy' series based on her experiences as a reporter inspired many women to become journalists.

Work with Eleanor Roosevelt

Bugbee reported on

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...

from 1928 until Mrs. Roosevelt's death in 1962. Bugbee was a part of Roosevelt's inner circle of journalists in her press corps. Her writings on Mrs. Roosevelt contributed largely to the positive image of the Roosevelt administration. Bugbee's tribute to Mrs. Roosevelt after her death in the New York Herald Tribune, "Mrs. Roosevelt: Portrait of a Beloved Woman," won the Newspaper Reporters Association's feature award in 1963.

Newswomen's Club of New York

The Newswomen's Club of New York is a professional organization for women journalists in New York. It was founded in 1922 in order to support women in journalism, work towards equality in the newsroom, and build a network through which women in the industry could help one another. The club became known for its high journalistic standards, as well as its welfare committee and relief fund. Bugbee was amongst the founders of club, also serving as president for three terms.

Publications

Children's Literature

* ''Peggy Covers the News''. New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1936. * ''Peggy Covers Washington''. New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1937. * ''Peggy Covers London.'' New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1939. * ''Peggy Covers the Clipper''. New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1941. * ''Peggy Goes Overseas''. New York: Dodd, 1945.

Articles

* ''New York Herald Tribune''. "Hopeful Scenes in the Women's Court Under Improved Conditions," 1919. * ''New York Herald Tribune''. "Hellen Keller Honoured at Dinner Here," 1955. * ''New York Herald Tribune''. "Mrs. Roosevelt: Portrait of a Beloved Woman," 1962. Blatch 3775432994 b524a40f04 o

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bugbee, Emma 1888 births 1981 deaths 20th-century American historians American women journalists Barnard College alumni People from Methuen, Massachusetts American political writers Warwick, Rhode Island American suffragists American women's rights activists People from Shippensburg, Pennsylvania American women historians 20th-century American women writers Historians from Pennsylvania Historians from Massachusetts