Esther Saville Allen (, Saville;

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

s, Winnie Woodbine, Etta Saville, Mrs. S. R. Allen; December 11, 1837 - July 16, 1913) was an American author of the long nineteenth century. In her day, Allen was likely the author of more works, both in prose and verse, than any other woman in

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

. She died in 1913.

Biography

Esther (

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

, "Etta") Saville was born in Honeoye, New York on December 11, 1837. Her parents were Joseph and Esther Redfern Saville, both from England. Her father contributed to British journals of his time. Before Esther Saville was ten years old, she made her first public effort in a poem, which was published. At the age of 12 years, she wrote for Morris and Willis a poem which they published in the " Home Journal." While studying in

Western New York Western New York (WNY) is the westernmost region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The eastern boundary of the region is not consistently defined by state agencies or those who call themselves "Western New Yorkers". Almost all so ...

and Rushford, New York, she wrote and published many poems under the pen-name, "Winnie Woodbine." Allen became a teacher in the public schools of western New York and continued to write for eastern papers, assuming her proper name, "Etta Saville." She moved to

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

in 1857 and she taught in public schools there until she married in 1859. After her marriage to Samuel R. Allen, a lawyer in Erie, Illinois, all her literary works were published under the name of "Mrs. S. R. Allen." In 1872, she removed to

Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The city's population was 202,591 as of the 2020 census. The six-county Central Arkan ...

. Much of her work has been widely copied and recopied. Devoted to charity, organized and practical, her writings in that cause promoted the institution and development of useful work, or revived and reinvigorated it. She died in

on July 16, 1913, and was buried next to her husband in the Little Rock National Cemetery. At the time, she was the only woman to be buried in the cemetery.

Selected works

Poems

* "The Home Coming" * "Home Again", 1908

Short stories

* "The French School"

References

Bibliography

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Esther Saville 1837 births 1913 deaths 19th-century American women writers 19th-century pseudonymous writers People from Honeoye, New York Writers from New York (state) Pseudonymous women writers Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century