Grace Gallatin Seton Thompson
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Grace Gallatin Seton Thompson (January 28, 1872 – March 19, 1959) was an American writer and suffragist.


Early life and education

Grace Gallatin was born in
Sacramento, California Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...
on January 28, 1872. In 1888 she began writing articles for San Francisco newspapers under the pen name of Dorothy Dodge, and in 1892 graduated from
Packer Collegiate Institute The Packer Collegiate Institute is an independent college preparatory school for students from pre-kindergarten through grade 12. Formerly the Brooklyn Female Academy, Packer has been located at 170 Joralemon Street in the historic district of ...
, in
Brooklyn, NY Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
.


Career


Writing

In 1900, Seton published her first book, ''A Woman Tenderfoot'', which described her trip on horseback through the
Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...
. In 1907 she published the book ''Nimrod's Wife'', a true hunting and travel book set in the Western United States. She later organized and directed a women's motor unit to aid soldiers in France during the first World War. During the 1920s and 1930s she visited China, Egypt, Hawaii, India, Indochina, Japan, and South America, and she wrote four books about her travels: ''A Woman Tenderfoot in Egypt'' (1923), ''Chinese Lanterns'' (1924), ''Yes, Lady Saheb'' (1925), and ''Poison Arrows'' (1938). She also wrote ''The Singing Traveler'' (1947), a collection of poems about mysticism and eastern religions.


Activism

As a suffragist, she served as vice-president and later president of the
Connecticut Woman Suffrage Association The Connecticut Woman Suffrage Association (CWSA) was founded on October 28, 1869, by Isabella Beecher Hooker and Frances Ellen Burr at Connecticut's first suffrage convention. Its main goal was to persuade the Connecticut General Assembly to rat ...
, from 1910 to 1920. She also worked for women's causes by serving as president of the National League of American Pen Women (1926-1928 and 1930-1932), during which time the number of branches of that organization doubled, and serving as chair of letters of the
National Council of Women of the United States The National Council of Women of the United States (NCW/US) is the oldest nonsectarian organization of women in the United States Founded in 1888, the NCW/US is an accredited non-governmental organization (NGO) with the Department of Public Info ...
(1933-1938). As chair she established the Biblioteca Femina, a collection of volumes by women from all over the world, which was later donated to the
Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...
Library. She also helped organize an international conference of women writers at the
Century of Progress Exposition A Century of Progress International Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, from 1933 to 1934. The fair, registered under the Bureau International des Exposit ...
held in Chicago in 1933, and was a member of the
International Council of Women The International Council of Women (ICW) is a women's organization working across national boundaries for the common cause of advocating women's rights, human rights for women. In March and April 1888, women leaders came together in Washington D.C ...
, the
Society of Woman Geographers The Society of Woman Geographers was established in 1925 at a time when women were excluded from membership in most professional organizations, such as the Explorers Club, who would not admit women until 1981. It is based in Washington, D.C., and ...
, and the
Women's National Republican Club The Women's National Republican Club is the oldest private club for Republican women in the United States, and was founded by Henrietta Wells Livermore in 1921. The club grew out of the earlier women's suffrage movement in New York which led to ...
. Seton also belonged to Pen and Brush. She served as president of Pen and Brush from 1898 to 1939.


Marriage

She was married to
Ernest Thompson Seton Ernest Thompson Seton (born Ernest Evan Thompson; August 14, 1860 – October 23, 1946) was a Canadian and American author, wildlife artist, founder of the Woodcraft Indians in 1902 (renamed Woodcraft League of America), and one of the foun ...
, one of the founding pioneers of the
Boy Scouts of America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...
, and conflicts arose with the Boy Scouts about her suffrage activities and his British citizenship. The citizenship issue arose partly because of his high position within BSA, and because the federal charter James E. West was attempting to obtain for the BSA required its board members to be United States citizens. Ernest drafted his written resignation on January 29, 1915, but he did not send it to BSA until May. Grace had married Ernest in 1896; she separated from him by the late 1920s, and they divorced in 1935. Her daughter
Anya Seton Anya Seton (January 23, 1904 – November 8, 1990), born Ann Seton, was an American author of historical fiction, or as she preferred they be called, " biographical novels". Early life and education Anya Seton was born Ann Seton on January 23, ...
, also an author, was born in 1904.


Death

Seton died in
Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from West Palm Beach, Florida, West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach, Florida, ...
on March 19, 1959.


Legacy

Some of her papers are held in the
Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America The Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America is a research library at Harvard Radcliffe Institute at Harvard University. According to Nancy F. Cott, the Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Foundation Director, it is "th ...
, and some are held at
Smith College Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts, United States. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smit ...
in the
Sophia Smith Collection The Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College is an internationally recognized repository of manuscripts, photographs, periodicals and other primary sources in women's history. General One of the largest recognized repositories of manuscripts, a ...
.


Works

Source:


Books

* '' A Woman Tenderfoot'' (1900) Doubleday, Page and Co. * '' Nimrod's Wife'' (1907) Doubleday, Page and Co. * ''Chinese Lanterns'' (1924) New York: Dodd, Mead and Co. ublished in London in 1924 by John Lane, Bodley Head* ''"Yes, Lady Saheb": A Woman's Adventurings with Mysterious India'' (1925) New York and London: Harper and Brothers * ''Log of the "Look-See" A Half-Year in the Wilds of Matto Grosso and the Paraguayan Forest, Over the Andes to Peru'' (1932) London: Hurst & Blackett, Ltd. * ''Magic Waters: Through the Wilds of Matto Grosso and Beyond'' (1933) New York: E.P. Dutton & Co, Inc. * ''Poison Arrows: Strange Journey with an Opium Dealer: Annam, Cambodia, Siam and the Lotus Isle of Bali'' (1936) London: J. Gifford Ltd. * ''Partial Survey of Women's Work in the Literary Field'' (1939) New York (with the National Council of Women of the United States and the International Council of Women) * ''Biblioteca Femina'' (1939) (with Northwestern University Library, the National Council of Women of the United States, and the International Council of Women) * ''The Singing Traveler'' (1947) Boston: The Christopher Publishing House


Books with Ernest Thompson Seton

* ''The Trail of the Sandhill Stag'' (1899) New York: Charles Scribner's Sons * ''The Biography of a Grizzly'' (1899) New York: Grosset & Dunlap * '' Two Little Savages Being the Adventures of Two Boys Who Lived as Indians and What They Learned'' (1904) London: Archibald Constable & Co. Ltd. * ''Animal Heroes'' (1905) New York: Grosset & Dunlap * '' Woodmyth & Fable'' (1905) New York: The Century Co. * ''The Biography of a Silver Fox, or, Domino Reynard of Goldur Town'' (1909) London: A. Constable * '' Wild Animal Ways'' (1917) London and New York: Hodder and Stoughton * '' The Biography of a Grizzly'' (1918) The Century Co. * ''Wild Animals at Home'' (1926) London: Hodder and Stoughton * ''The Trail of the Sandhill Stag'' (1929) New York: C. Scribner's Sons


Musical scores

* "My Love Is a Blossom, Heigh O!" (1927) New York City: E. Morris Music Pub Co. (with Marianne Genet) * "Lotus Blossom" (1927) New York City: E. Morris Music Pub Co. (with Marianne Genet) * "A Canton Boat Woman" (1927) New York City: E. Morris Music Pub Co. (with Marianne Genet) * "Lily of Arcadie" (1932) New York: H.W. Gray (with Marianne Genet)


References


Further reading

*''Notable American Women: The Modern Period'' (1980). Edited by Barbara Sicherman and Carol Hurd Green.


External links


Grace Gallatin Steon-Thompson papers
at the
Sophia Smith Collection The Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College is an internationally recognized repository of manuscripts, photographs, periodicals and other primary sources in women's history. General One of the largest recognized repositories of manuscripts, a ...
, Smith College Special Collections {{DEFAULTSORT:Seton Thompson, Grace Gallatin 1872 births 1959 deaths American travel writers American women travel writers American women in World War I Members of the Society of Woman Geographers 20th-century American people Ernest Thompson Seton Suffragists from Connecticut