Lizzie Doten
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Elizabeth "Lizzie" Doten (April 1, 1827 – January 15, 1913) was an American poet and a prominent
spiritualist Spiritualism may refer to: * Spiritual church movement, a group of Spiritualist churches and denominations historically based in the African-American community * Spiritualism (beliefs), a metaphysical belief that the world is made up of at least ...
lecturer and trance speaker and writer who received special attention for her supposed ability to channel poetry from
Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...
after his death. She wrote poetry, fiction, and essays and edited an annual spiritualist publication, ''Lily of the Valley''. She was active on the lecture circuit between 1864 and 1880.


Family and early life

Elizabeth Doten was born in Plymouth, Massachusetts, the seventh of nine children. Both her parents were ''
Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English sailing ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, reac ...
'' descendants: Her father Samuel’s ancestor was
Edward Doty Edward Doty (August 23, 1655) was a passenger on the 1620 voyage of the ''Mayflower'' to North America; he was one of the signers of the Mayflower Compact. Early life Doty came from England, but from where in Suffolk, England 1598. According ...
, and her mother Rebecca was descended from William Bradford, the Pilgrim governor of Plymouth Colony. Her brothers, Major Samuel Doten (1812–1906) and Captain Charles Doten (1833–1918) led the first two Union companies to deploy from Plymouth in the Civil War. Another brother, Alfred Doten (1829–1903) left for the California gold fields on a sailing ship in 1849 and later became a journalist in Nevada. He is best known for his intimate daily journals chronicling Western American life in the last half of the 19th century. Lizzie Doten (she exclusively used the name Lizzie Doten, never Elizabeth, in her professional life) was educated in Plymouth public schools before spending a year in a private school in Plymouth at the age of 17. She reported to have had psychic experiences as a child, leading to a lifelong interest in Spiritualism. She also wrote poetry as a child. In the lengthy introduction to her first book of poetry, Poems of the Inner Life, she described the mystical experiences in her childhood that shaped her life, and later her “passive surrender to the inspirations that moved upon me – I have held conscious communion with disembodied spirits.” She went on to describe the nature of the mental and physical effects of this communion. She reported that some of the poems in her book were dictated by
Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...
,
William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
,
Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the List of national poets, national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the be ...
, and one came to her as a prophecy of the fate (unknown at the time she wrote the poem) of the Arctic explorers under Sir John Franklin.


Professional life

As Doten matured, she expressed strong criticism of orthodox Christianity and organized religion in the defense of Spiritualism. She did not conduct private sessions as a medium, but she advocated for the rights of mediums. At the same time she protested against their organization, the American Association of Spiritualists, on feminist and antiauthoritarian grounds, although she sometimes participated in their conventions. In her activities, she believed it was important to maintain her principles. During her lectures, Doten would speak about her religious philosophy and about women’s rights and other social reforms. She championed the cause of equal pay for women and often spoke out against marriage as a means of survival. She frequently spoke at the
Melodeon Melodeon may refer to: *Melodeon (accordion), a type of button accordion *Melodeon (organ) The pump organ or reed organ is a type of organ that uses free reed aerophone, free reeds to generate sound, with air passing over vibrating thin metal ...
or under the auspices of the
Lyceum The lyceum is a category of educational institution defined within the education system of many countries, mainly in Europe. The definition varies among countries; usually it is a type of secondary school. Basic science and some introduction to ...
in Boston, entering into extemporaneous trance speaking. Her entry in the Encyclopaedia of Psychic Science describes her as “greatest and best improvisatrice of the XIX Century.” She would generally end her lectures by reciting a poem, seemingly dictated from beyond the grave.


Later life

Doten published her last book in 1871, and she retired from speaking in 1880, ostensibly for health reasons; however, according to at least one source, “Miss Doten withdrew from the lecture field and mediumistic work by reason of the fact that she had become unable to determine the point at which her personality ceased to act and the agency of spirit influence began.” In 1902, at the age of 75, Doten married her long-time companion Z. (Zabdiel) Adams Willard (1826–1918). It was her first marriage and his second, after the death of his first wife, Lucy, in 1901. During the 1880s she spent time with the Willards in Calaveras County, California, where he owned the Oro y Plata quartz, silver and gold mine, and invented mining processes and equipment. Until 1870, Willard had worked in his family firm in Boston,
Simon Willard Clocks Simon Willard (April 3, 1753 – August 30, 1848) was a celebrated American clockmaker. Simon Willard clocks were produced in Massachusetts in the towns of Grafton, Massachusetts, Grafton and Roxbury, Boston, Roxbury, near Boston. Among his ma ...
. After their marriage, the Willards lived in Brookline, Massachusetts. Lizzie Doten Willard died on January 15, 1913, at the age of 85. She lies buried in the Willard family plot at
Mount Auburn Cemetery Mount Auburn Cemetery, located in Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts, is the first rural or garden cemetery in the United States. It is the burial site of many prominent Boston Brahmins, and is a National Historic Landmark. Dedicated in ...
.https://www.remembermyjourney.com/Search/Cemetery/325/Map?q=Elizabeth%20Willard&searchCemeteryId=325&birthYear=&deathYear=#deceased=14592515


Selected publications

* Doten, Lizzie. The Haunted Church, or The Little Organ Girl. Boston, J.M.Usher, 1852. * Doten, Lizzie. ''Hesper, the Home-Spirit: A Simple Story of Household Labor and Love.'' Boston : Abel Tompkins, c1858. * Doten, Lizzie. ''Poems from the Inner Life.'' Boston:'William White and Co., 1864. * Doten, Lizzie. ''Review of a Lecture by Jas. Freeman Clarke on the Religions Philosophy of Ralph Waldo Emerson.'' Boston: William White and Company, 1865. * Doten, Lizzie. "Free Love and Affinity: A Discourse Delivered Under Spirit Influence at the Melodean, Boston” Boston: Bela Marsh, 1867. * Doten, Lizzie. ''My Affinity and Other Stories''. Boston, 1870. * Doten, Lizzie. ''Poems of Progress.'' Boston: Colby and Rich, 1871.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doten, Lizzie American spiritualists 1827 births 1913 deaths American women poets Channellers People from Plymouth, Massachusetts American critics of Christianity