Mrs. Findley Braden was the

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 ...

of Anna Braden (, Rile; January 11, 1858 – 1939) an American writer, newspaper editor, and

elocutionist Elocution is the study of formal speaking in pronunciation, grammar, style, and tone as well as the idea and practice of effective speech and its forms. It stems from the idea that while communication is symbolic, sounds are final and compelli ...

. Prior to marriage, she used Madge Rile and other pen names.

Early life and education

Anna Margaretta (

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 ...

, "Madge") Rile was born in

Montgomery, Pennsylvania Montgomery is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,570 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is part of the Williamsport, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. ...

, January 11, 1858. Her parents were John Conver and Sarah (Frantz) Rile. She was of English and German descent, and her ancestors lived in or near

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, for over a century and a half. Her father was John Conver Rile. Her mother's maiden name was Frantz. She is fifth in direct line of descent from Joseph Reed, a

Founding Father of the United States The Founding Fathers of the United States, often simply referred to as the Founding Fathers or the Founders, were a group of late-18th-century American Revolution, American revolutionary leaders who United Colonies, united the Thirteen Colon ...

, his daughter being her great-grandmother. She graduated from the

National School of Elocution and Oratory National School of Elocution and Oratory (later, Shoemaker School of Speech and Drama) was an American school for speech arts, focused on rhetoric and elocution. It was established by Jacob and Rachel H. Shoemaker in Philadelphia, 1873. Attentio ...

, Philadelphia.

Career

At the age of 15, Braden began writing for the newspapers and magazines. Beginning in 1874, she wrote under her maiden name, "Madge Rile", and several pen names. Since her marriage, she adopted her husband's name, signing her articles "Mrs. Findley Braden". She wrote over 700 humorous and pathetic sketches, poems and serials, many of which appeared in the secular journals of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and Philadelphia. She also wrote a number of songs that found their way into public favor. She was equally at home in the five dialects, Scotch, Irish,

Negro In the English language, the term ''negro'' (or sometimes ''negress'' for a female) is a term historically used to refer to people of Black people, Black African heritage. The term ''negro'' means the color black in Spanish and Portuguese (from ...

, Dutch, and

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

. She published several volumes of poems. Braden served as the editor of the monthly newspaper, ''Presbyterian Visitor'', established in 1888, and published by Graves & Banks, Philadelphia.

Personal life

In 1880, she married William Findley Braden (1852–1933), of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, and they resided in Philadelphia. There were no children. Braden was a member of the

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Christianity, Reformed Protestantism, Protestant tradition named for its form of ecclesiastical polity, church government by representative assemblies of Presbyterian polity#Elder, elders, known as ...

. Anna Rile Braden died in 1939.

Selected works

Books

* ''Something new to recite'' (1908)
Text

Poems

* "Heart-Murder" (1894) * "Pills at Poughkeepsie" (1894) * "She's In the Smart Set Now" * "He Fought with Washington" * "You Hae But Ae Mither To Lose" (1905) * "Thae Auld Laird's Secret" (1918) * "What the Lord Had Done For Him" (1918) * "Fence o' Scripture Faith" (1918)

Plays

* ''Convention of Realistic Readers'' (1918)

Recitations

* "The Fence O' Scripture Faith" (1887) * "Rejoicin' at De Co'ners" (Negro dialect) (1894) * "Con Cannon's Christmas Gift" (Irish dialect) (1899) * "Mickey's Proposal" (Irish dialect) (1899) * "A Bridal Soliloguy" (1899) * "The Skeleton Soldier" (1899)

Musical compositions

* "Dreaming of Sweetheart Prue", words by Mrs. Findley Braden, music by W. A. Webb (1912)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Braden, Mrs. Findley 1858 births 1939 deaths 19th-century American women writers 20th-century American women writers Elocutionists Writers from Pennsylvania 19th-century pseudonymous writers 20th-century pseudonymous writers Pseudonymous women writers People from Lycoming County, Pennsylvania 19th-century American newspaper editors American women newspaper editors Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century