Eliza Lee Follen
Eliza Lee Follen was a notable American writer and publisher, primarily recognized for her children's verse and her contributions to Sunday school education. Born in Boston in 1787, she was part of a large family with a father involved in international commerce and a mother who championed women's education. Follen's early involvement in a Sunday school led to her meeting her husband, Charles Follen, an idealistic scholar and abolitionist who faced professional challenges due to his beliefs. The couple married in 1828 and had a son, but Charles tragically died in a shipwreck in 1840. Despite this loss, Eliza continued to advocate for the causes they both supported, editing periodicals aimed at Sunday school teachers and producing poetry for children. She is sometimes credited with authorship of the well-known poem "The Three Little Kittens." Follen also worked on American editions of the writings of French social theorist Fenelon, reflecting her engagement with educational and social issues of her time. Follen's life and work exemplify the intertwining of literary creativity and social advocacy in early 19th-century America.
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Eliza Lee Follen
Writer
- Born: August 15, 1787
- Birthplace: Boston, Massachusetts
- Died: January 26, 1860
Biography
Eliza Lee Follen was a publisher and a writer of verse for children. She edited manuals for use by Sunday school teachers, a position she herself had undertaken early in life. An early and prominent abolitionist, she died just before the nation descended into the Civil War. Follen was born into a large family in Boston in 1787. Her father was a prominent businessman engaged in international commerce, and her mother was an advocate of women’s education. Eliza became involved with a Sunday school in Boston, and it was there she met her husband, Charles Follen. Charles Follen was an idealistic scholar whose views often put him at odds with his employers. He came to America after his advocacy of democracy thwarted his academic ambitions in Germany, and while he later became a professor at Harvard, he was not reappointed due to his involvement with the abolitionist cause. The two married in 1828 and she bore him a son in 1830. Charles Follen perished in a shipwreck in 1840, but his wife continued to pursue the causes they held dear. She edited periodicals for Sunday school teachers and wrote poems for children; some authorities ascribe to her authorship of “The Three Little Kittens,” which was published in a volume she edited. She also published American editions of the writings of Fenelon, a French social theorist.