Abigail Abbot Bailey

This is the original title page of Abigail Abbot Bailey's memoir. The memoir was published the same year that she died.

Abigail Abbot Bailey (1746–1815) was an early American memoirist who documented her experiences with domestic abuse and incest. She lived in Landaff, New Hampshire, and had 17 children with an abusive husband. Upon learning that her daughter was being sexually abused by her husband in 1788, she insisted that he leave their home and eventually secured a divorce in 1792. Her memoirs, published posthumously as Memoirs of Mrs. Abigail Bailey, Who Had Been the Wife of Major Asa Bailey, Formerly of Landaff, (N.H.) Written by Herself, were written as a conversion narrative for her Congregationalist church. The document details her husband's abuse during their 25-year marriage, including his incidences of adultery and his rape of their daughter.

Early life and marriage Abigail Abbot was born on February 2, 1746, in Rumford (now Concord, New Hampshire), to Sarah and James Abbot. Her father was a deacon.

Abigail married a New Hampshire native, Major Asa Bailey in 1767. They purchased a farm in Landaff, New Hampshire. She soon discovered that he had a "hard, uneven, rash temper" and recounted physical abuse in their first month of marriage. The couple hired a woman to help in the household in 1770. Asa had apparently seduced the woman, and Abigail fired her and confronted him, demanding that he make repentance. He later committed adultery with another woman that they had hired in July 1773. She was charged in another incident and her relationship with Asa was given as evidence against her. The scandal was known throughout the community of Landaff. She was detained there for two months and Asa returned to Bradford to gather the children and sell their farm. Abigail, who was recovering from smallpox, pursued him. She arrived in Vermont in June and had a warrant sworn against her husband. At first, he refused to settle their property per the demands of the court, but Abigail's threats to take the matter to New Hampshire convinced him to relent. She was granted a divorce in 1792.

Memoirs Abigail's memoirs were written as a conversion narrative for her Congregationalist church, and she never intended for them to be published. Following her death, the memoirs were brought by family and friends to the Reverend Ethan Smith of Haverhill, who had been the pastor of the church where she converted. The congregation and the pastor thought that the memoirs provided an example of faith in God despite the disgraceful actions of her husband. Her memoirs were published as Memoirs of Mrs. Abigail Bailey, Who Had Been the Wife of Major Asa Bailey, Formerly of Landaff, (N.H.) Written by Herself. The memoirs are among few accounts of explicit domestic violence written by a woman in early America Written in the style of a woman's religious autobiography, its tone and content place it within the tradition of American captivity narratives.

Religious studies scholar Ann Taves republished the memoirs as Religion and Domestic Violence: The Memoirs of Abigail Abbot Bailey in 1989.