Mary Jane Holmes

Mary Jane Holmes (April 5, 1825 – October 6, 1907) was an American author who published 39 novels, as well as short stories. Her first novel sold 250,000 copies; and she had total sales of 2 million books in her lifetime, second only to Harriet Beecher Stowe. Her books included: "Tempest and Sunshine", "English Orphans" (1855), "Homestead on the Hillside" (1855), "Lena Rivers" (1856), "Meadow Brook" (1857), "Dora Deane" (1858), "Cousin Maude" (1860), "Marian Gray" 186^, "Hugh Worthington" (1864), "Cameron Vide" (1867). "Rose Mather" (1868), "Ethelyn’s Mistake" (1869), "Edna Browning" (1872), "Mildred" (1877), "Forest House" (1879), "Daisy Thornton," "Queenie Hetherton" (1883), "Christmas Stories" (1884), "Bessie's Fortune" (1885). "Gretchen" (1887), "Marguerite" (1891).

Portraying domestic life in small-town and rural settings, she examined gender relationships, as well as those of class and race. She also dealt with slavery and the American Civil War with a strong sense of moral justice. Since the late 20th century, she has received fresh recognition and reappraisal, although her popular work was excluded from most 19th-century literary histories.

Early life and education Mary Jane Hawes was born in Brookfield, Massachusetts in 1825, the fifth of Fanny (Olds) and Preston Hawes' nine children. The household was economically modest, but the parents encouraged intellectual endeavor.

Marriage and family On August 9, 1849, Hawes married Daniel Holmes, a graduate of Yale College from New York City. They moved for a time to Versailles, Kentucky in the Bluegrass Region, where they both taught for a few years. These were formative years, as Holmes used the small-town, rural setting and people she knew as inspiration for her first novel and others set in the antebellum South. The portrayal of girls with contrasting characters was resolved with a sense of moral justice, as they both traveled personal journeys of growth. While sales of the novel were slow at first, they steadily continued, and ultimately totaled about 250,000 copies. Reprinted in 1886, this novel was her most popular. She was first published by Appleton, and later for 20 years by G.W. Carleton, which was succeeded by G.W. Dillingham, all of New York City.

Critics of the time and early 20th century classified Holmes' and other women authors' work as "sentimental" and downplayed it because of appeal to the common reader. Recent critics have appreciated how Holmes grappled seriously with issues of gender, race and class, as well as slavery and the Civil War. She created attractive characters who also had flaws, with whom readers could identify. The scholar Earl Yarington notes that her heroines "go out, often on their own accord, into an uncertain world and make new lives for themselves." This experience provides the heroine "with an education so she can learn how to thrive and improve not only her own conditions, but also the conditions of others."

Holmes was active in the Episcopal Church and its charitable activities. She started local activities to share her collection from her travels and education with young women.

Death and legacy Holmes died in 1907, at the age of 82, in Brockport. reflecting her stature. Long excluded from literary histories of the nineteenth century, the author was reappraised by scholars in the late 20th and early 21st century, who recognized her achievements and the value of her work.

Publications

Tempest and Sunshine (New York, 1854); reprint New York: G.W. Dillingham (1886) The English Orphans (1855) The Homestead on the Hillside and other Tales (Auburn, 1855) 'Lena Rivers (1856) Meadow Brook (New York, 1857) Dora Deane, or the East India Uncle, and Maggie Miller, or, Old Hagar's Secret (1858) Cousin Maude and Rosamond (1860) Marian Grey; or The Heiress of Redstone Hall (1863) Hugh Worthington (1863) Darkness and Daylight (1864) The Cameron Pride, or Purified by Suffering, or Family Pride (1867) The Christmas Font, a story for young folks (1868) Rose Mather, a Tale of the War (1868) Ethelyn's Mistake (1869) Millbank; or, Roger Irving's Ward (1871) Edna Browning; or The Leighton Homestead (1872) West Lawn, and The Rector of St. Mark's (1874) Edith Lyle or Edith Lyle's Secret (1876) Mildred (1877) Daisy Thornton and Jessie Graham (1878) Glen's Creek (1878) Forrest House (1879) Chateau d'Or (1880) Red Bird (1880) Maggie Lee! Bad Spelling, Diamonds, The Answered Prayer (1881) Madeline (1881) Queenie Hetherton (1883) Christmas Stories (1884) Bessie's Fortune (1885) Tracy Park Gretchen (1887) Aikenside Red Bird's Christmas Story (1892) Paul Ralston (1897) The Tracy Diamonds (1899) Rena's Experiment (1904)