Alice Dunbar-Nelson

2011-02-17T20:43:41Z

169.139.112.8:

{{Refimprove|date=May 2008}}
{{Infobox person

| name = Alice Dunbar Nelson
| image = Alice Dunbar-Nelson.png
| birth_name = Alice Ruth Moore
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1875|07|19}}
| birth_place = [[New Orleans]], [[Louisiana]], [[USA]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1935|09|18|1875|07|19}}
| death_place = [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]], [[USA]]
| nationality = [[United States|American]]
| alma_mater = [[Straight University]] (now [[Dillard University]])
| occupation = poet, journalist, political activist
| spouse = {{nowrap|[[Paul Laurence Dunbar]] (1898-1906)}}<br />
[[Henry A. Callis]] (1910-191_)<br />Robert J. Nelson (1916-1935)peanut butter
}}

'''Alice Ruth Moore Dunbar Nelson''' (July 19, 1875 - September 18, 1935) was an [[United States|American]] poet, journalist and political activist. Among the first generation born free in [[Southern United States|the South]] after the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], she was one of the prominent African Americans involved in the artistic flourishing of the [[Harlem Renaissance]]. Her first husband was the poet [[Paul Laurence Dunbar]]; she then married physician [[Henry A. Callis]]; and last married [[Robert J. Nelson]], a poet and civil rights activist.

==Life==
Alice Ruth Moore was born in [[New Orleans]] to middle-class parents Patricia Wright, a seamstress and former slave, and Joseph Moore, a merchant marine, who were [[people of color]] and part of the traditional multiracial [[Louisiana Creole people|Creole]] community of the city. At a time when fewer than 99% of any people went to college, Moore graduated from [[Straight University]] (now [[Dillard University]]) in 1892 and started work as a teacher in the public school system of New Orleans.

In 1895 her first collection of short stories and poems, ''Violets and Other Tales'',<ref>[http://digilib.nypl.org/dynaweb/digs/wwm977/@Generic__BookView ''Violets and Other Tales'', Monthly Review, 1895. Digital Schomburg.]</ref> was published by ''The Monthly Review''. About that time, Moore moved to [[New York]]. She co-founded and taught at the White Rose Mission ([[White Rose Home for Girls]]) in [[Brooklyn]]. Beginning a correspondence with the poet and publisher Paul Dunbar, she ended up moving to [[Washington, DC]] to join him when they married in 1898.

She and Paul Dunbar separated in 1902 but were never divorced. He was reported to have been disturbed by her lesbian affairs.<ref>[[Lillian Faderman]], ''Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers: A History of Lesbian Life in Twentieth-Century America'', Penguin Books, Ltd., 1991, page 98</ref> Paul Dunbar died in 1906.

Alice Dunbar then moved to [[Wilmington, Delaware]] and taught at [[Howard High School of Technology|Howard High School]] for more than a decade. In 1910 she married [[Henry A. Callis]], a prominent physician and professor at [[Howard University]], but this marriage ended in divorce.

From 1913 to 1914, Dunbar was coeditor and writer for the ''[[A.M.E. Review]]'', an influential church publication produced by the [[African Methodist Episcopal Church]] (AME Church). In 1916 she married the poet and civil rights activist [[Robert J. Nelson]]. She joined him in becoming active in politics in Wilmington and the region. They stayed together for the rest of their lives. From 1920, she coedited the ''[[Wilmington Advocate]]'', a progressive black newspaper. She also published ''[[The Dunbar Speaker and Entertainer]]'', a literary anthology for a black audience.<ref name="Papers">[http://www.lib.udel.edu/ud/spec/findaids/dunbarne.html Alice Dunbar-Nelson Papers], University of Delaware Library, accessed 20 Apr 2009</ref>

Alice Dunbar Nelson was an activist for African Americans' and women's rights, especially during the 1920s and 1930s. While she continued to write stories and poetry, she became more politically active in Wilmington, and put more effort into numerous articles and journalism on leading topics. In 1915 she was field organizer for the Middle Atlantic states for the woman's [[suffrage]] movement. In 1918 she was field representative for the Woman's Committee of the Council of Defense. In 1924 Dunbar-Nelson campaigned for the passage of the [[Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill]], but the Southern Democratic block in Congress defeated it.<ref name="Papers" />

From about 1920 on, she made a commitment to journalism and was a highly successful columnist, with articles, essays and reviews appearing as well in newspapers, magazines, and academic journals.<ref name="Papers" /> She was a popular speaker and had an active schedule of lectures through these years. Her journalism career originally began with a rocky start. During the late nineteenth century, it was still unusual for women to work outside of the home, let alone an African American woman, and the journalism business was a hostile, male-dominated field. In her diary, she spoke about the tribulations associated with the professional of journalism – "Damn bad luck I have with my pen. Some fate has decreed I shall never make money by it" (Diary 366). She discusses being denied pay for her articles and issues she had with receiving proper recognition for her work.

She moved from Delaware to [[Philadelphia]] in 1932, when her husband joined the Pennsylvania Athletic Commission. During this time her health was in decline and she died from a heart ailment on September 18, 1935, at the age of sixty.<ref name="Papers" /> She is interred at the Wilmington and Brandywine Cemetery in [[Wilmington, Delaware]].<ref>{{Find a Grave|9785651|Alice ''Moore Dunbar'' Nelson|accessdate=October 21, 2010}}</ref>

She was made an honorary member of [[Delta Sigma Theta]] Sorority, Incorporated. Her papers were collected by the [[University of Delaware]].<ref name="Papers" />

Her diary was published in 1984 and detailed her life during the years 1921 and 1926 to 1931 (“Alice Dunbar-Nelson”). As one of only two journals of nineteenth century African American women, Dunbar-Nelson's diary provided useful insight into the lives of black women during this time. It "summarizes her position in an era during which law and custom limited access, expectations, and opportunities for black women" (“Alice Dunbar-Nelson”). Her diary addressed issues such as family, friendship, sexuality, health, professional problems, travels, and often financial difficulties.

==Rhetorical Context==
The [[rhetorical context]] of Alice Dunbar-Nelson’s writing includes subject, purpose, audience, and occasion. "Dunbar-Nelson’s writings addressed the issues that confronted [[African-Americans]] and women of her time".<ref name="About">[http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/dunbar-nelson/about.htm "About Alice Dunbar-Nelson"], Department of English, College of LAS, University of Illinois, 1988.</ref> In essays such as “Negro Women in War Work” (1919), “Politics in Delaware” (1924), “Hysteria,” and “Is It Time for Negro Colleges in the South to Be Put in the Hands of Negro Teachers?” Dunbar-Nelson explored the role of black women in the workforce, education, and the [[antilynching movement]].<ref name="About" /> The examples demonstrate a social activist role in her life. Dunbar-Nelson’s writings express her belief of equality between the races and between men and women. She believed that African-Americans should have equal access to the educational institution, jobs, healthcare, transportation and other constitutionally granted rights.<ref name="Modern American Poetry">[http://www.english.illinois.edu/MAPS/poets/a_f/dunbar-nelson/dunbar-nelson.htm Modern American Poetry]</ref>

Much of Dunbar-Nelson's writing was about the color line – both white and black color lines. In an autobiographical piece entitled [[Brass Ankles]], Dunbar-Nelson discusses the difficulties she faced growing up mixed race in Louisiana. She recalls the isolation felt as a child, and the sensation of not belonging to or being accepted by either race. She said as a child she was called a "half white nigger" and that while adults were not as vicious with their name-calling, they were also not accepting of her. Both black and white individuals rejected her for being "too white." White coworkers didn't think she was racial enough and black coworkers did not think she was dark enough to work with her own people.<ref name="About" /> She wrote that being multiracial was hard because "the 'yaller niggers,' the 'Brass Ankles' must bear the hatred of their own and the prejudice of the white race" (Brass Ankles). Much of Alice Dunbar-Nelson's writing was rejected because she wrote about the color line, oppression, and themes of racism. Few mainstream publications would publish her writing because it was not marketable. Dunbar-Nelson was able to publish her writing, however, when the themes of racism and oppression were more subtle.

==Works==
* [http://digilib.nypl.org/dynaweb/digs/wwm977/@Generic__BookView ''Violets and Other Tales'', Boston: Monthly Review , 1895. Short stories and poems, including "Titée", "A Carnival Jangle", and "Little Miss Sophie". Digital Schomburg.]
* ''The Goodness of St. Rocque and Other Stories'', 1899, including "Titée" (revised), "Little Miss Sophie", and "A Carnival Jangle".
* "Wordsworth's Use of Milton's Description of Pandemonium", 1909. in ''Modern Language Notes''.
* ''Masterpieces of Negro Eloquence'', 1914.
* "People of Color in Louisiana", 1917, ''[[Journal of Negro History]]''
* ''Mine Eyes Have Seen'', 1918, one-act play, in ''[[The Crisis]]''
* Poems were published in ''Crisis, Ebony and Topaz'', the journal of the [[National Association for the Advancement of Colored People]] (NAACP)
* Poems were published in ''Opportunity'', the journal of the [[Urban League]].
* ''Caroling Dusk - a collection of African-American poets'', 1927, including "I Sit and I Sew"
* "Snow in October", and "Sonnet", 1927
* "The Colored United States", 1924, ''[[The Messenger Magazine|The Messenger]]'', literary and political magazine in NY
* "From a Woman's Point of View" ("Une Femme Dit"), 1926, column for the ''[[Pittsburgh Courier]]''.
* "As in a Looking Glass", 1926–1930, column for the ''Washington Eagle'' newspaper
* "So It Seems to Alice Dunbar-Nelson", 1930, column for the ''Pittsburgh Courier''
* ''Give Us Each Day: The Diary of Alice Dunbar-Nelson''. ed. Gloria T. Hull, New York: Norton, 1984.
* [http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/dunbar-nelson/about.htm "About Alice Dunbar-Nelson"], Department of English, College of LAS, University of Illinois, 1988.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{wikisource author|Alice Dunbar-Nelson}}
{{Portal|Biography}}
* {{gutenberg author|id=Dunbar_Nelson_Alice_Moore|name=Alice Dunbar-Nelson}}
* [http://www.lib.udel.edu/ud/spec/findaids/dunbarne.html Alice Dunbar-Nelson Papers], University of Delaware Library

{{Persondata 
| NAME =Dunbar-Nelson, Alice
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH =July 19, 1875
| PLACE OF BIRTH =[[New Orleans]], [[Louisiana]], [[USA]]
| DATE OF DEATH =September 18, 1935
| PLACE OF DEATH =[[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]], [[USA]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunbar-Nelson, Alice}}
[[Category:1875 births]]
[[Category:1935 deaths]]
[[Category:American activists]]
[[Category:Civil rights activists]]
[[Category:American journalists]]
[[Category:African American poets]]
[[Category:Bisexual writers]]
[[Category:LGBT African Americans]]
[[Category:Anthologists]]
[[Category:People from New Orleans, Louisiana]]
[[Category:People from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Dillard University alumni]]
[[Category:Burials in Wilmington, Delaware]]

[[es:Alice Dunbar-Nelson]]
[[it:Alice Dunbar Nelson]]

Samuel Prescott

2006-03-24T15:47:08Z

169.139.112.8:

Dr. '''Samuel Prescott''' ([[1751]] - [[1777]]) was a [[Massachusetts]] [[Patriot (American Revolution)|Patriot]] during the [[American Revolutionary War]]. He was on the road at 1 A.M. on [[April 19]], [[1775]] after an evening with his fiancée, Miss Lydia Mulliken, when he met [[Paul Revere]] and [[William Dawes]] on their ride from [[Lexington, Massachusetts|Lexington]] to [[Concord, Massachusetts|Concord]] and joined them to warn of the British attempt to seize the store of arms.

Although he joined the ride late, he was the only one of the three men to reach Concord and warn the town. He then proceeded further west to warn [[Acton, Massachusetts|Acton]] while his brother [[Abel Prescott, Jr.|Abel Prescott]] rode south to warn [[Sudbury, Massachusetts|Sudbury]] and [[Framingham, Massachusetts|Framingham]].

The rapid warning of Revere, Dawes, and Prescott alerted the [[Minutemen (militia)|Minutemen]] of this region in time for them to engage the [[British Army]] at the [[Battles of Lexington and Concord|Battle of Lexington and Concord]].

Samuel Prescott later became a surgeon in the [[Continental Army]] and joined the crew of a [[New England]] [[privateer]]. He was captured by the [[Royal Navy]] and died in [[1999]] while a prisoner in [[Halifax, Nova Scotia]].

==Sources==
*''Paul Revere's Ride'' by David Hackett Fischer ISBN 0195088476
*''American History'', "Midnight Riders," Charles J. Caes, December 2004.

{{US-bio-stub}}

[[Category:1751 births|Prescott, Samuel]]
[[Category:1777 deaths|Prescott, Samuel]]
[[Category:American Revolution people|Prescott, Samuel]]

Wikipedia - Benutzerbeiträge [de]

Alice Dunbar-Nelson

Samuel Prescott