Anne O'Hagan Shinn (August 8, 1869 – June 24, 1933) was an American

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

, suffragist, journalist, and writer of short stories, regularly contributing to publications such as ''Vanity Fair'', and ''Harper's''. In particular, she is known for her writings detailing the exploitation of young women working as shop clerks in early 20th Century America.

Early life and education

Anne O'Hagan was born in

Washington, D. C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

in 1869, daughter of Captain John O'Hagan and Mary Fennell O'Hagan. She graduated from Boston University in 1890."Mrs. F. A. Shinn, Writer, Dies at 63," ''The New York Times'' (June 25, 1933): 22.
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Career

O'Hagan was a member of

Heterodoxy In religion, heterodoxy (from Ancient Greek: , "other, another, different" + , "popular belief") means "any opinions or doctrines at variance with an official or orthodox position". Under this definition, heterodoxy is similar to unorthodoxy, wh ...

, a feminist debating club based in Greenwich Village and she was a founding officer of the Women's Democratic Union. She served on the board of the Equal Suffrage League of New York, and the Women's Suffrage Study Club, among other New York suffrage organizations. She also supported the reform of prohibition laws. O'Hagan was a member of the Protestant

Church of St. Luke in the Fields The Church of St. Luke in the Fields is an Episcopal church located at 487 Hudson Street between Christopher and Barrow Streets at the intersection of Grove Street in the West Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. The church was co ...

in Greenwich Village at the same time as Eleanor Roosevelt. Confessions of a Professional Woman 1907

As a journalist, O'Hagan was a regular contributor to '' Vanity Fair'', '' Harper's'', ''

Munsey's ''Munsey's Weekly'', later known as ''Munsey's Magazine'', was a 36-page quarto American magazine founded by Frank A. Munsey in 1889 and edited by John Kendrick Bangs. Frank Munsey aimed to publish "a magazine of the people and for the people, wit ...

'', ''

Collier's ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Collie ...

'', and other popular periodicals, often writing on feminist topics. For example, an article for ''Munsey's'' magazine in 1901 titled "The Athletic Girl," celebrated the entry of women and girls into active recreation, for their long-term health as well as for their release from restrictive clothing and passive pursuits. O'Hagan discusses the differing roles of the spinster and the married woman and how women can choose to be

celibate Celibacy (from Latin ''caelibatus'') is the state of voluntarily being unmarried, sexually abstinent, or both, usually for religious reasons. It is often in association with the role of a religious official or devotee. In its narrow sense, th ...

and have mature conversations with single men. Of particular interest to her was the exploitation of young women shop clerks. After suffrage, Shinn covered American politics for '' The New York Times'', including a long interview with the future presidential candidate

Alfred E. Smith Alfred Emanuel Smith (December 30, 1873 – October 4, 1944) was an American politician who served four terms as Governor of New York and was the Democratic Party's candidate for president in 1928. The son of an Irish-American mother and a Civ ...

in 1922. O'Hagan participated in several collaborative fiction projects, where multiple authors would write chapters of a novel or series, including ''The Good Family'' series in ''

Harper's Magazine ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. (''Scientific American'' is older, b ...

'' (1907), and ''The Sturdy Oak'' serialized

political novel Political fiction employs narrative to comment on political events, systems and theories. Works of political fiction, such as political novels, often "directly criticize an existing society or present an alternative, even fantast ...

in '' Collier's Magazine'' (1917). O'Hagan was also a prolific writer of short fiction.

Personal life and legacy

Anne O'Hagan is thought to have lived with her mother until she married Francis Adin Shinn in 1908. She is thought to have written an anonymous article that described the problems of a modern single woman who lived with her old-fashioned mother. She died in June 1933, age 63, after a brief illness, in New York City. Her funeral was held in Litchfield, Connecticut, where she had a country home. The O'Hagan Shinn Scholarship Fund at Boston University was established in 1936 in her memory, for scholarships in English literature.Report of the President, Boston University (1941): 210.
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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:OHagan Shinn, Anne 1869 births 1933 deaths American feminist writers American short story writers American suffragists American women journalists American women short story writers Boston University alumni Journalists from Washington, D.C.