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Belle Hunt Shortridge (, Hunt; 1858 – November 24, 1893) was an American author of poetry, novels, short stories, and juvenile literature. She was the first person of European descent to be born in
Wise County, Texas Wise County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 68,632. Its county seat is Decatur. Wise County is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth– Arlington metropolitan statistical area. Its Wise Eyes crime- ...
. She was a versatile and prolific writer, when the brief time allotted to her is considered. She published a volume of poems entitled ''Lone Star Lights'' (1890), two novels, ''Held in Trust'' (1892) and ''Circumstance'' (1893), and numerous short stories and sketches. Shortridge died in 1893.


Early years and education

Belle Hunt was born in 1858, at Cactus Hill, Texas, near Decatur, Texas. She was the first child of European ancestry born in Wise County. She was the daughter of William Hudson Hunt, a pioneer of the Republic of Texas, who was commissioned and served as lieutenant-colonel in the
Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...
, and was appointed government surveyor. Later, he was widely known as locator of lands, and as a progressive citizen of the State of
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
. He was descended from the Northampton line of Hunts, England. Belle Hunt inherited from this distinguished lineage the artistic and literary talent that brought her into general and favorable notice as a poet and author. Orphaned in early childhood, she was reared by her guardian, Sylvanus Reed, of
Bonham, Texas Bonham is a city and the county seat of Fannin County, Texas. The population was 10,408 at the 2020 census. James Bonham (the city's namesake) sought the aid of James Fannin (the county's namesake) at the Battle of the Alamo. Bonham is part of t ...
, where at Carleton College, she attended school until she entered the Visitation Academy of St. Louis, from which institution she was graduated with first honors at seventeen years of age.


Career

Shortly after completing her education, she married Capt. Samuel A. Shortridge (1837–1908), of
St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, from which city they removed to
Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. Accord ...
, and finally made a permanent home in
Terrell, Texas Terrell is a city in Kaufman County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 17,465. Terrell is located about east of Dallas. History Terrell developed as a railroad town, beginning in 1873 with construction here ...
. With laudable ambition, she went to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
(1890) in the interest of her literary career. In a remarkably short period of time, her articles were accepted and published by the leading papers, journals and magazines of the city. There, she was at home in the parlors of
Miriam Leslie Miriam Leslie (née Folline; after first marriage, Peacock; after second marriage, Squier; after third marriage, Leslie; after fourth marriage, Wilde; claimed title, Baroness de Bazus; June 5, 1836 – September 18, 1914) was an American publisher ...
,
Ella Wheeler Wilcox Ella Wheeler Wilcox (November 5, 1850October 30, 1919) was an American author and poet. Her works include the collection '' Poems of Passion'' and the poem "Solitude", which contains the lines "Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and you ...
, and other literati. She was fond of nature, and this passion breathes out in her lyrics and prose as well. ''Lone Star Lights'' (1891) was her first volume of poems. The dedication of this little volume was widely copied, and was made the subject of fifty
watercolor Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to ...
s by a woman of Dallas. The poem, "Peach Blossom Time," in the same volume, was set to music and published by her friend, Mrs. George W. Voiers, of
Forney, Texas Forney is a city in Kaufman County, Texas, United States, and has been named by the Texas Legislature as the "Antique Capital of Texas". It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its population was 14,661 at the 2010 census, up from 5,5 ...
. It was James Gordon Bennett who said of this poem: "Nothing more exquisite is to be found in the English language." Dispassionate critics pronounced her first novel, ''Held in Trust'' (1892), as a pleasing story—fresh, clean and sweet as a breeze from a Texas prairie. Her second novel, ''Circumstance'' (1892), was set in Austin, Texas. Her short stories appeared in ''
Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper ''Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper'', later renamed ''Leslie's Weekly'', was an American illustrated literary and news magazine founded in 1855 and published until 1922. It was one of several magazines started by publisher and illustrator Frank ...
'', in the ''
North American Review The ''North American Review'' (NAR) was the first literary magazine in the United States. It was founded in Boston in 1815 by journalist Nathan Hale and others. It was published continuously until 1940, after which it was inactive until revived at ...
'', the ''
New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under pub ...
'', and other leading periodicals. Shortridge wrote especially well for children, her "Jingles" (Modern Mother Goose) attracted wide attention in the columns of the ''Sunday World''.


Personal life and legacy

She died November 24, 1893, in New York City, and was interred in the family burying ground at Cactus Hill, Wise County, which is now submerged under
Lake Bridgeport Lake Bridgeport is a city in Wise County, Texas, United States. The population was 339 in 2020. Geography Lake Bridgeport is located at (33.207240, –97.830997). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.5& ...
. A memoir of Shortridge was in preparation—a sort of autobiographical sketch of her literary work and mechanical methods, compiled from her journals and letters, by her sister, Mrs. Kate Hunt Craddock.


References


Attribution

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Bibliography

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shortridge, Belle Hunt 1858 births 1893 deaths People from Decatur, Texas 19th-century American writers 19th-century American women writers Poets from Texas Novelists from Texas