Ednah Robinson Aiken (September 7, 1872 – 1960) was an American writer, editor, clubwoman, and playwright, based in the San Francisco Bay area.

Early life and education

Ednah P. Robinson was born in San Francisco, California. Her parents were Cornelius Preston Robinson, a lawyer, and Ida Jarboe Robinson. Her grandfather Tod Robinson Jr. arrived in California in 1850, and soon after became a judge. Her great uncle was Cornelius Robinson, an Alabama politician. She attended the University of California at Berkeley, where she held a Phoebe Hearst scholarship as a member of the Class of 1898.

Career

Her first novel, ''The River'' (1914), about California's Imperial Valley, is often cited as an example of California regional literature, and as an "irrigation novel" by Kevin Starr. Other novels by Aiken include ''The Hinges of Custom'' (1923); ''If Today Be Sweet'' (1923), about Prohibition; ''Love and I'' (1928); and ''Snow'' (1930), set in Alaska. Her one-act play about World War I, ''The Hate Breeders'' (1916), was published with an introduction by Belgian pacifist Henri la Fontaine. Her short stories and non-fiction articles also appeared 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 ...

'', '' Out West'', '' Cosmopolitan Magazine'' and others. Ednah Aiken was on the staff at ''

Sunset Magazine ''Sunset'' is a lifestyle magazine in the United States. ''Sunset'' focuses on homes, cooking, gardening, and travel, with a focus almost exclusively on the Western United States. The magazine is published six times per year by the Sunset Publish ...

'', and edited for the ''Western Journal of Education''. She also worked with the Bureau of Naturalization of the Department of Labor, and was state chair for americanization for the California Congress of Mothers, work she related to women's suffrage: "Women must understand citizenship also, for they now have the right to vote, and if ignorant will become a menace. Give them a modern and vital course in citizenship. Make them feel we need them to help us reach our common goal." In 1904, Ednah Robinson was a founding member of the Sequoia Club of San Francisco. She was an officer of the San Francisco Federation of Women's Clubs for the 1918–1920 term, and a member of the Education committee. In 1927 she was leading a short story group for the Santa Clara County League of American Pen Women, and by 1929 she was elected president of the league.

Personal life

Ednah Robinson married ''Sunset Magazines first editor, Charles Sedgwick Aiken, in 1905. They had a son, Douglas Sedgwick Aiken, born in 1906. She was widowed when Charles died in 1911. She lived at "Lavender Farm" in Los Altos, and later in Palo Alto, where she mentored

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

students. She died in 1960, aged 88 years. Her papers are archived at the

Bancroft Library The Bancroft Library in the center of the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, is the university's primary special-collections library. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retai ...

.Ednah Robinson Aiken Papers, circa 1915-1960
Bancroft Library, Online Archive of California.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aiken, Ednah Robinson 1872 births 1960 deaths American women dramatists and playwrights American women in World War I American women novelists American women short story writers University of California, Berkeley alumni Women magazine editors Writers from San Francisco American women non-fiction writers Clubwomen 19th-century American writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 19th-century American women