Eleanor Mayo (1920–1981) was an American

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

of the mid twentieth century. She lived most of her life on

Mount Desert Island Mount Desert Island (MDI; french: Île des Monts Déserts) in Hancock County, Maine, is the largest island off the coast of Maine. With an area of it is the 52nd-largest island in the United States, the sixth-largest island in the contiguous ...

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

. She was raised in

Southwest Harbor, Maine Southwest Harbor is a town in Hancock County, Maine, United States. Located on Mount Desert Island, the population was 1,756 at the 2020 census. The municipality contains within it the villages of Southwest Harbor, Manset, Seawall, Wonderland, ...

. She was the life companion of the well known Maine novelist

Ruth Moore Ruth Moore (1903–1989) was an important Maine writer of the twentieth century. She is best known for her honest portrayals of Maine people and evocative descriptions of the state. Now primarily thought of as a regional writer, Moore was a sign ...

. Mayo was introduced to Moore in the summer of 1940 by the latter's sister who had been Mayo's high school teacher. Mayo accompanied Moore on her return to

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. The two soon moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

where they remained until returning permanently to Maine in 1947. Mayo published five novels during her life. Mayos's novel ''Turn Home'' was made into the 1950 film ''Tarnished''. Mayo was active in local politics holding several elected positions in

Tremont, Maine Tremont is a town in Hancock County, Maine, United States. It is located on the southwestern side of Mount Desert Island, known to locals as "the quiet side." Tremont includes the villages of Bass Harbor (or McKinley), Bernard, Gotts Island, ...

. She was the first female selectman elected in Tremont, and later served many years as the town's

tax assessor Tax assessment, or assessment, is the job of determining the value, and sometimes determining the use, of property, usually to calculate a property tax. This is usually done by an office called the assessor or tax assessor. Governments need to ...

. Ruth Moore wrote of the stir caused by Mayo's election: "A great flurry it got in all the papers and on the radio, and all the old diehards and shellbacks in town, who think 'wimmen's fit fa one thing and that's all, by God,' are standing on their heads and spinning."Unpublished letter dated March 23, 1950, Maine Women Writers Collection, University of New England. The house built in 1947 by Mayo and Moore was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 2004, recognizing their literary accomplishments.

Bibliography

* ''Turn Home'' (1945) * ''Loom of the Land'' (1946) * ''October Fire'' (1951) * ''Swan's Harbor'' (1953) * ''Forever Stranger'' (1958) * ''When Foley Craddock Tore Off my Grandfather's Thumb: The Collected Stories of Ruth Moore and Eleanor Mayo'' (2004)

References

External links

Photograph by Eleanor Mayo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayo, Eleanor 1920 births 1981 deaths Writers from Maine People from Mount Desert Island Maine local politicians 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American politicians People from Tremont, Maine