Grace Marion Frick (January 12, 1903 – November 18, 1979) was a translator and researcher for her lifelong partner French writer

Marguerite Yourcenar Marguerite Yourcenar (, , ; born Marguerite Antoinette Jeanne Marie Ghislaine Cleenewerck de Crayencour; 8 June 1903 – 17 December 1987) was a Belgian-born French novelist and essayist, who became a US citizen in 1947. Winner of the ''Prix Fem ...

. Grace Frick taught languages at US colleges and was the second academic dean to be appointed to Hartford Junior College.

Early life

Grace Marion Frick was born in

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

, on January 12, 1903. The family later moved to Kansas City, Missouri. Frick attended Wellesley College, receiving her bachelor's in 1925 and in 1927 earning a master's degree in English. She worked on a dissertation at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

, starting in 1937, the same year she met Yourcenar in Paris, and completed academic work at

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

Career

Frick is most remembered for being the translator from French into English of ''

Memoirs of Hadrian ''Memoirs of Hadrian'' (french: link=no, Mémoires d'Hadrien) is a novel by the Belgian-born French writer Marguerite Yourcenar about the life and death of the Roman Emperor Hadrian. First published in France in French in 1951 as ''Mémoires d ...

'', ''

The Abyss ''The Abyss'' is a 1989 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn. When an American submarine sinks in the Caribbean, a US search and recovery tea ...

'' and ''

Coup de Grâce A coup de grâce (; 'blow of mercy') is a death blow to end the suffering of a severely wounded person or animal. It may be a mercy killing of mortally wounded civilians or soldiers, friends or enemies, with or without the sufferer's consent. ...

'' by

. Until Frick's death, Yourcenar allowed only her to translate her books. She taught at Stephens Junior College for Women (now Stephens College), Columbia, Missouri, and at

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

, New York City. After Yourcenar's arrival, in 1940, Frick became the second academic dean of Hartford Junior College (later

Hartford College for Women The Hartford College for Women (or HCW) was a two-year private college for women located in Hartford, Connecticut. It was opened in 1933, became a constituent college of the University of Hartford (UHart) in 1991, and closed in 2003. History 1 ...

), until 1943, and they moved together at 549 Prospect Ave, West Hartford. Other than administrative duties, Frick also taught English. After Hartford, Frick taught at Connecticut College for Women (now

Connecticut College Connecticut College (Conn College or Conn) is a private liberal arts college in New London, Connecticut. It is a residential, four-year undergraduate institution with nearly all of its approximately 1,815 students living on campus. The college w ...

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decade ...

. While in Hartford, Frick and Yourcenar were active in the arts community that originated around the Wadsworth Atheneum headed by Arthur Everett Austin, Jr.

Personal life

She met Marguerite Yourcenar in the February of 1937 at the Wagram Hotel, Paris. They fell madly in love with one another and in 1939 Grace invited Marguerite to come live with her in the United States which also allowed her to escape the imminent war happening in Europe. Grace Frick and Yourcenar lived together for forty years until Frick died of cancer on November 18, 1979. Together they bought a house, "Petite Plaisance", in 1950 in

Northeast Harbor, Maine Northeast Harbor is a village on Mount Desert Island, located in the town of Mount Desert in Hancock County, Maine, United States. The original settlers, the Someses and Richardsons, arrived around 1761. The village has a significant summe ...

, 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 ...

. The two companions spoke French at home, loved horseback riding and lived a quiet life. They are both buried at Brookside Cemetery,

Mount Desert, Maine Mount Desert is a town on Mount Desert Island in Hancock County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,146 at the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1789, the town currently encompasses the villages of Otter Creek, Seal Harbor, Northeast Harb ...

. Alongside them is a memorial plaque for Jerry Wilson, the last companion of Yourcenar, who died of AIDS in 1986.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frick, Grace 1903 births 1979 deaths LGBT people from Ohio Writers from Toledo, Ohio Writers from Kansas City, Missouri LGBT people from Missouri LGBT academics American LGBT writers Wellesley College alumni University of Kansas alumni Stephens College faculty Connecticut College faculty 20th-century American translators 20th-century LGBT people