Julia Carter Aldrich (, Carter;

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

, Petresia Peters; January 28, 1834 – August 26, 1924) was a 19th-century American author and editor from

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

. She was the

vice-president of the Western Association of Writers, and one of the editors of the ''National Grange'', a paper connecting her with readers all over the United States.

Early life and education

Julia Carter was born in Liverpool, Ohio, January 28, 1834. She was the fifth in a family of seven children. Her paternal ancestors were

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

ers of English descent. Her mother's parents, born in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, were of Scotch and German descent. Carter began to write at a young age, first publishing at the age of fourteen. Her school-days were marked by thorough and rapid proficiency.

Career

When Aldrich was seventeen, she began to teach in a large village school. She continued teaching for four years. During this period of study and teaching, she frequently wrote verse and prose, which were published in various periodicals. In July 1853, Aldrich's brother, Jabez William Carter, of

Medina County, Ohio Medina County (pronounced ) is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 182,470. Its county seat is Medina. The county was created in 1812 and later organized in 1818. It is named for Medina, a city in Sa ...

, came to

Ottokee, Ohio Ottokee is an unincorporated community in Dover Township, Fulton County, Ohio, United States. History Chief Ottokee Ottokee was founded in 1850 with the driving of stakes to mark the geographic center of Fulton County, Ohio, and originally given ...

, and bought the

printery A printing press is a mechanical device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium (such as paper or cloth), thereby transferring the ink. It marked a dramatic improvement on earlier printing methods in which the c ...

but recently established there, and commenced the publication of the ''Fulton County Union'', a business he very much enjoyed, having been connected with a printing office since his boyhood. He was then twenty-six years old. He wrote his mother, a widow, his father having died in 1852, to shut up the house and come with the family—Charles, Julia, Julius and Margaret—to Ottokee for the winter. they arrived early in November and were taken to the Henry Taylor Hotel until their goods arrived. In the spring of 1854, Joseph Aldrich was engaged to teach in

Springhills, Ohio Springhills is an unincorporated community in northwestern Harrison Township, Champaign County, Ohio, United States. It lies at the intersection of State Route 245 with Crowl and Springhill-DeGraff Roads. Graves Creek, a subsidiary of the ...

, and Julia Carter in Ottokee. Her brothers, Charles and Julius Carter, assisted her brother Jabez in the printing office. Everyone in the family liked Ottokee, and all had employment, so none cared to go back to Medina County. The mother went back and sold the place, and returning to Ottokee, she bought a home there. During the early years of her married life, she did not write much. Eventually, she did return to writing. When writing for '' The Home Circle'', she did so under various pen names, "Petresia Peters" being the best known. Aldrich was one of the first contributors to the press in Fulton county. She and her husband were among the first school teachers. While Aldrich was an occasional contributor to various publications, she also had a volume of verse from her earlier writings, entitled ''Hazel Bloom''.

Personal life

On October 3, 1854, she married Joseph D. Aldrich, and they lived in their own home in Ottokee. In 1858, they sold the Ottokee property and bought the Quaker Wright Farm on the north line of Clinton Township. Their three sons. Amos Eugene, Fred Hampson and Benjamin F. Aldrich, were born there; and Joseph died there in 1889. She associated herself with reformatory measures. Her husband died in 1889, at their country place, "Maple Grove Home," near Wauseon, Ohio. Julia Carter Aldrich died August 26, 1924, in Wauseon and is buried at Wauseon Union Cemetery.

Selected works

* 1899
''Hazel bloom''
* 1914
''A memory of eighteen hundred sixty-five a tribute''

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aldrich, Julia Carter 1834 births 1924 deaths 19th-century American writers 19th-century American women writers 19th-century American newspaper editors Writers from Ohio People from East Liverpool, Ohio People from Wauseon, Ohio American women non-fiction writers Women newspaper editors Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century