Margaret Kernochan Leech (November 7, 1893 – February 24, 1974), also known as Margaret Pulitzer, was an American historian and fiction writer. She won the
Pulitzer Prize for History
The Pulitzer Prize for History, administered by Columbia University, is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It has been presented since 1917 for a distinguished book about the history ...
both in
1942
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1 – WWII: The Declaration by United Nations is signed by China, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union, and 22 other nations, in wh ...
(''Reveille in Washington'', Harper) (first woman to win for history) and in
1960
It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism.
Events
January
* Ja ...
(''In the Days of McKinley'', Harper).
Life and career
She was born in
Newburgh, New York
Newburgh is a city in the U.S. state of New York, within Orange County. With a population of 28,856 as of the 2020 census, it is a principal city of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown metropolitan area. Located north of New York City, a ...
, obtained a B.A. from
Vassar College
Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely follo ...
in 1915, and worked for fund-raising organizations during World War I, including the
American Committee for Devastated France
American Committee for Devastated France (1919-1924) also known as C.A.R.D. ''(Comité Américain pour les Régions Dévastées de France)'', from the French translation of the name of the organization, was a small group of American women who vo ...
.
She started her writing career for the
Condé Nast
Condé Nast () is a global mass media company founded in 1909 by Condé Montrose Nast, and owned by Advance Publications. Its headquarters are located at One World Trade Center in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan.
The company's media ...
publishing company before World War I. Leech also worked in advertising and publicity. After the war, she became friendly with members of the
Algonquin Round Table
The Algonquin Round Table was a group of New York City writers, critics, actors, and wits. Gathering initially as part of a practical joke, members of "The Vicious Circle", as they dubbed themselves, met for lunch each day at the Algonquin Hotel ...
, including critic-raconteur
Alexander Woollcott
Alexander Humphreys Woollcott (January 19, 1887 – January 23, 1943) was an American drama critic and commentator for ''The New Yorker'' magazine, a member of the Algonquin Round Table, an occasional actor and playwright, and a prominent radio p ...
. She was an associate of some of the wittiest and most brilliant men and women of literature that spent time at the
Algonquin Hotel
The Algonquin Hotel is a hotel at 59 West 44th Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States. The 181-room hotel, opened in 1902, was designed by architect Goldwin Starrett for the Puritan Realty Company. The hotel has hosted numer ...
in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
.
In 1928 she married
Ralph Pulitzer
Ralph Pulitzer (June 11, 1879 – June 14, 1939) was an American heir, newspaper publisher and author. He served as the president of the Press Publishing Co., which published the ''New York World'' and the ''Evening World''.
Early life
Ralph Puli ...
, publisher of 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 publi ...
'' newspaper. (His father,
Joseph Pulitzer
Joseph Pulitzer ( ; born Pulitzer József, ; April 10, 1847 – October 29, 1911) was a Hungarian-American politician and newspaper publisher of the ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' and the ''New York World''. He became a leading national figure in ...
, had established the
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
by a bequest to
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
.) They had one daughter, Susan.
''Reveille in Washington, 1860-1865'', is an account of Washington, D.C. during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
and deals with, among other things,
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
and his wife, along with
Rose Greenhow
Rose O'Neal Greenhow (1813– October 1, 1864) was a renowned Confederate spy during the American Civil War. A socialite in Washington, D.C., during the period before the war, she moved in important political circles and cultivated friendshi ...
, the Confederate spy whose work was helpful in the Southern forces winning the
First Battle of Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run (the name used by Union forces), also known as the Battle of First Manassas . Passages from the book are quoted in George Saunders' novel, ''Lincoln In The Bardo'' (2016).
''In the Days of McKinley'' is a biography of President
William McKinley
William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...
, carefully told in minute detail, and he is shown as a more attractive person and better president than some have depicted him. In addition to the history Pulitzer, the book was awarded the
Bancroft Prize
The Bancroft Prize is awarded each year by the trustees of Columbia University for books about diplomacy or the history of the Americas.
It was established in 1948, with a bequest from Frederic Bancroft, in his memory and that of his brother, ...
in 1960.
Leech also wrote three novels: ''The Back of the Book'' (1924), ''Tin Wedding'' (1926), and ''The Feathered Nest'' (1928) and, in 1927, co-wrote a biography of
Anthony Comstock
Anthony Comstock (March 7, 1844 – September 21, 1915) was an anti-vice activist, United States Postal Inspector, and secretary of the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice (NYSSV), who was dedicated to upholding Christian morality. He op ...
with
Heywood Broun
Heywood Campbell Broun Jr. (; December 7, 1888 – December 18, 1939) was an American journalist. He worked as a sportswriter, newspaper columnist, and editor in New York City. He founded the American Newspaper Guild, later known as The Newspaper ...
.
Leech died of a stroke in New York City at age 80.
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Leech, Margaret
1893 births
1974 deaths
20th-century American historians
American women novelists
Pulitzer Prize for History winners
Vassar College alumni
20th-century American novelists
Novelists from New York (state)
American women historians
American women biographers
20th-century American women writers
20th-century American biographers
Bancroft Prize winners
Algonquin Round Table