Marie Louise Van Vorst (November 23, 1867 – December 16, 1936) was an American writer, researcher, painter, and volunteer nurse during World War I.

Early life

Marie Louise Van Vorst was born in New York City, the daughter of Hooper Cumming Van Vorst and Josephine Adele Treat Van Vorst. Her father was a judge on the New York City Superior Court and president of the Century Club.Edd Applegate
''Muckrakers: A Biographical Dictionary of Writers and Editors''
(Scarecrow Press 2008): 189–191.

Career

Van Vorst and her widowed sister-in-law,

Bessie Van Vorst Bessie Van Vorst (née McGinnis; September 2, 1873 – May 19, 1928), also known as Mrs. John Van Vorst, was an American author and journalist. She is best known as a co-author of the magazine series and the book ''The Woman Who Toils: Bein ...

, moved to France and co-wrote novels together, including ''Bagsby's Daughter'' (1901). For ''The Woman Who Toils: Being the Experiences of Two Ladies as Factory Girls'' (1903), they went undercover at a pickle factory in Pittsburgh, ; a textile mill outside Buffalo, New York; a variety of sweat shops in Chicago; a shoe factory in Lynn, Massachusetts; and a Southern cotton mill to learn about working women's lives. The book's introduction was written by Theodore Roosevelt. Marie Van Vorst also wrote regularly for ''

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 ...

'', '' Good Housekeeping'', and other national publications.Montrose J. Moses
"Novelist and Red Cross Nurse: A Study of Marie Van Vorst"
''

Book News Monthly ''The Book News Monthly'' was a monthly journal published by John Wanamaker from 1882 to 1918. It was called ''Book News: A Monthly Survey'' until 1906. References {{DEFAULTSORT:Book News Monthly Magazines established in 1882 Magazines disest ...

'' (November 1915): 102–104. Van Vorst's books include ''Philip Longstreth'' (1902), ''Amanda of the Mill'' (1905), ''Miss Desmond'' (1905), ''The Sins of George Warrener'' (1906), ''The Sentimental Adventures of Jimmy Bulstrode'' (1908), ''In Ambush'' (1909), ''First Love'' (1910), ''The Girl from His Town'' (1910), ''The Broken Bell'' (1912), ''His Love Story'' (1913), ''Big Tremaine'' (1914), ''Mary Moreland'' (1915), ''Fairfax and His Bride'' (1920), ''Tradition'' (1921), ''The Queen of Karmania'' (1922), ''Goodnight Ladies!'' (1931), and ''The Gardenia'' (1933). Three of her novels were adapted for silent films before 1920. During World War I, she volunteered as a field hospital worker at

Neuilly-sur-Seine Neuilly-sur-Seine (; literally 'Neuilly on Seine'), also known simply as Neuilly, is a commune in the department of Hauts-de-Seine in France, just west of Paris. Immediately adjacent to the city, the area is composed of mostly select residentia ...

and Paris, and wrote ''War Letters of an American Woman'' (1916) about her experiences in the war zone. In the same year she published a book of poetry, ''War Poems'' (1916). She returned to the United States to give lectures and raise funds for American ambulances in France. In 1918, she took charge of a postwar relief organization in Italy. In 1922, Van Vorst was encouraged by artist

Mary Foote Mary Foote (1872–1968) was an American painter and producer of notes of Carl Jung's seminars. As an artist, she lived and worked in New York's Washington Square Park, Washington Square, Paris and Peking. From 1928 to the 1950s she lived i ...

to take up painting, and exhibited her art in New York City.

Personal life

Van Vorst in 1916 married widower Count Gaetano Cagiati in Paris in a small wedding ceremony at Notre Dame Cathedral. She later adopted a war orphan, a son she named Frederick John Barth Van Vorst. In 1936, while in

Florence, Italy Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

, she died of pneumonia at the age of 69."Marie Van Vorst, Author, 69, is Dead"
''New York Times'' (December 18, 1936): 25.

References

External links

Two poems by Marie Van Vorst
at Allpoetry.com. * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Van Vorst, Marie 1867 births 1936 deaths Writers from New York City American women writers American women artists American women in World War I