Mary Caroline Crawford ( – ) was an American author, social worker and reformer, and

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

. Her many books about the history of

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

and

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 ...

caused her to be called "Boston's social historian".

Life and career

Mary Caroline Crawford was born on in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, the daughter of James Crawford, owner of a laundry company, and Mary Coburn. She graduated from the Boston Girls’ Latin School in 1892. While there, she heard a speech by a female journalist, which inspired her to become a writer herself and she began writing for the school's newspaper. She attended

Radcliffe College Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and functioned as the female coordinate institution for the all-male Harvard College. Considered founded in 1879, it was one of the Seven Sisters colleges and he ...

from 1894 to 1897, but was forced to drop out before graduation due to financial issues. She became a journalist, writing for the '' Boston Budget'', the ''Boston Transcript'', and syndicating articles. Some of her newspaper articles became the basis for her most well-known work, ''The College Girl of America'' (1904). Most of her books were about regional history, focusing on her hometown of Boston and the New England region. In 1907, Crawford graduated from the Boston School for Social Workers. She founded the Social Service Publicity Bureau, which provided promotion and publicity for

social welfare Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet Basic needs, basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refe ...

organizations. She briefly served as secretary of the Boston chapter of the

Women's Trade Union League The Women's Trade Union League (WTUL) (1903–1950) was a U.S. organization of both working class and more well-off women to support the efforts of women to organize labor unions and to eliminate sweatshop conditions. The WTUL played an important ...

. She was also active in the Boston Authors Club, the Monday Evening Club for Social Workers, and the Boston Quota Club. Her most significant role was as Executive Secretary of the

Ford Hall Forum The Ford Hall Forum is the oldest free public lecture series in the United States. Founded in 1908, it continues to host open lectures and discussions in the Greater Boston area. Some of the more well-known past speakers include Maya Angelou, Isa ...

between 1908 and 1921 and the Old South Meeting House Forum between 1921 and 1932, where she facilitated weekly lectures and discussions with workers. Mary Caroline Crawford died on November 15, 1932 in her Beacon Hill home.

Bibliography

* ''The Romance of Old New England Rooftrees'' (1902) * ''The Romance of Old New England Churches'' (1903) * ''The College Girl of America'' (1904) * ''Among Old New England Inns'' (1907) * ''St. Boltophs Town'' (1908) * ''Old Boston Days and Ways'' (1909) * ''Romantic Days in Old Boston'' (1910) * ''

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...

and His Woman Friends'' (1911) * ''Romantic Days in the Early Republic'' (1912) * ''The Romance of the American Theatre'' (1913) * ''Social Life in Old New England'' (1915) * ''In the Days of the Pilgrim Fathers'' (1921) * ''Famous Families of Old New England'' (2 vols., 1924)

References

External links

*
Books by Crawford
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crawford, Mary Created via preloaddraft 1874 births 1932 deaths Writers from Boston American social workers American women historians American women writers Boston Latin Academy alumni