Mary Louise Frost Ormsby (1845–1931), later Mary Frost Evans, was an American writer, editor, and educator involved in the peace movement.

Early life

Mary Louise Frost was born in Albany, New York, the daughter of William Marsh Frost and Margaret Fulton Alcorn Frost. Her mother was born in Ireland. Her uncle

Daniel M. Frost Daniel Marsh Frost (August 9, 1823 – October 29, 1900) was a former United States Army officer who became a brigadier general in the Missouri Volunteer Militia (MVM) and the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Among the han ...

was a New York-born brigadier general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War; another uncle was New York politician Silas Wright. Mary Frost attended St. Mary's Hall in New Jersey, then Vassar College, graduating in the class of 1866.

Career

Mary Frost and her widowed mother ran a school in New York, Seabury Seminary, as co-principals. After that, she became a writer. She belonged to Society of American Authors and was associate editor of the ''Peacemaker'' magazine, and the ''Rhode Islander'' newspaper (with her second husband, the paper's owner). Mary L. F. Ormsby was a member of

Sorosis Sorosis Club rules in 1869 Sorosis was the first professional women's club in the United States. It was established in March 1868 in New York City. History The club was organized in New York City with 12 members in March 1868, by Jane Cunningham ...

, president of the Democratic Influence Club (1892–1893), president of the Women's International Peace Union, vice-president of the

Universal Peace Union The Universal Peace Union was a pacifist organization founded by former members of the American Peace Society in Providence, Rhode Island with the adoption of its constitution on 16 May 1866; it was chartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 9 Apri ...

, and vice-president of the Woman's National Press Association. She was active with the Women's Christian Temperance Union and the Human Freedom League of the United States. Ormsby was a Universal Peace Union delegate to eight international gatherings of the peace movement, including the Universal Peace Congress in Rome (1891), Berne (1892), Chicago (1893), Antwerp (1894), and Luxembourg (1895). She was elected to the Italian Press Society after her work at the Rome conference. She spoke at the National Peace Congress in Washington, and served as secretary of the World's Federation of Young People. In 1899, she was president of the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desi ...

Women's Auxiliary in Providence, Rhode Island. By 1912, she and her second husband were living in

Fort Collins, Colorado Fort Collins is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Larimer County, Colorado Larimer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 359 ...

, still active in the peace movement. Ormsby was at the center of several controversies. In 1892, President Grover Cleveland wrote to object to her naming a political club after his wife. Later that same year, she sued Victoria Woodhull and

Tennessee Claflin Lady Tennessee Celeste Claflin, Viscountess of Montserrat (October 26, 1844 – January 18, 1923), also known as Tennie C., was an American suffragist best known as the first woman, along with her sister Victoria Woodhull, to open a Wall Stre ...

, claiming that they owed her money. In 1893, she was involved in a public disagreement with other members of the New York peace community, prompting headlines such as "War Among Peacemakers" and "War for Peace Still On". "She seems to have identified herself with every known movement," said fellow peace activist Emma C. Sickels, "and carried consternation with her."

Personal life

In 1875 Mary Frost married Rev. Duke C. Ormsby. She was widowed when he died. She remarried to Benjamin Franklin Evans by early 1898. She died in 1931, aged 86 years.Universal Peace Union Records
Swarthmore College Peace Collection.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ormsby, Mary L. F. 1845 births 1931 deaths Doane Academy alumni Writers from Albany, New York Vassar College alumni American women writers Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century