Nettie Leila Michel (, Champion; after first marriage, Michel; after second marriage, Smith; after third marriage, Jeannette Champion Roake; September 26, 1863 – June 29, 1912) was an American business woman, author, and magazine editor of the

long nineteenth century The ''long nineteenth century'' is a term for the 125-year period beginning with the onset of the French Revolution in 1789 and ending with the outbreak of World War I in 1914. It was coined by Russian writer Ilya Ehrenburg and British Marxist hi ...

. Michel was the first woman commercial traveler (traveling salesperson) in the U.S. and early in life traveled through

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

for the N. K. Fairbank Company, of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. She later gave up traveling and became the first editor of a strictly literary magazine, being associated with

Charles Wells Moulton Charles Wells Moulton (1859–1913) was an American poet, critic, editor, and publisher. He was the founding editor of '' The Magazine of Poetry and Literary Review'', and the publisher of ''A Woman of the Century A, or a, is the first le ...

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

, on ''

The Magazine of Poetry ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...

'', and with

Mary Livermore Mary Livermore (born Mary Ashton Rice; December 19, 1820May 23, 1905) was an American journalist, abolitionist, and advocate of women's rights. Her printed volumes included: ''Thirty Years Too Late,'' first published in 1847 as a prize temperance ...

in literary work.

Early life and education

Jeannette (

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

, "Nettie") Leila Champion was born in

Oswego, New York Oswego () is a city in Oswego County, New York, United States. The population was 16,921 at the 2020 census. Oswego is located on Lake Ontario in Upstate New York, about 35 miles (55km) northwest of Syracuse. It promotes itself as "The Port Ci ...

, September 26, 1863. She was descended from several of the most prominent early Colonial families, and was a lineal descendant of

Joseph Jenckes Jr. Joseph Jenckes Jr. (baptized October 12, 1628January 4, 1717), also spelled Jencks and Jenks, was the founder of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, where he erected a forge in 1671. After his mother and only sibling died in England, his father, Joseph Jenc ...

, who founded

Pawtucket, Rhode Island Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 75,604 at the 2020 census, making the city the fourth-largest in the state. Pawtucket borders Providence and East Providence to the south, Central Fa ...

, and from Joseph Jenckes, his son, who for twenty years, was governor of the

Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until 1 ...

. Her great-grandfather, Samuel Tefft, was a member of the

Rhode Island General Assembly The State of Rhode Island General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. A bicameral body, it is composed of the lower Rhode Island House of Representatives with 75 representatives, and the upper Rhode Island Se ...

that on May 4, 1776, two months before the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of ...

, voted to sever all political relationships with the home country of Great Britain. Her father was Mortimer A. Champion, who was a lineal descendant of Henry Champion, one of the early settlers of the

Connecticut Valley The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges at Long Islan ...

and whose son, Mehitable, carried despatches for George Washington's

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

. Michel's mother was Cecelia Penny Champion, a descendant of the Clark family, of

central New York Central New York is the central region of New York State, including the following counties and cities: With a population of about 773,606 (2009) and an area of , the region includes the Syracuse metropolitan area. Definitions The New Yor ...

. Michel received her early education in the public schools of Syracuse, New York, and later in the public schools of Oswego.

Career

She married Mr. Michel, March 29, 1882, but the marriage lasted for less than one year. Being obliged to support herself, she went out as an advertising agent for a large wholesale house of Chicago,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

, and was the first woman in the U.S. to fill such a position. She then became a "drummer" (traveling commercial salesman), visiting the drug trade in the interests of an

Eastern Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air L ...

supply house. She was one of the first, if not the first, women sent out as an agent for staple articles, traveling from place to place with her trunk of samples. Her territory includes the

States State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * '' State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York (state), New York; on the ea ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

, and

. As a drummer, she was very successful, but left the road at the end of two years. She then took a course in

stenography Shorthand is an abbreviated symbolic writing method that increases speed and brevity of writing as compared to longhand, a more common method of writing a language. The process of writing in shorthand is called stenography, from the Greek ''st ...

in Prof. Augustus J. Warner's Elmira Business and Shorthand College in

Elmira, New York Elmira () is a city and the county seat of Chemung County, New York, United States. It is the principal city of the Elmira, New York, metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses Chemung County. The population was 26,523 at the 2020 census ...

, in 1888, and was graduated in three months, one of the best qualified students sent out by that school during a term of 25 years. In the fall of 1888, she entered the office of ''The Magazine of Poetry'' in Buffalo, New York, and took charge of the correspondence as an expert stenographer. The following year, she became the business manager of the magazine, a position she resigned in 1891 to become its editor (through 1896). She also wrote prose articles and biographies for it. She was intimately acquainted with the prominent poets and writers of her day. Michel was interested in all movements for the advancement of women, and she represented business interests in various conventions throughout the country.

Personal life

Michel was a member of the Woman's National Press Association of

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, and the

King's Daughters The King's Daughters (french: filles du roi or french: filles du roy, label=none in the spelling of the era) is a term used to refer to the approximately 800 young French women who immigrated to New France between 1663 and 1673 as part of a pr ...

. She was a communicant of St. John's Episcopal Church, Buffalo, as well as an Episcopal Church in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. Michel owned the homestead on Tug Hill, west of

Peekskill, New York Peekskill is a city in northwestern Westchester County, New York, United States, from New York City. Established as a village in 1816, it was incorporated as a city in 1940. It lies on a bay along the east side of the Hudson River, across from ...

, the house on which was built from logs cut on the farm in the early 1850s. She had been ill for several years in later life. She died at the

Seney Hospital Seney may refer to: Places In the United States: * Seney, Iowa, an unincorporated community * Seney Township, Michigan * Seney, Michigan, an unincorporated community in Seney Township * Seney, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Seney Nation ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county in the State of New York, ...

, following an operation for

appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical symptoms. Severe complications of a r ...

on June 29, 1912. Her husband, Elijah Lee Roake (1867–1921), accompanied Michel's body to Oswego, New York, for the funeral, with interment at that city's Rural Cemetery. Michel was also survived by a half-brother, Adelbert Foster, and a half-sister, Ella Skineer; George Wilson and his mother, Emmery, who live on the old homestead on Tug Hill; Mrs. Lena Helig; and Mrs. Thomas B. Gates.

References

Attribution

* * *

Bibliography

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Michel, Nettie Leila 1863 births 1912 deaths 19th-century American businesswomen 19th-century American businesspeople 19th-century American biographers 19th-century American women writers People from Oswego, New York American magazine editors American women magazine editors Businesspeople in the pharmaceutical industry Stenographers American women biographers International Order of the King's Daughters and Sons Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century