Nixola Greeley-Smith (April 5, 1880 - March 9, 1919) was an American suffragist and a journalist at New York's ''
The Evening World
''The Evening World'' was a newspaper that was published in New York City from 1887 to 1931. It was owned by Joseph Pulitzer, and served as an evening edition of the ''New York World.''
History
The first issue was on October 10, 1887. It was publ ...
''. She was known for her interviews and coverage of the home front during World War One. In 1913 it was said that her famous grandfather ("Go West Young Man") was now best known as Greeley Smith's grandfather.
Life
Greeley-Smith was born in
Chappaqua, New York
Chappaqua ( ) is a hamlet and census-designated place in the town of New Castle, in northern Westchester County, New York, United States. It is approximately north of New York City. The hamlet is served by the Chappaqua station of the Metro- ...
to Colonel Nicholas Smith, a New York City lawyer and diplomat, and Ida Lillian Greeley, who died when she was two. Her grandfather was the notable newspaper editor
Horace Greeley
Horace Greeley (February 3, 1811 – November 29, 1872) was an American newspaper editor and publisher who was the founder and newspaper editor, editor of the ''New-York Tribune''. Long active in politics, he served briefly as a congressm ...
and he left his fortune to Greeley-Smith's mother.
She worked at
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 ...
's papers and developed a distinctive style to her human interest stories and interviews. Nixola Greeley-Smith initially worked in St Louis before being based at ''
The Evening World
''The Evening World'' was a newspaper that was published in New York City from 1887 to 1931. It was owned by Joseph Pulitzer, and served as an evening edition of the ''New York World.''
History
The first issue was on October 10, 1887. It was publ ...
'' in New York. She covered home front activities during World War I and was an advocate and activist for
women's suffrage
Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...
. She notably interviewed
Sarah Bernhardt
Sarah Bernhardt (; born Henriette-Rosine Bernard; 22 or 23 October 1844 – 26 March 1923) was a French stage actress who starred in some of the most popular French plays of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including '' La Dame Aux Camel ...
and she was known for securing interviews with people of high status and for her unflinching questions and willingness to address controversial subjects.
Mary Heaton Vorse
Mary Heaton Vorse (October 11, 1874 – June 14, 1966) was an American journalist and novelist. She established her reputation as a journalist reporting the labor protests of a largely female and immigrant workforce in the east-coast textile indus ...
said, "I pity the unwary who are interviewed by Nixola Greeley-Smith."
When she started writing for ''
The Tacoma Times
''The Tacoma Times'' was a newspaper published in Tacoma, Washington from 1903 to 1949. It was founded by E. W. Scripps, with editorial personnel taken from ''the Seattle Star''. She worked for the New York World until her death.
She married Andrew Watres Ford, a newspaper editor. They had no children and she died following an operation for acute
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 rup ...
in 1919. She died in a New York hospital and she is buried at
Green-Wood Cemetery
Green-Wood Cemetery is a cemetery in the western portion of Brooklyn, New York City. The cemetery is located between South Slope/ Greenwood Heights, Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Borough Park, Kensington, and Sunset Park, and lies several bl ...
in Brooklyn with other members of her family.
See also
*
Kate Carew
Mary Williams (June 27, 1869 – February 11, 1961), who wrote pseudonymously as Kate Carew, was an American caricaturist self-styled as "The Only Woman Caricaturist". She worked at the ''New York World'', providing illustrated celebrity int ...