Mary Alicia Owen
Encyclopedia
Mary Alicia Owen was a folklore collector of Missouri
who compiled several works of local legend and voodoo
.
She was born in a renowned family of Saint Joseph, Missouri
and lived with her two sisters, Luella and Juliette, both of whom were noted authors. She became inspired to record the disappearing folk tales after reading Algonquin Legends of New England, beginning a correspondence with Charles Godfrey Leland
. Her earliest publication was Old Rabbit the Voodoo, and other Sorcerers, printed with an introduction by Leland, which was favourably reviewed in the English journal Folk-Lore; the reviewer, E. S. Hartland, dismisses Leland's request for consideration as a first work and says of it, "[f]rom the first page to the last there is not a dull page...". Her researches and fieldwork had already been reported in a paper she read before the 1891 "Second International Folk-Congress" in London, which was printed in the Transactions of the conference as "Among the Voodoos".
Her principal work was Voodoo tales as told among the Negroes of the southwest,
Owen gave long service to The Missouri Folklore Society
, serving as its President until the year of her death.
Owen also published articles in Century Magazine and Overland Monthly
, writing as Julia Scott, and contributed reviews and journalism to other periodicals.
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
who compiled several works of local legend and voodoo
Louisiana Voodoo
Louisiana Voodoo, also known as New Orleans Voodoo, describes a set of underground religious practices which originated from the traditions of the African diaspora. It is a cultural form of the Afro-American religions which developed within the French, Spanish, and Creole speaking African American...
.
She was born in a renowned family of Saint Joseph, Missouri
Saint Joseph, Missouri
Saint Joseph is the second largest city in northwest Missouri, only second to Kansas City in size, serving as the county seat for Buchanan County. As of the 2010 census, Saint Joseph had a total population of 76,780, making it the eighth largest city in the state. The St...
and lived with her two sisters, Luella and Juliette, both of whom were noted authors. She became inspired to record the disappearing folk tales after reading Algonquin Legends of New England, beginning a correspondence with Charles Godfrey Leland
Charles Godfrey Leland
Charles Godfrey Leland was an American humorist and folklorist, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was educated at Princeton University and in Europe....
. Her earliest publication was Old Rabbit the Voodoo, and other Sorcerers, printed with an introduction by Leland, which was favourably reviewed in the English journal Folk-Lore; the reviewer, E. S. Hartland, dismisses Leland's request for consideration as a first work and says of it, "[f]rom the first page to the last there is not a dull page...". Her researches and fieldwork had already been reported in a paper she read before the 1891 "Second International Folk-Congress" in London, which was printed in the Transactions of the conference as "Among the Voodoos".
Her principal work was Voodoo tales as told among the Negroes of the southwest,
Owen gave long service to The Missouri Folklore Society
The Missouri Folklore Society
The Missouri Folklore Society was organized December 15, 1906, "to encourage the collection, preservation and study of folklore in the widest sense, including customs, institutions, beliefs, signs, legends, language, literature, musical arts, and folk arts and crafts of all ethnic groups throughout...
, serving as its President until the year of her death.
Owen also published articles in Century Magazine and Overland Monthly
Overland Monthly
Overland Monthly was a monthly magazine based in California, United States, and published in the 19th and 20th century.The magazine's first issue was in July 1868, and continued until the late 1875. The original publishers, in 1880, started The Californian, which became The Californian and Overland...
, writing as Julia Scott, and contributed reviews and journalism to other periodicals.