Mary Noailles Murfree
Encyclopedia
Mary Noailles Murfree was an American
fiction
writer
of novels and short stories
who wrote under the pen name
Charles Egbert Craddock. She is considered by many to be Appalachia
's first significant female writer and her work a necessity for the study of Appalachian literature, although a number of characters in her work reinforce negative stereotypes about the region. She has been favorably compared to Bret Harte
and Sarah Orne Jewett
, creating post-Civil War American local-color literature
.
, in the house later celebrated in her novel, Where the Battle was Fought and in the town named after her great-grandfather, Colonel Hardy Murfree
. Her father was a successful lawyer
of Nashville
, and her youth was spent in both Murfreesboro and Nashville. From 1867 to 1869 she attended the Chegary Institute, a finishing school
in Philadelphia. Murfree would spend her summers in Beersheba Springs
. For a number of years after the Civil War
the Murfree family lived in St. Louis
, returning in 1890 to Murfreesboro, where she lived until her death.
Being lame
from childhood, Murfree turned to reading the novels of Walter Scott
and George Eliot
. For fifteen successive summers the family stayed in Beersheba Springs in the Cumberland Mountains
of Tennessee, giving her the opportunity to study the mountains and mountain people more closely.
By the 1870s she had begun writing stories for Appleton's Journal under the penname of "Charles Egbert Craddock" and by 1878 she was contributing to the Atlantic Monthly. It was not until seven years later, in May, 1885, that Murfree divulged that she was Charles Egbert Craddock to Thomas Bailey Aldrich
, an editor at the Atlantic Monthly.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
of novels and short stories
Short Stories
Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...
who wrote under the pen name
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
Charles Egbert Craddock. She is considered by many to be Appalachia
Appalachia
Appalachia is a term used to describe a cultural region in the eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York state to northern Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Canada to Cheaha Mountain in the U.S...
's first significant female writer and her work a necessity for the study of Appalachian literature, although a number of characters in her work reinforce negative stereotypes about the region. She has been favorably compared to Bret Harte
Bret Harte
Francis Bret Harte was an American author and poet, best remembered for his accounts of pioneering life in California.- Life and career :...
and Sarah Orne Jewett
Sarah Orne Jewett
Sarah Orne Jewett was an American novelist and short story writer, best known for her local color works set in or near South Berwick, Maine, on the border of New Hampshire, which in her day was a declining New England seaport.-Biography:Jewett's family had been residents of New England for many...
, creating post-Civil War American local-color literature
Regionalism (literature)
In literature, regionalism or local color refers to fiction or poetry that focuses on specific features – including characters, dialects, customs, history, and topography – of a particular region...
.
Biography
Murfree was born near Murfreesboro, TennesseeMurfreesboro, Tennessee
Murfreesboro is a city in and the county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 108,755 according to the United States Census Bureau's 2010 U.S. Census, up from 68,816 residents certified during the 2000 census. The center of population of Tennessee is located in...
, in the house later celebrated in her novel, Where the Battle was Fought and in the town named after her great-grandfather, Colonel Hardy Murfree
Hardy Murfree
Hardy Murfree was a Lieutenant Colonel from North Carolina during the American Revolutionary War.Murfree was born at Murfree's Landing, North Carolina, later renamed Murfreesboro, where he lived for most of his adult life. His parents were William Murfree and Mary Moore...
. Her father was a successful lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
of Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, and her youth was spent in both Murfreesboro and Nashville. From 1867 to 1869 she attended the Chegary Institute, a finishing school
Finishing school
A finishing school is "a private school for girls that emphasises training in cultural and social activities." The name reflects that it follows on from ordinary school and is intended to complete the educational experience, with classes primarily on etiquette...
in Philadelphia. Murfree would spend her summers in Beersheba Springs
Beersheba Springs, Tennessee
Beersheba Springs is a town in Grundy County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 477 at the 2010 census. A resort town in the 19th century, Beersheba Springs was the summer home of author Mary Noailles Murfree. It now serves as a major summer meeting center for the Tennessee United...
. For a number of years after the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
the Murfree family lived in St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, returning in 1890 to Murfreesboro, where she lived until her death.
Being lame
Lame
Lame may refer to:* Lameness , lameness in horses* LAME, MP3 encoder* "Lame" , song by Unwritten Law* Licensed aircraft maintenance engineer...
from childhood, Murfree turned to reading the novels of Walter Scott
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
and George Eliot
George Eliot
Mary Anne Evans , better known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, journalist and translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era...
. For fifteen successive summers the family stayed in Beersheba Springs in the Cumberland Mountains
Cumberland Mountains
The Cumberland Mountains are a mountain range in the southeastern section of the Appalachian Mountains. They are located in southern West Virginia, western Virginia, eastern edges of Kentucky, and eastern middle Tennessee, including the Crab Orchard Mountains...
of Tennessee, giving her the opportunity to study the mountains and mountain people more closely.
By the 1870s she had begun writing stories for Appleton's Journal under the penname of "Charles Egbert Craddock" and by 1878 she was contributing to the Atlantic Monthly. It was not until seven years later, in May, 1885, that Murfree divulged that she was Charles Egbert Craddock to Thomas Bailey Aldrich
Thomas Bailey Aldrich
Thomas Bailey Aldrich was an American poet, novelist, travel writer and editor.-Early life and education:...
, an editor at the Atlantic Monthly.
Fiction
- In the Tennessee Mountains (1884) (eight stories on the life and character of the Tennessee mountaineer)
- Where the Battle Was Fought (1884)
- Down the Ravine (1885)
- The Prophet of the Great Smoky Mountains (1885)
- In the Clouds (1886)
- The Despot of Broomsedge Cove (1888)
- The Story of Keedon Bluffs (1887)
- Abner Holden's Bound Boy (1890)
- In the "Stranger People's" Country (1891)
- His Vanished Star (1894)
- The Juggler (1897)
- The Story of Old Fort Loudon (1898)
- The Champion (1902)
- A Spectre of Power (1903)
- The Frontiersmen (1904) (e-book at Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
) - The Storm Centre (1905)
- The Amulet (1906)
- The Windfall (1907)
- The Fair Mississippian (1908)
- The Ordeal: A Mountain Romance of Tennessee (1912)
- The Story of Duciehurst: A Tale of the Mississippi (1914)
Short Fiction
- The Phantoms of the Footbridge and Other Stories (1895)
- The Mystery of Witch-Face Mountain and Other Stories (1895)
- The Young Mountaineers (1897)
- The Bushwhackers and Other Stories (1899)
- Civil War Stories (contributor, 1900)
- The Raid of the Guerilla and Other Stories (1912)
External links
- The Prophet of the Great Smoky Mountains free ebook in PDF, PDB and LIT formats
- Mary Noailles Murfree - bibliographical overview, description by a contemporary,links to works online