Far Away Melody, A

Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman was born in Randolph, Massachusetts on the 31st October 1852 to parents who were strict and orthodox Congregationalists. When she was a teenager the family moved to Brattleboro, Vermont and it was there she finished her education and began writing verse and stories for children. When the family’s dry-goods store closed in 1873 the family, now impoverished, returned to Randolph where her mother was to die mother three years later. She published ‘The Ghost Story’ in 1881 after it won a short story competition. With elements of the supernatural and domestic realism she had hit upon a solid formula for success. Two years later her father died and with no immediate family and only a small estate she now committed to writing full-time to secure an income. For the times it was a brave move but her undoubted talent meant success would follow. Over her career she published more than two dozen volumes of short stories and novels and is most well-known for ‘A New England Nun’. Her works were mainly set in New England and many of her female characters are strong and assertive, challenging contemporary stereotypes over their then roles, values and relationships in society. As a feminist she was keen to engage her audience in a discussion about the lack of control women had over many issues including the family finances. A meeting with the younger Dr. Charles Manning Freeman began a slow, decade long, courtship that endured many obstacles and delays until they eventually married on New Years Day, 1902. They built a home in Metuchen, where Mary was something of a local celebrity. Sadly her husband suffered from alcoholism and addiction to sleeping powders, fast horses and was also prone to womanizing. He was committed to the New Jersey State Hospital for the Insane and with that the couple separated. After his death in 1923, he left his estate to his chauffeur and one dollar to Mary. On 13th March 1930, Mary E Wilkins Freeman suffered a fatal heart attack in Metuchen. She was 77.