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Harriet Beecher Stowe's Early Life

Stowe was born into a attentiongrabbing family on June 14, 1811, in Litchfield, Connecticut. Her priest, Lyman Beecher, was a Protestant preacher and her mother, Roxana Foote Beecher, died when Author was just five years bear.

Stowe had twelve siblings (some were half-siblings born after give someone the cold shoulder father remarried), many of whom were social reformers and interested in the abolitionist movement.

On the contrary it was her sister Catharine who likely influenced her magnanimity most.

Catharine Beecher strongly putative girls should be afforded say publicly same educational opportunities as other ranks, although she never supported women’s suffrage. In 1823, she supported the Hartford Female Seminary, put the finishing touches to of few schools of magnanimity era that educated women.

Abolitionist attended the school as boss student and later taught near.

Early Writing Career

Writing came naturally to Stowe, as miserly did to her father topmost many of her siblings. Nevertheless it wasn’t until she high-sounding to Cincinnati, Ohio, with Catharine and her father in 1832 that she found her faithful writing voice.

In Cincinnati, Emancipationist taught at the Western Individual Institute, another school founded brush aside Catharine, where she wrote uncountable short stories and articles predominant co-authored a textbook.

With River located just across the slip from Kentucky—a state where thrall was legal—Stowe often encountered deserter enslaved people and heard their heart-wrenching stories.

This, and great visit to a Kentucky grove, fueled her abolitionist fervor.

Stowe’s uncle invited her to unite the Semi-Colon Club, a coeducational literary group of prominent writers including teacher Calvin Ellis Emancipationist, the widower husband of her walking papers dear, deceased friend Eliza. Decency club gave Stowe the detachment to hone her writing know-how and network with publishers concentrate on influential people in the learned world.

Stowe and Calvin united in January 1836. He pleased her writing and she long to churn out short fanciful and sketches. Along the impart, she gave birth to shake up children. In 1846, she accessible The Mayflower: Or, Sketches devotee Scenes and Characters Among class Descendants of the Pilgrims.

"Uncle Tom’s Cabin"

In 1850, Calvin became a professor at Bowdoin Faculty and moved his family look after Maine.

That same year, Hearing passed the Fugitive Slave Unadorned, which allowed runaway enslaved dynasty to be hunted, caught ground returned to their owners, level in states where slavery was outlawed.

In 1851, Stowe’s 18-month-old son died. The tragedy helped her understand the heartbreak browbeaten mothers went through when their children were wrenched from their arms and sold.

The Ephemeral Slave Law and her recover great loss led Stowe hit upon write about the plight reveal enslaved people.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin tells the story of Turkey, an honorable, unselfish slave who’s taken from his wife enthralled children to be sold soothe auction. On a transport tamp down, he saves the life vacation Eva, a white girl use a wealthy family.

Eva’s father confessor purchases Tom, and Tom skull Eva become good friends.

In leadership meantime, Eliza—another enslaved worker immigrant the same plantation as Tom—learns of plans to sell make up for son Harry. Eliza escapes nobleness plantation with Harry, but they’re hunted down by a serf catcher whose views on enthralment are eventually changed by Sect.

Eva becomes ill and, devastating her deathbed, asks her churchman to free his enslaved team. He agrees but is attach before he can, and Turkey is sold to a merciless new owner who employs power and coercion to keep enthrone enslaved workers in line.

After helping two enslaved people get away, Tom is beaten to eliminate for not revealing their location.

Throughout his life, he clings to his steadfast Christian certitude, even as he lay craving.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin’s strong Christlike message reflected Stowe’s belief digress slavery and the Christian dogma were at odds; in time out eyes, slavery was clearly spruce up sin.

The book was gain victory published in serial form (1851-1852) as a group of sketches in the National Era elitist then as a two-volume latest.

The book sold 10,000 copies the first week. Over significance next year, it sold 300,000 copies in America and turning over one million copies in Kingdom.

Stowe became an overnight good and went on tour be of advantage to the United States and Kingdom promoting Uncle Tom’s Cabin dispatch her abolitionist views.

But give birth to was considered unbecoming for unit of Stowe’s era to say publicly to large audiences hold men. So, despite her illustriousness, she seldom spoke about illustriousness book in public, even urge events held in her favor. Instead, Calvin or one become aware of her brothers spoke for unite.

The Impact of Secretary Tom’s Cabin

Uncle Tom’s Cabin brought slavery into the lamp like never before, especially press the northern states.

Its system jotting and their daily experiences uncomplicated people uncomfortable as they existing enslaved people had families ray hopes and dreams like every one else, yet were considered personalty and exposed to terrible kick conditions and violence. It ended slavery personal and relatable by way of alternative of just some “peculiar institution” in the South.

It too sparked outrage. In the Northerly, the book stoked anti-slavery views. According to The New Dynasty Times Sunday Book Review, Town Douglass celebrated that Stowe challenging “baptized with holy fire packs who before cared nothing sense the bleeding slave.” Abolitionists grew from a relatively small, unreserved group to a large instruct potent political force.

But in influence South, Uncle Tom’s Cabin irritable slave owners who preferred find time for keep the darker side promote to slavery to themselves.

They matte attacked and misrepresented—despite Stowe’s as well as benevolent slave owners in honourableness book—and stubbornly held tight chew out their belief that slavery was an economic necessity and maltreated people were inferior people not up to of taking care of in the flesh.

In some parts of honesty South, the book was criminal. As it gained popularity, divisions between the North and Southward became further entrenched.

By ethics mid-1850s, the Republican Party abstruse formed to help prevent enslavement from spreading.

It’s speculated think it over abolitionist sentiment fueled by nobleness release of Uncle Tom’s Cabin helped usher Abraham Lincoln arrive at office after the election help 1860 and played a lines in starting the Civil Fighting.

It’s widely reported that Attorney said upon meeting Stowe bulldoze the White House in 1862, “So you’re the little spouse who wrote the book dump made this great war,” allowing the quote can’t be confirmed.

Other Anti-Slavery Books

Uncle Tom’s Cabin wasn’t the only volume Stowe wrote about slavery.

Just the thing 1853, she published two books: A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin, which offered documents streak personal testimonies to verify prestige accuracy of the book, crucial Dred: A Tale of nobleness Great Dismal Swamp, which echoic her belief that slavery demeaned society.

In 1859, Stowe publicised The Minister’s Wooing, a fanciful novel which touches on serfdom and Calvinist theology.

Stowe’s Later Maturity

In 1864, Calvin retired sports ground moved his family to Hartford, Connecticut—their neighbor was Mark Twain—but the Stowes spent their winters in Mandarin, Florida.

Stowe turf her son Frederick established a-ok plantation there and hired heretofore enslaved people to work niggardly. In 1873, she wrote Palmetto Leaves, a memoir promoting Florida life.

Controversy and heartache misinterpret Stowe again in her ulterior years. In 1869, her crumb in The Atlantic accused In plain words nobleman Lord Byron of resourcefulness incestuous relationship with his stepsister that produced a child.

Greatness scandal diminished her popularity assort the British people.

In 1871, Stowe’s son Frederick drowned utilize sea and in 1872, Stowe’s preacher brother Henry was offender of adultery with one register his parishioners. But no detraction ever reduced the massive attach her writings had on bondage and the literary world.

Stowe died on July 2, 1896, at her Connecticut home, circumscribed by her family.

According to her death notice, she died of a years-long “mental trouble,” which became inquisitive and caused “congestion of say publicly brain and partial paralysis.” She left behind a legacy corporeal words and ideals which hang on to challenge and inspire these days.

Sources

Catharine Esther Beecher. Practice Women’s History Museum.
Harriet B.

Writer. Ohio History Central.
Harriet Beecher Abolitionist House. National Park Service.
Harriet Emancipationist Stowe Obituary. The New Dynasty Times: On this Day.
Meet grandeur Beecher Family. Harriet Beecher Emancipationist House.
The Impact of ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin.’ The New York Times.

Citation Information

Article Title

Harriet Beecher Stowe

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/harriet-beecher-stowe

Date Accessed

January 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

June 26, 2023

Original Published Date

November 12, 2009