Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-07-08
SOUTHWORTH HOME
IS HISTORIC SPOT
i!oveIiSt's Cottage, Acquired
by Pen Women, Is George
town Landmark.

SAN
Geo. Ge,oN0 CenterS around ProSpac
t.otGaSe, FORMER nome OF The famous
woman noteilSt, MRS, 4. II. l.. n, south
woitsa. waich mas recently been pur'
tnSSeu oS The Nauonal League o
.AmerNan Pen Women tor use as a ma
lsoaal headquarters,
1-ercnea nlgn on the bluffs OF th'
TotoIHaC Rive, tnlS IWo-StoTy Iram'
CotGaSe more lnan 90 years ago wa!
Sae gathering point Ior many of thu
Eo.eS. 4ltcIary naldS OF The world. 1h'
famous afternoon teas OF Mrs South
worth were Attended by leaders O
Washington society, by great editors
wgaJerS ana poets, such as Harrie
AeeCneT Stowe ana Jonn Greenieai
Mn2v,4eT. ana RANKING members OF .nI
01plo-1aSlc corps.
View From Cottage.
From the porcneS surrounding tht
hSAEe AXIS, SUQGilNoI III anu Ilef sutSt.
1NoAeu >.o~a uA tlle cIoWuea narooE ..
l4lS aAlelA ouSy pow or ITeolgevown. IL
s4ilSs GAYS, Na~n tne port "a Ireorse'
teAn ll,a4eu philadelphia anu NsN
AV4A, Il-golllS teSSe.S Gleo up a. lOS
S4i4A4 YES 10 G4SCnarge rlcl cargOSS
kgoSpecs Lo,,age IS one VI ne most
p4~s2Itsque slootS III tIle worlo, II me
Vp4a.on III nla4ly W4lo have tLS4Sd tnere
Located a. lAe 1901 o. InEsy ~SIAtll
street, lro1 the NeTanoa may Ne seen
ans wlnQDlg k-otomac 4NIveI, lis pail
SausS, ana tne woOoed ana oeautI4 day
1olo-sG lootnlls OF Virginia.
AlTs. Soutnworth Was oorn TO life
O. Touose snQ sorrow. naae l4yaols
14ay uy her geulus sno oou4age, sn4tn
: Oh 4ier mauy CHERISHED A..endS III
i 4ater years.
Ane daughter of Capt. Charles lie
Comp0e Ns,ite and naS Seconu vie,
2 SogaSa4lnah Waues, she was Dorn III Gtle
i raAaaInan house on North CaplUol Street,
s.ls ouay mouse IN washington uwneu
+. By George Washington. According 10
s0<a4 historians, ne assigned the AlOuSe
44.InSeiI ana mac planned. 10 maze At
us nome III Ms declining years,
r1sT EuIl name was EIaEna dorothy
EaAEa Nesllte, the inlClaIS OF when SHE
iAseu IL signing her later literary worAS.
x-r1or " me cIllldS birth, the Ialner
hau paen wealthy merchant DuG nau
4nSg both his money and MS health our
Ing the War Of lSi2.
Father Was Merchant
During washigtons first term as
PreS4oeat Capt. 4NevItte was wealthy
Alexandria merchant ana owner OF u
meet OF boats. Alexandria at LnaC time,
with Georgetown, was one OF the busiest
porgS On the continent
The Dutch kaSt lnoieS Co. sent its
trading ships there laoen with silks,
Jewels ana merchandise from the
orient.
however. Uncle Sans early intsrna-
t5onaI troubles with France ano laUer
kngaand cost Capt. NeyltJe his ships.
us losses did not dIm his patriotism
and when the var broke out he was
among the 1lxst to enlist He received
. wound IN the chest which brought
unremitting suffering and caused mis-
death q dozen years later when the
future novelist was young child. Or
these years Mrs. Southworth wrote:
-.ye after year from my eighth 10
J sixteenth year, ! grew more lonely, re-
tired into myself more. until notwith-
standing a strong. ardent. demonsfratife
femperament Decan1e cold, reserved
and distracted.
LET me pass over in silence the
stormy and disastrous days OF my
wretciled girlhood and womanhooo days
that stamped upon my brow OF youth
the burrows Of so years"
From one description she was an
eerie. imaginative child with large and
l1strous ewes and little else of beauty
fo years she was bind, but fortunate
IL regsine1 full Use Of her sight
DESIRED by Husband.
Ia 1910 she was married TO Fred
ericK T. Southworth Of Utica, n. Y,
bat her welded happiness was brief.
after a few years he deserted her and
small children To accomplish this she
became a teacher in the public schools
CT Washington
Berause Of this connection for many
years all Of bar writing was done at
zsgnt-!n few hours Snatched from
Siecp, work and pressing household
duties, including the care OF q sick child.
Her first few stories were written for
the love Of writing and published with
cut compensation. Many Of he- works
al this period we're refused by editors
as unworthy" and the disappointment
was bitter to the woman who had
iabOred SO faithfully az her writing dur
ing the night hours.
She was not TO be denied. however
and ia 1886 she became paid writer
FOX the New Era In l847 her novel
sRer1bution," ran through 10 numbers
IL the New Era, the first serial pub
lisl7ed In this country. The same year
EzYpeT'g published the serial in book
form and her success became assured
In all Mrs Southworth wrote 70
norels-penning them all out in long
hand She also elaborated with other
writers OF the period and is credited
with having inspired Whittier's poem
Barbara Frletchie"
Some Of her novels we're dramatizeo
and many OF them translated into for
eagn languages They are described al
being intensely exciting in their plots
but written always with a moral pur-
pose and wholesome in their atmos-
pnere.
Children Survive.
In the hot Summer Of 1899 she dieo
II her beloved cottage and vas buried
ia Oak Hill Cemetery. Her two chill
dren. Mrs. james Valentine Lawrence
and Or. Richmond J. Southworth, sur.
yive
Tfe new owners plan 10 preservs
Prospect Cottage IN all its picturesque
beauty Az the time Of the purcfaaS.
AIRS Busch national president, said:
Having acquired the property ~
desired. the most logical site in tn
National Capital for the home Of Pei
Women. ve shall make haste slowly Il
the next few months in completing OIL
plsns for the utilization Of this oil
home In improving and developing
the property We are likely 70 make som
changes, though these viii come slowly
Whatever We %, We shall always keel
intact the room that was the librar
Of the old SoJthaorth nome. in wficl
she did most Of her writing for man
years"
Canada. Argentina and the Neither