Abigail Goodrich Wittelsey (November 29, 1788, Ridgefield, Connecticut

Ridgefield, Connecticut

Ridgefield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains, the 300-year-old community had a population of 24,638 at the 2010 census. The town center, which was formerly a borough, is defined by the U.S...

 - July 16, 1858, Colchester, Connecticut

Colchester, Connecticut

Colchester is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 14,551 at the 2000 census. In 2005 it was ranked 57th on the "100 Best Places to Live" in all of the United States, conducted by CNN...

) was an American editor who provided in her magazine information and instructions on the role of mothers.

Personal life

Born as the daughter of a clergyman she became the elder sister of Samuel Griswold Goodrich

Samuel Griswold Goodrich

Samuel Griswold Goodrich was an American author, better known under the pseudonym Peter Parley.-Biography:Goodrich was born at Ridgefield, Connecticut as the son of a Congregational minister...

. She was also sister to Charles A. Goodrich who became a Congregational minister. Abigail Goodrich married in 1808 reverend Samuel Whittelsey, a Congregational minister in New Preston. They lived from 1824 till 1828 in Canandaigua, New York

Canandaigua (city), New York

Canandaigua is a city in Ontario County, New York, USA, of which it is the county seat. The population was 11,264 at the 2000 census...

, where Abigail worked matron of the Ontario Female Seminary, managed by her husband. In 1828 they moved to Utica, New York

Utica, New York

Utica is a city in and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 62,235 at the 2010 census, an increase of 2.6% from the 2000 census....

 to establish their own girls’ seminary.

Mother's Magazine

The Mother's Magazine first appeared in January 1833, published by the Maternal Association of Utica. In 1834 it was transferred to New York City after the Whittelseys moved there. The Magazine reached a circulation of 10,000 in 1837. Her husband died in 1842 and Abigail was assisted by Reverend Darius Mead, her brother in law who is an editor of Christian Parlor Magazine. After Mother's Magazine got merged with the rival Mother's Journal and Family Visitant in 1848, Abigail resigned. She than launched with the help of her son Henry in 1850 Mrs. Whittelsey’s Magazine for Mothers which she kept up for two years. The Magazine was limited to language of theology.

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