Grace Stone Coates
Encyclopedia
Grace Stone Coates wrote short stories, novels, poetry, and news articles. She spent most of her time writing out of her home in Martinsdale, Montana
. Coates published her first poem, "The Intruder," in 1921 and her first novel, Black Cherries, in 1931. She co-edited and wrote for Frontier, a literary magazine edited by Harold G. Merriam, a creative writing professor at the University of Montana.
to Heinrich and Olive Stone. She was the youngest of four children. Grace and her older sister, Helen, were born to Heinrich and Olive. The two older children were born to Heinrich and his first wife. Heinrich had a rich classical background; he taught Greek in Berlin
before coming to the United States
. He channeled his love of the classics into his interactions with Grace, recited poetry to her, took her on long walks to learn the names of plants and trees, and read her mythology until she could recite it from memory. Her poetry was greatly influenced by her childhood and by her father.
Her family moved to Wisconsin
when she was in high school, where she attended Oshkosh State Normal School. Coates also attended the University of Chicago
, the University of Southern California
and the University of Hawaii
. She never finished a degree, but received her teaching certificate in 1900.
, to be closer to her sister Helen, and started teaching. She later moved to Butte
, where she met her future husband, Henderson Coates. The two married in 1910 and moved to Martinsdale
, where her husband opened a general store with his brother. Grace taught in Martinsdale from 1914–1919 and was the Meagher County
Superintendent from 1918-1921. This is where she started writing. Her first poem, "The Intruder," was published in Poetry, a Magazine of Verse.
In 1927 H.G. Merriam asked Coates to help him with a literary magazine, Frontier. She started writing articles and poems for the magazine and before long became the assistant editor. Merriam encouraged her to get her work published, helped her find publishers, and in 1931 she published two books; her first novel, Black Cherries, and her first book of poems, Mead & Mangel-Wurzel. Coates worked for the magazine out of Northwest Montana, until it stopped circulating in 1939. During the Great Depression
, Coates helped write the WPA Federal Writers' Project Montana state guidebook. Coates stopped writing seriously in the 1930s, but she continued to participate in her favorite form of writing through letters. After her death, her letters were collected and used to illustrate her life in a biography written by Lee Rostad.
Grace started losing a little bit of her mental capacity when her husband died. She began to see things that weren't there, such as intruders in her house, and was found wandering around outside in the middle of the night. She had a hard time remembering when and what she ate, and suffered from malnutrition. Her neighbors in Martinsdale
got together in 1963 to move her to a retirement home
in Bozeman
. There, with a healthy diet and adequate rest, she was able to write a column for the Bozeman Daily Chronicle
. The column was named Hillcrest Highlights, for the Hillcrest Retirement Home she was living in. Coates passed away in 1976, she was 95. According to her wishes, her body was cremated, and the ashes were scattered west of Martinsdale
in one of the places she loved to walk.
state papers. She published a novel and two books of poetry in the early 1930s. She wrote letters. Her writing drew inspiration from her childhood, her love of nature, her love for her husband Henderson, and bouts with depression. Coates stopped writing everything but letters in the late 1930s, only to start back up again when she moved to a Bozeman
retirement home.
Historian Lee Rostad knew Coates when she lived in Martinsdale
and wanted to make sure Coates legacy wasn't forgotten. After Coates's death, she took it upon herself to collect as many letters and unpublished work as she could find and publish it in a biography, Honey Wine and Hunger Root, which was published in 1985. Rostad published two other books about Coates, one a collection of poetry, Food of Gods and Starvelings, and one a collection of letters and unpublished poems, Grace Stone Coates, Her Life in Letters.
Mead & Mangel-Wurzel, published in 1931 Caxton Printers Ltd. out of Caldwell, Idaho
Portulacas in the Wheat, her second book of poems, published in 1932
She co-authored Pat Tucker's book, Riding the High Country, published in 1933
Food of Gods and Starvelings, the Selected Poems of Grace Stone Coates, edited by Lee Rostad and Rick Newby, 2007, Drumlummon Institute, Helena, Montana
Grace Stone Coates, Her Life in Letters, Lee Rostad, 2004, Riverbend Publishing, Helena, Montana
Martinsdale, Montana
Martinsdale is an unincorporated community in southeastern Meagher County, Montana, United States. The town was a station stop on the now-abandoned transcontinental main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , and is a community center for nearby ranches and farms...
. Coates published her first poem, "The Intruder," in 1921 and her first novel, Black Cherries, in 1931. She co-edited and wrote for Frontier, a literary magazine edited by Harold G. Merriam, a creative writing professor at the University of Montana.
Early life
On May 20, 1881, Grace Genevieve Stone was born on a wheat farm in KansasKansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
to Heinrich and Olive Stone. She was the youngest of four children. Grace and her older sister, Helen, were born to Heinrich and Olive. The two older children were born to Heinrich and his first wife. Heinrich had a rich classical background; he taught Greek in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
before coming to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He channeled his love of the classics into his interactions with Grace, recited poetry to her, took her on long walks to learn the names of plants and trees, and read her mythology until she could recite it from memory. Her poetry was greatly influenced by her childhood and by her father.
Her family moved to Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
when she was in high school, where she attended Oshkosh State Normal School. Coates also attended the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
and the University of Hawaii
University of Hawaii
The University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...
. She never finished a degree, but received her teaching certificate in 1900.
Montana
Grace moved to Stevensville, MontanaStevensville, Montana
Stevensville is a town in Ravalli County, Montana, United States. The population was 1,553 at the 2000 census.-History:Stevensville is officially recognized as the first permanent settlement in the state of Montana...
, to be closer to her sister Helen, and started teaching. She later moved to Butte
Butte, Montana
Butte is a city in Montana and the county seat of Silver Bow County, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. As of the 2010 census, Butte's population was 34,200...
, where she met her future husband, Henderson Coates. The two married in 1910 and moved to Martinsdale
Martinsdale, Montana
Martinsdale is an unincorporated community in southeastern Meagher County, Montana, United States. The town was a station stop on the now-abandoned transcontinental main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , and is a community center for nearby ranches and farms...
, where her husband opened a general store with his brother. Grace taught in Martinsdale from 1914–1919 and was the Meagher County
Meagher County, Montana
-National protected areas:*Gallatin National Forest *Helena National Forest *Lewis and Clark National Forest -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 1,932 people, 803 households, and 529 families residing in the county...
Superintendent from 1918-1921. This is where she started writing. Her first poem, "The Intruder," was published in Poetry, a Magazine of Verse.
In 1927 H.G. Merriam asked Coates to help him with a literary magazine, Frontier. She started writing articles and poems for the magazine and before long became the assistant editor. Merriam encouraged her to get her work published, helped her find publishers, and in 1931 she published two books; her first novel, Black Cherries, and her first book of poems, Mead & Mangel-Wurzel. Coates worked for the magazine out of Northwest Montana, until it stopped circulating in 1939. During the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, Coates helped write the WPA Federal Writers' Project Montana state guidebook. Coates stopped writing seriously in the 1930s, but she continued to participate in her favorite form of writing through letters. After her death, her letters were collected and used to illustrate her life in a biography written by Lee Rostad.
Grace started losing a little bit of her mental capacity when her husband died. She began to see things that weren't there, such as intruders in her house, and was found wandering around outside in the middle of the night. She had a hard time remembering when and what she ate, and suffered from malnutrition. Her neighbors in Martinsdale
Martinsdale, Montana
Martinsdale is an unincorporated community in southeastern Meagher County, Montana, United States. The town was a station stop on the now-abandoned transcontinental main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , and is a community center for nearby ranches and farms...
got together in 1963 to move her to a retirement home
Retirement home
A retirement home is a multi-residence housing facility intended for senior citizens. Typically each person or couple in the home has an apartment-style room or suite of rooms. Additional facilities are provided within the building, including facilities for meals, gathering, recreation, and some...
in Bozeman
Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists...
. There, with a healthy diet and adequate rest, she was able to write a column for the Bozeman Daily Chronicle
Bozeman Daily Chronicle
The Bozeman Daily Chronicle is a daily newspaper published in Bozeman, Montana. It is the fifth largest newspaper in Montana.Founded in 1883, the paper was originally a weekly. Since 1996, the Chronicle has been published each morning, and its first Saturday edition was published in 1997. The paper...
. The column was named Hillcrest Highlights, for the Hillcrest Retirement Home she was living in. Coates passed away in 1976, she was 95. According to her wishes, her body was cremated, and the ashes were scattered west of Martinsdale
Martinsdale, Montana
Martinsdale is an unincorporated community in southeastern Meagher County, Montana, United States. The town was a station stop on the now-abandoned transcontinental main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , and is a community center for nearby ranches and farms...
in one of the places she loved to walk.
Work
In the 1920s and first part of the 1930s, Coates published well over a hundred poems and short stories. She edited for Caxton Press (Idaho), Frontier, and wrote stories for local and MontanaMontana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
state papers. She published a novel and two books of poetry in the early 1930s. She wrote letters. Her writing drew inspiration from her childhood, her love of nature, her love for her husband Henderson, and bouts with depression. Coates stopped writing everything but letters in the late 1930s, only to start back up again when she moved to a Bozeman
Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists...
retirement home.
Historian Lee Rostad knew Coates when she lived in Martinsdale
Martinsdale, Montana
Martinsdale is an unincorporated community in southeastern Meagher County, Montana, United States. The town was a station stop on the now-abandoned transcontinental main line of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , and is a community center for nearby ranches and farms...
and wanted to make sure Coates legacy wasn't forgotten. After Coates's death, she took it upon herself to collect as many letters and unpublished work as she could find and publish it in a biography, Honey Wine and Hunger Root, which was published in 1985. Rostad published two other books about Coates, one a collection of poetry, Food of Gods and Starvelings, and one a collection of letters and unpublished poems, Grace Stone Coates, Her Life in Letters.
Authored Books
Black Cherries, published in 1931 by Alfred KnopfAlfred A. Knopf
Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. is a New York publishing house, founded by Alfred A. Knopf, Sr. in 1915. It was acquired by Random House in 1960 and is now part of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group at Random House. The publishing house is known for its borzoi trademark , which was designed by co-founder...
Mead & Mangel-Wurzel, published in 1931 Caxton Printers Ltd. out of Caldwell, Idaho
Caldwell, Idaho
Caldwell is a city in and the county seat of Canyon County, Idaho, United States. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated the population to be 43,281, as of July 2009.Caldwell is the home of the College of Idaho. It is considered part of the Boise metropolitan area....
Portulacas in the Wheat, her second book of poems, published in 1932
She co-authored Pat Tucker's book, Riding the High Country, published in 1933
Books about
Honey Wine and Hunger Root, Lee Rostad, 1985, Falcon Press, Helena/Billings, MontanaFood of Gods and Starvelings, the Selected Poems of Grace Stone Coates, edited by Lee Rostad and Rick Newby, 2007, Drumlummon Institute, Helena, Montana
Grace Stone Coates, Her Life in Letters, Lee Rostad, 2004, Riverbend Publishing, Helena, Montana