Mary Louise Booth
Encyclopedia
Mary Louise Booth translator, writer
, editor
born in Millville, the present Yaphank, New York
to William Chatfield Booth and Nancy Monswell. She was editor of Harper's Bazaar
from its beginning in 1867 until her death. She was a prolific translator in to English the works of French authors.
. At an early age, she contributed to various journals. In 1845 and 1846 she taught in her father's school at Williamsburg, New York, but gave up that pursuit on account of her health, and devoted herself to literature.
Besides writing tales and sketches for newspapers and magazines, she translated from the French
The Marble-Worker's Manual (New York, 1856) and The Clock and Watch Maker's Manual. She translated Joseph Méry
's André Chénier and Edmond François Valentin About
's King of the Mountains for Emerson's Magazine, which also published original articles from her pen. She next translated Victor Cousin
's Secret History of the French Court: or, Life and Times of Madame de Chevreuse (1859). The same year the first edition of her History of the City of New York appeared, which was the result of great research. Next she assisted O. W. Wight
in making a series of translations of the French classics, and she also translated Edmund About's Germaine (Boston, 1860).
During the American Civil War
, she translated the works of eminent French writers in favor of the cause of the Union. In rapid succession appeared translations of: Agénor Gasparin's Uprising of a Great People and America before Europe (New York, 1861), Édouard René de Laboulaye
's Paris in America (New York, 1865), and Augustin Cochin
's Results of Emancipation and Results of Slavery (Boston, 1862). For this work she received praise and encouragement from President Lincoln
, Senator Sumner
, and other statesmen. During the entire war she maintained a correspondence with Gasparin, Cochin, Henri Martin
, Laboulaye, Charles Forbes René de Montalembert
, and other European sympathizers with the Union. She also translated at that time the Countess de Gasparin's Vesper, Camille, and Human Sorrows, and Count Gasparin's Happiness. Documents forwarded to her by French friends of the Union were translated and published in pamphlets, issued by the Union League Club, or printed in the New York journals.
Booth's next undertaking was a translation of Henri Martin's History of France. The two volumes treating of The Age of Louis XIV were issued in 1864, and two others, the last of the seventeen volumes of the original work, in 1866 under the title of The Decline of the French Monarchy. It was intended to follow these with the other volumes from the beginning, but, although she translated two others, the enterprise was abandoned for lack of success, and no more were printed. Her translation of Martin's abridgment of his History of France appeared in 1880.
She also translated Laboulaye's Fairy Book, Jean Macé's Fairy Tales and Blaise Pascal
's Lettres Provinciales (Provincial Letters). An enlarged edition of her History of the City of New York was printed in 1867, and a second revised and updated edition in 1880.
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, editor
Editor in chief
An editor-in-chief is a publication's primary editor, having final responsibility for the operations and policies. Additionally, the editor-in-chief is held accountable for delegating tasks to staff members as well as keeping up with the time it takes them to complete their task...
born in Millville, the present Yaphank, New York
Yaphank, New York
Yaphank is a census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 5,025 at the 2000 census.Yaphank is a community in the south part of the Town of Brookhaven...
to William Chatfield Booth and Nancy Monswell. She was editor of Harper's Bazaar
Harper's Bazaar
Harper’s Bazaar is an American fashion magazine, first published in 1867. Harper’s Bazaar is published by Hearst and, as a magazine, considers itself to be the style resource for “women who are the first to buy the best, from casual to couture.”...
from its beginning in 1867 until her death. She was a prolific translator in to English the works of French authors.
Biography
She was descended on her father's side from John Booth, who came to America about 1649, while her mother was the granddaughter of a refugee of the French RevolutionFrench Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
. At an early age, she contributed to various journals. In 1845 and 1846 she taught in her father's school at Williamsburg, New York, but gave up that pursuit on account of her health, and devoted herself to literature.
Besides writing tales and sketches for newspapers and magazines, she translated from the French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
The Marble-Worker's Manual (New York, 1856) and The Clock and Watch Maker's Manual. She translated Joseph Méry
Joseph Méry
Joseph Méry was a French writer.Méry was born at Marseille. An ardent romanticist, he collaborated with Auguste Barthélemy in many of his satires and wrote a great number of stories, now forgotten...
's André Chénier and Edmond François Valentin About
Edmond François Valentin About
Edmond François Valentin About was a French novelist, publicist and journalist.-Life:He was born at Dieuze, in the Moselle département in the Lorraine region of France. In 1848 he entered the École Normale, taking second place in the annual competition for admission in which Hippolyte Taine came...
's King of the Mountains for Emerson's Magazine, which also published original articles from her pen. She next translated Victor Cousin
Victor Cousin
Victor Cousin was a French philosopher. He was a proponent of Scottish Common Sense Realism and had an important influence on French educational policy.-Early life:...
's Secret History of the French Court: or, Life and Times of Madame de Chevreuse (1859). The same year the first edition of her History of the City of New York appeared, which was the result of great research. Next she assisted O. W. Wight
Orlando Williams Wight
Orlando Williams Wight was an American physician and translator, born in Centreville, N. Y. He was educated at the Rochestern College Institute, was ordained as a Universalist clergyman and accepted a call to Newark, New Jersey . Three years later he left the church to engage in literary work...
in making a series of translations of the French classics, and she also translated Edmund About's Germaine (Boston, 1860).
During the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, she translated the works of eminent French writers in favor of the cause of the Union. In rapid succession appeared translations of: Agénor Gasparin's Uprising of a Great People and America before Europe (New York, 1861), Édouard René de Laboulaye
Édouard René de Laboulaye
Édouard René Lefèbvre de Laboulaye was a French jurist, poet, author and anti-slavery activist...
's Paris in America (New York, 1865), and Augustin Cochin
Pierre-Suzanne-Augustin Cochin
Pierre-Suzanne-Augustin Cochin was a French politician and writer. He was the father of the Catholic politician Denys Cochin and the grandfather of the historian Augustin Cochin.-References:...
's Results of Emancipation and Results of Slavery (Boston, 1862). For this work she received praise and encouragement from President Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Senator Sumner
Charles Sumner
Charles Sumner was an American politician and senator from Massachusetts. An academic lawyer and a powerful orator, Sumner was the leader of the antislavery forces in Massachusetts and a leader of the Radical Republicans in the United States Senate during the American Civil War and Reconstruction,...
, and other statesmen. During the entire war she maintained a correspondence with Gasparin, Cochin, Henri Martin
Henri Martin
Henri Martin was a French historian celebrated in his own day, whose modern reputation has been eclipsed by the greater literary and interpretive powers of his contemporary, the equally passionate patriot Jules Michelet, whose works have often been reprinted.-Biography:Having first written a few...
, Laboulaye, Charles Forbes René de Montalembert
Charles Forbes René de Montalembert
Charles Forbes René de Montalembert was a French publicist and historian.-Family history:He belonged to a family of Angoumois, which could trace its descent back to the 13th century. Charters carry the history of the house two centuries further...
, and other European sympathizers with the Union. She also translated at that time the Countess de Gasparin's Vesper, Camille, and Human Sorrows, and Count Gasparin's Happiness. Documents forwarded to her by French friends of the Union were translated and published in pamphlets, issued by the Union League Club, or printed in the New York journals.
Booth's next undertaking was a translation of Henri Martin's History of France. The two volumes treating of The Age of Louis XIV were issued in 1864, and two others, the last of the seventeen volumes of the original work, in 1866 under the title of The Decline of the French Monarchy. It was intended to follow these with the other volumes from the beginning, but, although she translated two others, the enterprise was abandoned for lack of success, and no more were printed. Her translation of Martin's abridgment of his History of France appeared in 1880.
She also translated Laboulaye's Fairy Book, Jean Macé's Fairy Tales and Blaise Pascal
Blaise Pascal
Blaise Pascal , was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer and Catholic philosopher. He was a child prodigy who was educated by his father, a tax collector in Rouen...
's Lettres Provinciales (Provincial Letters). An enlarged edition of her History of the City of New York was printed in 1867, and a second revised and updated edition in 1880.