Sarah T. Bolton

Sarah T. Bolton

Engraving by John Sartain, Philadelphia
Born December 18, 1814
Newport, Kentucky
Died August 5, 1893
Indianapolis, Indiana
Nationality American
Spouse Nathaniel Bolton
Addison Reese

Sarah Tittle Bolton née Barrett (December 18, 1814 – August 5, 1893) was an American poet and activist. She has been called Indiana's "pioneer poet" and is best known for her poem "Paddle Your Own Canoe" (1850). An activist for women's rights, she worked with Robert Dale Owen during Indiana's 1850–1851 constitutional convention to include the recognition of women's property rights.

Biography

Early life

Sarah Barrett was born in Newport, Kentucky but moved to Indiana as a child.[1] The family first settled in Jennings County, and later Madison.[2]

As a young woman she contributed poems to the Madison newspaper. These poems attracted the attention of the paper's editor, Nathaniel Bolton (July 25, 1803 – November 26, 1858), and the two were soon married.[2]

Career

The couple moved to Indianapolis where Sarah gained a wide reputation as a poet. In 1855, Nathaniel was appointed consul to Geneva, Switzerland, and Sarah accompanied him to his new post. They remained in Switzerland for three years. During this time Sarah acted as a correspondent for the Cincinnati Commercial. In 1858 they returned to Indianapolis. Nathaniel died a few months after their return.[2] Nathaniel co-founded Indianapolis's first newspaper, the Gazette, and was Indiana State Librarian from 1851 to 1854.

After her first husband's death, Sarah married Addison Reese, a judge. They lived in Missouri for two years, but she found the climate unhealthy and moved back to Indianapolis. She only used the name Reese for business, and continued with the name Bolton for other purposes.[3]

She died in Indianapolis in 1893.[2] She was buried in that city's Crown Hill Cemetery.

Legacy

Bolton's gravestone at the Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis.

Bolton was Indiana's foremost female singer for many years. A complete collection of her poetry was published in Indianapolis in 1886.[2] She has been called the "Pioneer Poet Laureate of Indiana".[4] She also donated to the State of Indiana 180 acres of land for the building of what was then known as the Indiana Hospital for the Insane.[5] She is commemorated by the Sarah T. Bolton Relief, a 1941 bronze relief in the Indiana Statehouse, Indianapolis.

Further reading

References

  1. ↑ "Sarah Bolton: "Hoosier Poetess" and Women's Rights Advocate". Blogging Hoosier History. Indiana Historical Bureau, Indianapolis, Indiana.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Kentucky in American Letters, 1794-1912, Vol 1, J. W. Thompson, Torch Press, Iowa, 1913.
  3. ↑ Harris Elwood Starr (1929). "Bolton, Sarah Tittle Barrett". Dictionary of American Biography. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
  4. ↑ Greasley, Philip A (2001). "Sarah T(itle Barrett) Bolton". Dictionary of Midwestern Literature. Indiana University Press. p. 75. ISBN 978-0-253-33609-5. Retrieved 11 December 2010.
  5. ↑ http://www.imhm.org/
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