Mary Johnston (novelist)

"Mary Johnston" redirects here. For other people with the same name, see Mary Johnston (disambiguation).

Mary Johnston (November 21, 1870 – May 9, 1936)^[1] was an American novelist and women's rights advocate.

The daughter of an American Civil War soldier who became a successful lawyer, Mary Johnston was born in the small town of Buchanan, Virginia. A small and frail girl, she was educated at home by family and tutors. She grew up with a love of books and was financially independent enough to devote herself to writing.

Johnston wrote historical books and novels that often combined romance with history. Her first book Prisoners of Hope (1898) dealt with colonial times in Virginia as did her second novel To Have and to Hold (1900) and 1904's Sir Mortimer. The Goddess of Reason (1907) uses the theme of the French Revolution and in Lewis Rand (1908), the author portrayed political life at the dawn of the 19th century.

To Have and to Hold was serialized in the The Atlantic Monthly in 1899 and published in 1900 by Houghton Mifflin. The book proved enormously popular and according to the New York Times was the bestselling novel in the United States in 1900. Johnston's next work titled Audrey was the 5th bestselling book in the U.S. in 1902, as was Sir Mortimer in 1904. Beyond her native America, Johnston's novels were also very popular in Canada and in England.

Three of Johnston's books were adapted to film. Audrey was made into a silent film of the same name in 1916 and her blockbuster work To Have and to Hold was made into a silent film in 1918 and again in 1922. Pioneers of the Old South was adapted to film in 1923 under the title Jamestown.

During her long career, in addition to twenty-three novels, Johnston wrote a number of short stories, one drama, and two long narrative poems. She used her fame to advocate women's rights, strongly supporting the women's suffrage movement.

Johnston died in 1936, at the age of 65, at her home in Warm Springs, Virginia.^[1] She was interred in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond.

Partial bibliography

• Prisoners of Hope (1898)
• To Have and to Hold (1900)
• Audrey (1902)
• Pioneers of the Old South (1903)
• Sir Mortimer (1904)
• The Goddess of Reason (1907)
• Lewis Rand (1908)
• The Long Roll (1911)
• Cease Firing (1912)
• Hagar (1913)
• The Witch (1914)
• The Fortunes of Garin (1915)
• The Wanderers (1917)
• Foes (1918)
• Michael Forth (1919)
• Sweet Rocket (1920)
• Silver Cross (1921)
• 1492 (1922)
• The Great Valley (1926)
• The Exile (1927)
• Miss Delicia Allen (1932)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Kelly, William W. (2006). "Mary Johnston (1870-1936)". In Flora, Joseph M.. Southern Writers: A New Biographical Dictionary. Vogel, Amber; Giemza, Bryan. Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University Press. pp. 222–223. ISBN 0-8071-3123-7. http://books.google.com/books?id=xxd451POnpYC&lpg=PA222&ots=dukQUDGPWF&dq=Mary%20Johnston%20novel%201936&pg=PA223#v=onepage&q=Mary%20Johnston%20novel%201936&f=false. Retrieved June 24, 2010. 

External links

• Mary Johnston's story
• Works by Mary Johnston at Project Gutenberg (plain text and HTML)
• Works by or about Mary Johnston at Internet Archive (scanned books original editions color illustrated)

Persondata
Name	Johnston, Mary
Alternative names
Short description	Novelist, women's rights activist
Date of birth	November 21, 1870
Place of birth	Buchanan, Virginia, United States
Date of death	May 9, 1936
Place of death	Warm Springs, Virginia, United States