Annie Nathan Meyer
Encyclopedia
Annie Nathan Meyer was an American
author and promoter of the higher education of women. Her sister was the activist Maud Nathan
and her nephew the author and poet Robert Nathan
.
, the daughter of Annie August and Robert Weeks Nathan, the Nathans are of America's colonial era Sephardic families. Meyer's childhood encountered many hardships as the Crash of 1873
damaged her parents’ financial status. In 1875 the family moved from New York to Green Bay, Wisconsin
for employment opportunities. Meyer watched her mother slip into depression as well as engage in affairs and drug use.
Since she was withheld from public school by her mother's request, Meyer was self-educated and claimed to have read all of Dickens
' work by the age of seven. Meyer tutored herself in order to enroll in the newly established Columbia College Collegiate Course for Women in 1885. The course did not recognize participants as fully enrolled students, for, at the time, Columbia University
did not officially enroll women. On February 15, 1887, she married Alfred Meyer, a prominent physician and a second cousin.
Within weeks of her wedding, Meyer began organizing a committee to found a women's college at Columbia in an effort to provide young women the opportunity for an education that she herself had not enjoyed. In January 1888, Meyer wrote a 2,500 word essay to The Nation
arguing New York City lacked culture in comparison to other major cities because it lacked a liberal arts college for women. Meyer understood that the idea was nothing without funding. So, working with Ella Weed
, she created a committee of fifty prominent New Yorkers willing to support the projected college. She overcame the opposition of the Columbia trustees with a brilliant maneuver: she named the college after F. A. P. Barnard, Columbia's recently deceased president and a strong advocate for coeducation. The college Meyer founded, Barnard College
, is one of the Seven Sisters
and ranks today as one of America's most elite colleges.
She later became known as an opponent of woman suffrage
(in direct conflict to her sister and suffragist Maud Nathan
). At one time, Annie Nathan Meyer was associate editor of the Broadway Magazine. She edited Woman's Work in America (1891) and contributed a series of articles to the New York Evening Post.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author and promoter of the higher education of women. Her sister was the activist Maud Nathan
Maud Nathan
250px|thumb|Maud Nathan at the 1913 International Woman's Suffrage Conference, BudapestMaud Nathan was an American social worker, labor activist and suffragist for women's right to vote....
and her nephew the author and poet Robert Nathan
Robert Nathan
Robert Gruntal Nathan was an American novelist and poet.-Biography:Nathan was born into a prominent New York family. He was educated in the United States and Switzerland and attended Harvard University for several years beginning in 1912. It was there that he began writing short fiction and poetry...
.
Life and career
Born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, the daughter of Annie August and Robert Weeks Nathan, the Nathans are of America's colonial era Sephardic families. Meyer's childhood encountered many hardships as the Crash of 1873
Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 triggered a severe international economic depression in both Europe and the United States that lasted until 1879, and even longer in some countries. The depression was known as the Great Depression until the 1930s, but is now known as the Long Depression...
damaged her parents’ financial status. In 1875 the family moved from New York to Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
for employment opportunities. Meyer watched her mother slip into depression as well as engage in affairs and drug use.
Since she was withheld from public school by her mother's request, Meyer was self-educated and claimed to have read all of Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
' work by the age of seven. Meyer tutored herself in order to enroll in the newly established Columbia College Collegiate Course for Women in 1885. The course did not recognize participants as fully enrolled students, for, at the time, Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
did not officially enroll women. On February 15, 1887, she married Alfred Meyer, a prominent physician and a second cousin.
Within weeks of her wedding, Meyer began organizing a committee to found a women's college at Columbia in an effort to provide young women the opportunity for an education that she herself had not enjoyed. In January 1888, Meyer wrote a 2,500 word essay to The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
arguing New York City lacked culture in comparison to other major cities because it lacked a liberal arts college for women. Meyer understood that the idea was nothing without funding. So, working with Ella Weed
Ella Weed
Ella Weed was an American educator, "the guiding spirit in the first four years" of Barnard College.-Life:After graduating from Vassar College, Ella Weed became principal of Miss Brown's School for Girls in New York. Annie Nathan Meyer interested her in the effort to establish Barnard College...
, she created a committee of fifty prominent New Yorkers willing to support the projected college. She overcame the opposition of the Columbia trustees with a brilliant maneuver: she named the college after F. A. P. Barnard, Columbia's recently deceased president and a strong advocate for coeducation. The college Meyer founded, Barnard College
Barnard College
Barnard College is a private women's liberal arts college and a member of the Seven Sisters. Founded in 1889, Barnard has been affiliated with Columbia University since 1900. The campus stretches along Broadway between 116th and 120th Streets in the Morningside Heights neighborhood in the borough...
, is one of the Seven Sisters
Seven Sisters (colleges)
The Seven Sisters are seven liberal arts colleges in the Northeastern United States that are historically women's colleges. They are Barnard College, Bryn Mawr College, Mount Holyoke College, Radcliffe College, Smith College, Vassar College, and Wellesley College. All were founded between 1837 and...
and ranks today as one of America's most elite colleges.
She later became known as an opponent of woman suffrage
Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...
(in direct conflict to her sister and suffragist Maud Nathan
Maud Nathan
250px|thumb|Maud Nathan at the 1913 International Woman's Suffrage Conference, BudapestMaud Nathan was an American social worker, labor activist and suffragist for women's right to vote....
). At one time, Annie Nathan Meyer was associate editor of the Broadway Magazine. She edited Woman's Work in America (1891) and contributed a series of articles to the New York Evening Post.
Works
- Barnard Beginnings (1935)
- Helen Brent, M. D. (1892)
- My Park Book (1898)
- Robert Annys: A Poor Priest (1901)
- The Dominant Sex (1911)
- The Dreamer; a Play in Three Acts (1912)
- Women's Work in America (1891)
- It's Been Fun: An Autobiography (1951)