Jane Grant
Encyclopedia
Jane Grant was a New York City
journalist
who co-founded The New Yorker
with her first husband, Harold Ross
.
, and grew up and went to school in Girard, Kansas
. Grant originally trained to be a vocalist. She came to New York City
at 16 to pursue singing, but fell into magazine writing, later joining the staff of The New York Times
.
Grant was close friends with critic Alexander Woollcott
; it was through him that she joined the Algonquin Round Table
. Another good friend was the writer Janet Flanner
. Grant showed Ross her friend's letters from Paris; Ross liked them so much he tapped her to be one of The New Yorker 's greatest correspondents. Grant also helped on the business side of the magazine in its earliest days.
In World War I
, Grant, who was also a talented singer and dancer, talked her way onto a troopship to France
. She joined the American Red Cross
and entertained soldiers during shows in Paris and at camps. It was in France
that she first met Ross and the future "Vicious Circle" members.
In 1921, Grant, along with Ruth Hale
, founded the Lucy Stone League
, which was dedicated, in the manner of Lucy Stone
, to helping women keep their maiden names after marriage (as Grant did after her two marriages); the group was a vocal group of feminists throughout the 1920s and '30s.
Ross and Grant divorced in 1929 after nine years of marriage. She published a memoir about Ross called Ross, The New Yorker and Me (Reynal and Co., 1968 NY NY).
As a journalist
for The New York Times
(she was the first woman reporter in the city room), she covered women's issues, questioning public figures about their views on the status of women and interviewing women who worked in traditionally male professions.
In 1939 she married William B. Harris, the editor of Fortune magazine. Grant became even more active in feminist causes, reactivating the Lucy Stone League
and expanding its purpose. She continued to work for the rights of women into the 1960s, advocating for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment
and serving on the National Council of Women.
She and Harris moved from Manhattan to Litchfield, Connecticut
, before World War II
. The couple had a love of nature and flowers; so they founded White Flower Farm out of a barn on their property. In the 1950s they started a mail order business for home gardening; it was a big success.
Grant died in 1972 on the Connecticut farm she shared with her husband. Harris sold the nursery to its current owner, Eliot Wadsworth, in 1976.
In 1974 Harris was approached for an endowment by the University of Oregon
. After a visit to the school, he agreed to fund a center that engaged in research on women and gender studies. In 1976, Harris donated Jane Grant's papers to the University of Oregon. Upon his death in 1981, he left a $3.5 million bequest in his wife's name to establish the Center for the Study of Women in Society.
, explaining why keeping one's name is important for one's identity and thus was a feminist
issue, uncovering the protective laws, anticipating the denial of jobs to women when World War II
would end, noting that gaining suffrage
was important but not enough, and summarizing explicitly discriminatory laws.
in the 1994 film Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle
.
New 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...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
who co-founded The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
with her first husband, Harold Ross
Harold Ross
Harold Wallace Ross was an American journalist and founder of The New Yorker magazine, which he edited from the magazine's inception in 1925 to his death....
.
Her life
She was born Jeanette Cole Grant in Joplin, MissouriJoplin, Missouri
Joplin is a city in southern Jasper County and northern Newton County in the southwestern corner of the US state of Missouri. Joplin is the largest city in Jasper County, though it is not the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 50,150...
, and grew up and went to school in Girard, Kansas
Girard, Kansas
Girard is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,789.- History :...
. Grant originally trained to be a vocalist. She came to New York City
New 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...
at 16 to pursue singing, but fell into magazine writing, later joining the staff of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
.
Grant was close friends with critic Alexander Woollcott
Alexander Woollcott
Alexander Humphreys Woollcott was an American critic and commentator for The New Yorker magazine and a member of the Algonquin Round Table....
; it was through him that she joined the Algonquin Round Table
Algonquin Round Table
The Algonquin Round Table was a celebrated group of New York City writers, critics, actors and wits. Gathering initially as part of a practical joke, members of "The Vicious Circle", as they dubbed themselves, met for lunch each day at the Algonquin Hotel from 1919 until roughly 1929...
. Another good friend was the writer Janet Flanner
Janet Flanner
Janet Flanner was an American writer and journalist who served as the Paris correspondent of The New Yorker magazine from 1925 until she retired in 1975. She wrote under the pen name "Genêt"...
. Grant showed Ross her friend's letters from Paris; Ross liked them so much he tapped her to be one of The New Yorker 's greatest correspondents. Grant also helped on the business side of the magazine in its earliest days.
In World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Grant, who was also a talented singer and dancer, talked her way onto a troopship to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. She joined the American Red Cross
American Red Cross
The American Red Cross , also known as the American National Red Cross, is a volunteer-led, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief and education inside the United States. It is the designated U.S...
and entertained soldiers during shows in Paris and at camps. It was in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
that she first met Ross and the future "Vicious Circle" members.
In 1921, Grant, along with Ruth Hale
Ruth Hale (feminist)
Ruth Hale was a freelance writer who worked for women's rights in New York City, USA, during the era before and after World War I...
, founded the Lucy Stone League
Lucy Stone League
The Lucy Stone League is a women’s rights organization founded in 1921. Its motto is "My name is the symbol of my identity and must not be lost"...
, which was dedicated, in the manner of Lucy Stone
Lucy Stone
Lucy Stone was a prominent American abolitionist and suffragist, and a vocal advocate and organizer promoting rights for women. In 1847, Stone was the first woman from Massachusetts to earn a college degree. She spoke out for women's rights and against slavery at a time when women were discouraged...
, to helping women keep their maiden names after marriage (as Grant did after her two marriages); the group was a vocal group of feminists throughout the 1920s and '30s.
Ross and Grant divorced in 1929 after nine years of marriage. She published a memoir about Ross called Ross, The New Yorker and Me (Reynal and Co., 1968 NY NY).
As a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
for The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
(she was the first woman reporter in the city room), she covered women's issues, questioning public figures about their views on the status of women and interviewing women who worked in traditionally male professions.
In 1939 she married William B. Harris, the editor of Fortune magazine. Grant became even more active in feminist causes, reactivating the Lucy Stone League
Lucy Stone League
The Lucy Stone League is a women’s rights organization founded in 1921. Its motto is "My name is the symbol of my identity and must not be lost"...
and expanding its purpose. She continued to work for the rights of women into the 1960s, advocating for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution. The ERA was originally written by Alice Paul and, in 1923, it was introduced in the Congress for the first time...
and serving on the National Council of Women.
She and Harris moved from Manhattan to Litchfield, Connecticut
Litchfield, Connecticut
Litchfield is a town in and former county seat of Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States, and is known as an affluent summer resort. The population was 8,316 at the 2000 census. The boroughs of Bantam and Litchfield are located within the town...
, before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The couple had a love of nature and flowers; so they founded White Flower Farm out of a barn on their property. In the 1950s they started a mail order business for home gardening; it was a big success.
Grant died in 1972 on the Connecticut farm she shared with her husband. Harris sold the nursery to its current owner, Eliot Wadsworth, in 1976.
In 1974 Harris was approached for an endowment by the University of Oregon
University of Oregon
-Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :...
. After a visit to the school, he agreed to fund a center that engaged in research on women and gender studies. In 1976, Harris donated Jane Grant's papers to the University of Oregon. Upon his death in 1981, he left a $3.5 million bequest in his wife's name to establish the Center for the Study of Women in Society.
Feminist writing
She wrote Confession of a Feminist, describing the experience of being feminist, recounting her experience as a reporter among men for the N.Y. TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, explaining why keeping one's name is important for one's identity and thus was a feminist
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
issue, uncovering the protective laws, anticipating the denial of jobs to women when World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
would end, noting that gaining 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...
was important but not enough, and summarizing explicitly discriminatory laws.
Film portrayal
Grant was portrayed by the actress Martha PlimptonMartha Plimpton
Martha Campbell Plimpton is an American actress and singer and former model. Plimpton is a screen, stage and television actress. She first appeared as Jonsy in the feature film River Rats before rising to prominence in the Richard Donner film The Goonies portraying the character Stef...
in the 1994 film Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle is a 1994 film scripted by writer/director Alan Rudolph and former Washington Star reporter Randy Sue Coburn...
.