Ruth Pine Furniss
Encyclopedia
Ruth Pine Furniss was an American writer who published several short stories
and novels.
(Troy, New York) and Miss Porter’s School
(Farmington, Connecticut). She studied short story writing with Dr. Blanche Colton Williams at Columbia University
and went on to publish a number of short stories and novels.
It is believed Furniss suffered from manic-depression, which was treated with periods of institutionalization, shock-therapy, a topectomy, and ultimately, a lobotomy
. Furniss’s writings drew on her struggle with illness and her exposure to various medical treatments, as can be seen in her novels Gay (1928), Snow: A Love Story (1929), and The Dreamland Tree (an unpublished novel completed in 1952 after Furniss received a topectomy and shock therapy). Furniss published The Layman Looks at Doctors (1929) under the pseudonyms S.W. and J.T. Pierce, who were a fictional couple.
In 1912 Furniss married Dr. Henry Dawson Furniss (d. 1942), with whom she had five children, three of whom survived childhood (Henry Dawson, James P., and W. Todd). The Furniss family lived in Pelham, New York
, and in New York City. During World War II Furniss served as a Gray Lady with the Red Cross. Furniss was hospitalized at several points during her life, including periods at Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
and Central Islip Psychiatric Center
(Long Island). Furniss died of a heart attack in December 1957, at the age of 64.
Short Stories
Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...
and novels.
Biography
Ruth Kellogg Pine Furniss was born on March 2, 1893, to Charles LeRoy and Grace Eddy Kellogg Pine in Lansingburg, New York. She attended the Emma Willard SchoolEmma Willard School
The Emma Willard School, originally called Troy Female Seminary and often referred to simply as "Emma," is an independent university-preparatory day and boarding school for young women, located in Troy, New York on Mount Ida, offering grades 9-12 and postgraduate coursework...
(Troy, New York) and Miss Porter’s School
Miss Porter's School
Miss Porter's School, sometimes simply referred to as Porter's or Farmington, is a private college preparatory school for girls located in Farmington, Connecticut.- History :...
(Farmington, Connecticut). She studied short story writing with Dr. Blanche Colton Williams at 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...
and went on to publish a number of short stories and novels.
It is believed Furniss suffered from manic-depression, which was treated with periods of institutionalization, shock-therapy, a topectomy, and ultimately, a lobotomy
Lobotomy
Lobotomy "; τομή – tomē: "cut/slice") is a neurosurgical procedure, a form of psychosurgery, also known as a leukotomy or leucotomy . It consists of cutting the connections to and from the prefrontal cortex, the anterior part of the frontal lobes of the brain...
. Furniss’s writings drew on her struggle with illness and her exposure to various medical treatments, as can be seen in her novels Gay (1928), Snow: A Love Story (1929), and The Dreamland Tree (an unpublished novel completed in 1952 after Furniss received a topectomy and shock therapy). Furniss published The Layman Looks at Doctors (1929) under the pseudonyms S.W. and J.T. Pierce, who were a fictional couple.
In 1912 Furniss married Dr. Henry Dawson Furniss (d. 1942), with whom she had five children, three of whom survived childhood (Henry Dawson, James P., and W. Todd). The Furniss family lived in Pelham, New York
Pelham, New York
Pelham, New York is the name of two locations in Westchester County, New York:*Pelham , New York, the Town of Pelham*Pelham Manor , New York, the Village of Pelham Manor*Pelham , New York, the Village of Pelham...
, and in New York City. During World War II Furniss served as a Gray Lady with the Red Cross. Furniss was hospitalized at several points during her life, including periods at Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center, formerly known as Pilgrim State Hospital, is a state-run psychiatric hospital located in Brentwood, New York. At the time it opened, it was the largest hospital of any kind in the world...
and Central Islip Psychiatric Center
Central Islip Psychiatric Center
The Central Islip Psychiatric Center was a psychiatric hospital in Central Islip, New York, USA from 1889 until 1996.The center was one of the four major hospital "farms" in central Long Island to house the sick from New York City; the others were Kings Park, Pilgrim State Hospital, and Edgewood...
(Long Island). Furniss died of a heart attack in December 1957, at the age of 64.
Novels
- Gay. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1928.
- Snow: A Love Story. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1929.
- The Layman Looks at Doctors. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1929.
- The Dreamland Tree. Unpublished.
Short Stories
- "Sentence." Charm (December 1924).
- "Only Once." The New Eve (April 1926).
- "Relax." Chicago Sunday Tribune (May 9, 1926).
- "Clay." Transition (August 1927).
- "Bess Does Her Best." Chicago Sunday Tribune (November 27, 1927).
- "Answer." Transition (September 1929). Reprinted in The Best Short Stories of 1930 edited by Edward J. O'Brien (New York: Dodd, Mead and Company, 1930).
- "Triangle." Harper's Bazaar (July 1930).
Articles
- "Notes on Apprenticeship." The Editor, Vol. 73, No. 9 (1926).
- "The Second Shall Be First." The Editor, Vol. 82, No. 11 (1928).
Archive
- Ruth Pine Furniss Papers (YCAL MSS 431). Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript LibraryBeinecke Rare Book and Manuscript LibraryYale University's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library was a 1963 gift of the Beinecke family. The building was designed by architect Gordon Bunshaft of the firm of Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill, and is the largest building in the world reserved exclusively for the preservation of rare books...
, Yale UniversityYale UniversityYale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
.