Susan Hale
Encyclopedia
Susan Hale was an American author, traveler and artist.
and Sarah Preston Everett who had a total of eleven children. Susan's father, Nathan Hale, nephew and namesake of the patriot hero
, was a lawyer and editor/owner of the Boston Daily Advertiser
while her mother, also an author, was a sister of Edward Everett
, a Unitarian minister and politician.
Growing up, Susan was mostly the companion of her older sister Lucretia
. She was educated privately by tutors until she was 16, and then entered the school of George B. Emerson. Without any particular teaching, she learned to draw and to paint early in life.
For many years, she was a successful teacher in Boston. She started on this occupation when her father became ill and the family income needed to be supplemented.
In 1860, she moved to Brookline
with her family. Her father died there in 1862 and her mother in 1865. When the family situation broke up in 1867, Susan and her sister Lucretia went abroad to stay with their brother Charles
who was consul general of the United States
in Egypt
. On returning from abroad, Susan took rooms at 91 Boylston Street
in Boston and continued her teaching.
In 1872, she decided she wanted to get the best training in watercolor she could, and went abroad again and studied art in Paris, France
, and Weimar, Germany
, for nearly a year. When she returned in 1873, she began giving lessons in watercolors. She lived and maintained a studio in the Art Club at 64 Boylston Street. Later she began holding meetings where she read or talked to people.
In 1883, she went to keep house at 39 Highland Street in Matunuck, Rhode Island
, where her brother Edward Everett Hale
had had a dwelling built in 1873. Her brother and his wife had gone abroad to look after their sick sister. Susan eventually moved most of her things to Matunuck, and began to spend time there regularly during summers. During winters, she traveled. In earlier years, she had spent winters working in Boston and traveled in the summer. She continued visiting Boston between her travels abroad and her stays at Matunuck. Her watercolors were mostly landscapes done during her travels; she also described her travels in vivid detail in letters to her sister Lucretia.
Biography
She was born in Boston, Massachusetts to Nathan HaleNathan Hale (journalist)
Nathan Hale was an American journalist and newspaper publisher who introduced regular editorial comment as a newspaper feature.-Life and career:...
and Sarah Preston Everett who had a total of eleven children. Susan's father, Nathan Hale, nephew and namesake of the patriot hero
Nathan Hale
Nathan Hale was a soldier for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British...
, was a lawyer and editor/owner of the Boston Daily Advertiser
Boston Daily Advertiser
The Boston Daily Advertiser was the first daily newspaper in Boston, and for many years the only daily paper in Boston.-History:...
while her mother, also an author, was a sister of Edward Everett
Edward Everett
Edward Everett was an American politician and educator from Massachusetts. Everett, a Whig, served as U.S. Representative, and U.S. Senator, the 15th Governor of Massachusetts, Minister to Great Britain, and United States Secretary of State...
, a Unitarian minister and politician.
Growing up, Susan was mostly the companion of her older sister Lucretia
Lucretia Peabody Hale
Lucretia Peabody Hale was a United States journalist and author.-Biography:Hale was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and educated at George B. Emerson's school there...
. She was educated privately by tutors until she was 16, and then entered the school of George B. Emerson. Without any particular teaching, she learned to draw and to paint early in life.
For many years, she was a successful teacher in Boston. She started on this occupation when her father became ill and the family income needed to be supplemented.
In 1860, she moved to Brookline
Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, which borders on the cities of Boston and Newton. As of the 2010 census, the population of the town was 58,732.-Etymology:...
with her family. Her father died there in 1862 and her mother in 1865. When the family situation broke up in 1867, Susan and her sister Lucretia went abroad to stay with their brother Charles
Charles Hale
Charles Hale of Boston was a legislator in the Massachusetts state House and Senate intermittently between 1855 and 1877. He was house speaker in 1859. In the 1860s he lived in Cairo, Egypt, as the American consul-general...
who was consul general of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. On returning from abroad, Susan took rooms at 91 Boylston Street
Boylston Street
Boylston Street is the name of a major east-west thoroughfare in the city of Boston, Massachusetts. Another Boylston Street runs through Boston's western suburbs....
in Boston and continued her teaching.
In 1872, she decided she wanted to get the best training in watercolor she could, and went abroad again and studied art in Paris, France
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and Weimar, Germany
Weimar
Weimar is a city in Germany famous for its cultural heritage. It is located in the federal state of Thuringia , north of the Thüringer Wald, east of Erfurt, and southwest of Halle and Leipzig. Its current population is approximately 65,000. The oldest record of the city dates from the year 899...
, for nearly a year. When she returned in 1873, she began giving lessons in watercolors. She lived and maintained a studio in the Art Club at 64 Boylston Street. Later she began holding meetings where she read or talked to people.
In 1883, she went to keep house at 39 Highland Street in Matunuck, Rhode Island
Matunuck, Rhode Island
Matunuck is a village in South Kingstown, Rhode Island, United States near Charlestown, Rhode Island. The village is located on a point along the southern Atlantic coast of Rhode Island off of U.S. Route 1...
, where her brother Edward Everett Hale
Edward Everett Hale
Edward Everett Hale was an American author, historian and Unitarian clergyman. He was a child prodigy who exhibited extraordinary literary skills and at age thirteen was enrolled at Harvard University where he graduated second in his class...
had had a dwelling built in 1873. Her brother and his wife had gone abroad to look after their sick sister. Susan eventually moved most of her things to Matunuck, and began to spend time there regularly during summers. During winters, she traveled. In earlier years, she had spent winters working in Boston and traveled in the summer. She continued visiting Boston between her travels abroad and her stays at Matunuck. Her watercolors were mostly landscapes done during her travels; she also described her travels in vivid detail in letters to her sister Lucretia.
Published works
- A Family Flight through France, Germany, Norway and Switzerland. 1881 (with Edward Everett Hale)
- A Family Flight over Egypt and Syria. 1882 (with Edward Everett Hale)
- A Family Flight through Spain. 1883
- Self-Instructive Lessons in Painting with Oil and Water-Colors on Silk, Satin, Velvet, and Other Fabrics Including Lustra Painting and the Use of Other Mediums. 1885
- Men and Manners of the Eighteenth Century. 1898
- Addison and Gay. 1898
- Young Americans in Spain. 1899
- Letters of Susan Hale. 1919
- Nonsense Book; A Collection of Limericks. 1919
- Inklings for Thinklings. 1919