Alabama Book: Women in Literature in 1895

Mary Lafayette Robbins opens her introduction by noting that "The making of this book has been a labor of love." Her goal is to make known the achievements of Alabama women in intellectual development, specifically literature. By page two her agenda is clear, however. She is critical of the whole "new woman" concept then current in America that promoted the idea women could move beyond their "proper environment." Robbins then promotes the idea that literary clubs and literature are good fits for the "capacities and limitations of woman."

Developments of the day, the suffrage movement, single women working outside the home and even riding bicycles really put the fear in promoters of the status quo.

Robbins does make important observations about Alabama women and "the world of letters":

At least Robbins doesn't object to higher education for women. 

Several female authors became well-known in Alabama between the end of the Civil War and the early 1900s. These include poets Maria Howard Weeden [1846-1905], Zitella Cocke [1840-1929], and Martha Young [1862-1941]. Weeden was also an artist noted for her watercolor portraits of former slaves. Elizabeth Bellamy [1837-1900] wrote poetry, short fiction and novels that were more realistic than much of postwar Southern literature that romanticized the antebellum South. Louise Clarke Pyrnelle [1850-1907] wrote popular children's literature that did portray slavery in a positive way. 

The book has two parts, information on the clubs and some selections of literature by Alabama women. The selections include poetry, fiction, and essays; some are complete, others are excerpts. A few examples of the literary clubs and selections are below the introduction. 

I've discovered nothing about Robbins beyond this book. On page 6 she is mentioned in the entry on the Alabama Federation of Literary Clubs. On April 17, 1895, representatives of several clubs from around the state met in Birmingham "in the parlors of the Presbyterian church on the South Highlands, one of the aristocratic suburbs." They discussed forming that federation. Robbins, from Selma, "read a strong paper in favor of the movement." The association was organized that day, and Robbins elected President. 

The club listing begins with the Alabama Federation of Literary Clubs and includes many local societies.

Alabama and the Six Triple Eight

Captain Abbie N. Campbell and Major Charity Adams inspect the first contingent of African American WACs sent overseas shortly after their arrival in England, 15 February 1945

Source: National Archives via National Museum of the U.S. Army

An interesting but little known unit of the American armed forces in World War II was the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion. This group in the Women's Army Corps was the only female, black unit sent overseas in World War II. The 855 women, officers and enlisted, were led by Major Charity Adams. Most of the members of the five companies were postal clerks, but the battalion was self-sufficient and thus had its own cooks, mechanics and other supporting personnel. 

Enlistees trained in Georgia and sailed to Glasgow, Scotland, on February 3, 1945. By mid-February the unit had arrived in Birmingham, England, the location of their assignment. The women were faced with organizing unsorted mail that had been piling up in unheated hangers for as long as two years. Much of the mail had only partial names, nicknames, etc. Seven million Americans were stationed in the European Theater; 7500 were named Robert Smith. The estimated amount was 17 million items. 

What was expected to be a six month task was completed in three, by May 1945. Work continued around the clock, seven days a week; each shift sorted an estimated 65,000 pieces of mail. A unique index card system using serial numbers and ultimately involving 7 million cards, was devised to deal with partial and similar names. Another batch of mail was sorted in France, before the unit was disbanded on March 9, 1946, at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey. 

Although unknown to the general public at the time, the 6888th earned accolades during their service and several since. On March 14, 2022, President Biden signed a bill awarding the unit a Congressional Gold Medal. A website devoted to the 6888th includes a listing of the veterans, at least 25 of whom were from Alabama. I note two First Lieutenants among them. 

I imagine each of these women had some interesting stories to tell....

UPDATE 1 August 2022

A recent article from the Associated Press by Jay Reeves profiles Romay Davis, a 102 year old veteran of the unit now living in Birmingham. She is not listed below, but is presumably the Romay Johnson listed in her home state of Virginia. 

UPDATE 17 February 2022

Two other recent articles are here and here. A Netflix film about the group was also recently announced. 

ALABAMA

Battle, Lillian Irma PVT; 

Brown, Dorothy Elizabeth PFC; 

Campbell, Abbie Noel CPT; 

Campbell, Addie Lee T4; 

Coleman, Willie Lee PVT; 

Davis, Elizabeth Mary PFC; 

Duncan, Lilian Willierob 1LT; 

Edwards, Eva PVT; 

Fairgood, Marcelene Lettice T4; 

Fry, Ruby L PVT; 

George, Christel Stocks T5; 

Greene, Irene Robinson PVT; 

House, Willie Mae PFC; 

Johnson, Felicia LaVon PVT; 

Maniece, Mary Rose PFC; 

Middlebrook, Susie Irma PFC; 

Moorehead, Jeanetta Lucile T5; 

Quarles, Minnie Bell PVT; 

Seymour, Tassie Mae PFC; 

Smith, Delores Hall PVT; 

Smith, Mary Frances T5; 

Steele, Hattie Irene PFC; 

Thomas, Ophelia Dark PVT; 

Walthall, Mary Louise PVT; 

Williams, Julia H 1LT

Members sorting mail

Source: National Archives via U.S. Army Center of Military History

Alabama's Female College Football Players

Recently Sarah Fuller made college football history by kicking an extra point in the December 12 game between her Vanderbilt Commodores and the Tennessee Volunteers. She had also kicked off in the November 28 game against the Missouri Tigers. She thus became the first woman to play and score points in a Power Five game. However, she was not the first female college athlete to play and score in football games in the U.S. In fact, two women playing for Alabama teams also have significant records in that sport.

The article linked above notes these female milestones in college football:

"Fuller joins Katie Hnida and April Goss as the only women to play in an FBS game. Hnida kicked two extra points for New Mexico against Texas State in 2003. She transferred to New Mexico from Colorado, where she did dress out but did not play in a game for the Buffaloes. Goss, who played at Kent State, kicked an extra point against Delaware State in 2015.

Four other women -- Willamette's Liz Heaston, Jacksonville State's Ashley Martin, West Alabama's Tonya Butler and Lebanon Valley's Brittany Ryan -- have also kicked in college football games at various levels ranging from NAIA to FCS. Heaton became the first woman to score in a college football game in 1997."

Let's look at the specifics for those two Alabama players.

On August 30, 2001, Ashley Martin kicked three extra points for Jacksonville State as they defeated Cumberland University 72-10. In doing so she became the first woman to score points in an NCAA football game. At the time Jacksonville played in Division 1-AA [now the Football Championship Subdivision.] The only previous woman to score in an American football game was Liz Heaston who played for Willamette University in 1997. Willamette played in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. 

Martin played soccer at Jacksonville and joined the Gamecocks football team as a backup place kicker. She had previously played for her high school football team in Sharpsburg,, Georgia. Martin was also homecoming queen at the school, and accepted her crown wearing her football uniform.

Tonya Butler had an outstanding career as a placekicker for her high school team in Fayetteville, Georgia, where she joined the team as a tenth grader. Butler played football at Middle Georgia College, where she received the first football scholarship for a female at a state school. After getting an associate degree there, she played soccer at Georgia Southern and graduated in 2003. 

Butler had two years of football eligibility remaining, and Randy Pippin, her coach at Middle Georgia, offered her a scholarship to play for his new team, the University of West Alabama. Butler enrolled in graduate school and made the 2003 squad. In the first game of the season against Stillman Butler kicked a 27-yard field goal and became the first female to achieve that feat in an NCAA football game. 

Butler played the entire 2003 and 2004 seasons for the Tigers and was voted special teams captain both years. She finished her master's degree at the school in 2005. 

Wikipedia has a running list of females who have played American football at various levels and on various types of teams. I noted at least one middle school and one high school player from Alabama on these lists. 

Ashley Martin kicking for Jacksonville State

Tonya Butler at the University of West Alabama 

Old Alabama Stuff (13): Women in Alabama Industries in 1924

In 1924 a publication entitled Women in Alabama Industries was published by the U.S. Department of Labor. Subtitled "A Study of Hours, Wages, and Working Conditions", the work was the 34th "Bulletin" from the Women's Bureau", an agency within the Labor Department established by Congress in 1920 and still functioning today. Alabama was the 11th state examined in the series. Let's take a look at the report, which sold for 15 cents.  

As noted in one of the excerpts clipped below, there were almost 224,000 women "gainfully employed" in Alabama in 1920. Many worked as domestic servants, laundresses and farm laborers. However, some 15,000 were in textile mills, garment and food factories, printing and publishing plants, and other manufacturing jobs. Another 5400 worked in retail stores, and about 1200 worked in power laundries. Sample industrial locations were studied in 31 towns and cities, including Birmingham, Dothan, Gadsden, Mobile, Montgomery, Selma, Sylacauga, Talladega and Tuscaloosa. These surveys were done in February, March and April 1922.

The report has five parts. After an introduction, areas such as hours, working conditions, wages and demographic and sociological characteristics of the workers are all examined in great detail. For instance, section three on working conditions covers such things as posture, ventilation, lighting, toilets, lunch rooms and health and accident hazards. 

In 1920 the population of Alabama was about 2,348,000. Thus 9.5% of the people in the state were women working outside the home or on farms. Of course, a much smaller percent worked in manufacturing as covered in this report. Most of these women probably worked because they were not yet married, were widowed or were adding needed family income. They were also setting the stage for even greater influxes of women into the state's workforce during World War II and again in the 1960's and following decades until the present. 

Birmingham Photo of the Day (41): Two Hats

You never know what you'll find when you start roaming around in the archives, whether physical or digital.

I found the photo below in the Alabama Department of Archives Digital Collections. The description proclaims "Two unidentified women in Birmingham, Alabama" and gives the date range as 1900-1909, probably based on their dress. Those magnificent hats!

The Archives' listing identifies the photography studio as Up-To-Date Photo Company in Birmingham; that information is probably on the back. So far I've found no information on the firm.

Who are these women? Perhaps mother and daughter?