Diaries of Sarah Jane and Emma Ann Foster, A Year in Maine During the Civil War
- Author: Wayne E. Reilly
- SKU: 2005c
- ISBN: 0897254449
- Our Price:
$19.95
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Description:
Foreword by Polly Welts Kaufman. Index. 2002. CD format.
Sisters Sarah Jane and Emma Ann Foster kept diaries in 1864 in Portland and other communities in southern Maine. The diaries provide a view of life in the North during the Civil War through the eyes of two young women, the daughters of a country shoemaker. Like many women of the era, Sarah Jane and Emma Ann were struggling to establish their economic independence by making the transition from village to city. In January of 1864, Sarah Jane was working in Portland as a hired girl and was an aspiring writer. Emma was finishing school in the town of Gray with plans to become an apprentice milliner in Portland, where she moved in the spring.
Sarah Jane's diary is of particular interest because of the insights it gives into the development of a social activist. The editor has used Sarah's published columns and short stories to provide insight about her thinking. He has also used newspapers and other primary sources to elaborate on the Foster sisters' activities, and those of their brother, Howard, a private in the Maine 30th Regiment.
