Mary Smith (1822-1889)
Mary Smith was born in 1822 in Cropedy; a small rural village in Oxfordshire. Her father was a shoemaker by trade, and before she had a family her mother was a cook. First published in 1892, Smith’s autobiography is unlike other working-class autobiographical pieces of the period, as hers is a book in its own right. Her narrative depicts a lifetime of hard work and a continual struggle against poverty, although there is not the sense of absolute destitution and insecurity evident in the autobiographies of Ellen Johnston and Lucy Luck. Religion played a significant part in Smith’s life. Brought up on nonconformist principles, she rejected the official creed of the established Anglican Church, and believed instead in a living Christianity; exemplified in good deeds and charitable acts towards others.
Smith was an intelligent young woman with an inordinate appetite for knowledge. From a young age, she had a love of literature and poetry, and her single ambition was to lead a literary life and to write books. At the age of twenty-one her life changed when she was asked to accompany a neighbouring family, the Osborns, up north to help look after their children, where Mr Osborn who was a Baptist minister had attained a position. Smith claims, she was severely exploited by the Osborns; working hard for neither thanks nor pay, and not finding any respite from poverty or her hard working existence whilst in their employment, she subsequently found an alternative position as a preparatory governess for a Quaker family in Scotby. However, later, Smith returned to help the Osborns when they were experiencing difficulties. Smith eventually set up her own school in Carlisle, where she gained a creditable reputation as a teacher. However, she never had the free time to pursue her studies and love of reading, and throughout the narrative, she emotively juxtaposes the harsh reality of her existence against her desires for a literary life. Smith found some consolation in that she was favourably situated in what was a time of immense social and political change, and she mentions meeting and being inspired by notable religious and political figures, many of whom gave talks and held meetings in Carlisle. Later in life, Smith associated with the rising socialist movement and, subsequently, the women’s suffrage movement. These had a significant impact on Smith, and together with nonconformist religious discourse, the discourses of gender and class evidently influenced her perspective on the past and the construction of her self-representation.
Smith did manage to publish two volumes of her poetry but not to great success. However, towards the end of her life she published extensively by way of reports, articles and letters in newspapers and local journals on women’s issues and a variety of other politically motivated causes. She was involved in many projects to help unfortunate women; in what she calls in her autobiography, ‘my many enterprises to do a little good in a lowly way, to my own sex.’ (p.120). She relates that she taught evening classes for factory girls, that she worked hard and wrote in favour of the Married Women’s Property Bill, that she lectured against the Contagious Diseases Acts, and that she wrote extensively about women’s suffrage and the employment of women. Evidently, Smith had a talent for writing. Through her letters and reports, she achieved a great deal of good for the poor and disadvantaged, and was instrumental in effecting local change. Throughout her life, Smith lived a lonely and frugal existence, and towards the end, she experienced acute illness. She died at the age of sixty-seven in Carlisle.
Smith was an intelligent young woman with an inordinate appetite for knowledge. From a young age, she had a love of literature and poetry, and her single ambition was to lead a literary life and to write books. At the age of twenty-one her life changed when she was asked to accompany a neighbouring family, the Osborns, up north to help look after their children, where Mr Osborn who was a Baptist minister had attained a position. Smith claims, she was severely exploited by the Osborns; working hard for neither thanks nor pay, and not finding any respite from poverty or her hard working existence whilst in their employment, she subsequently found an alternative position as a preparatory governess for a Quaker family in Scotby. However, later, Smith returned to help the Osborns when they were experiencing difficulties. Smith eventually set up her own school in Carlisle, where she gained a creditable reputation as a teacher. However, she never had the free time to pursue her studies and love of reading, and throughout the narrative, she emotively juxtaposes the harsh reality of her existence against her desires for a literary life. Smith found some consolation in that she was favourably situated in what was a time of immense social and political change, and she mentions meeting and being inspired by notable religious and political figures, many of whom gave talks and held meetings in Carlisle. Later in life, Smith associated with the rising socialist movement and, subsequently, the women’s suffrage movement. These had a significant impact on Smith, and together with nonconformist religious discourse, the discourses of gender and class evidently influenced her perspective on the past and the construction of her self-representation.
Smith did manage to publish two volumes of her poetry but not to great success. However, towards the end of her life she published extensively by way of reports, articles and letters in newspapers and local journals on women’s issues and a variety of other politically motivated causes. She was involved in many projects to help unfortunate women; in what she calls in her autobiography, ‘my many enterprises to do a little good in a lowly way, to my own sex.’ (p.120). She relates that she taught evening classes for factory girls, that she worked hard and wrote in favour of the Married Women’s Property Bill, that she lectured against the Contagious Diseases Acts, and that she wrote extensively about women’s suffrage and the employment of women. Evidently, Smith had a talent for writing. Through her letters and reports, she achieved a great deal of good for the poor and disadvantaged, and was instrumental in effecting local change. Throughout her life, Smith lived a lonely and frugal existence, and towards the end, she experienced acute illness. She died at the age of sixty-seven in Carlisle.
