Alice Corkran facts for kids

Alice Abigail Corkran was an Irish writer who created stories for children. She also worked as an editor for children's magazines. Alice was born in France to Irish parents. She grew up in a home where many famous writers and artists often visited, which made her childhood very interesting.

Alice was even a playmate of Robert Browning's father, who was an older man. She kept his old notebooks with his drawings until she died. Besides writing many popular books, she also edited magazines like Bairn's Annual and The Girl's Realm. She even started a special group called the Guild of Service and Good Fellowship for The Girl's Realm. This group helped charities, like supporting a bed at the Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children.

Alice Corkran's Early Life

Alice Corkran was born in Paris, France, on May 20, 1843. Her parents were John Frazer Corkran and Louisa Walsh. Alice was the second of five children, with three girls and two boys in the family.

Her father, John, started his career as a playwright. One of his plays, The Painter of Italy, was well-received in Dublin in 1840. By then, he was already living in Paris. He worked as a newspaper reporter in Paris for the Morning Herald and the Evening Standard.

John Corkran was in Paris during the exciting French Revolution of 1848. He wrote a book about it called History of the National Constituent Assembly from May, 1848. This book was considered an important text on the topic for many years.

Alice's mother, Louisa, often hosted gatherings at their home in Paris. These events were like a special club where famous writers and thinkers met. People like the poet Robert Browning were friends with the family. His wife would visit Louisa twice a year in Paris.

The famous writer William Makepeace Thackeray, who wrote Vanity Fair, was also a family friend. He was very kind to the Corkran children. When the family later moved to London, their home became a popular meeting place for many important writers.

Alice grew up in a very creative and inspiring home. She loved spending time with Robert Browning's father. They would walk along the riverbanks, and he would sketch pictures. Alice was his favorite. Later, in 1905, she even published some of his sketches in an article about the Browning family in The Girl's Realm.

Alice was taught at home and studied art in Paris. However, her family faced some financial difficulties, so they had to leave Paris. They moved to Bloomsbury, a neighborhood in London.

Alice Corkran's Books

Alice Corkran became well-known for her first novel, Bessie Lang, and another popular book, Down the Snow Stairs. Both books received very good reviews when they were first published.

Critics said that Bessie Lang was "so sweet, so simple, and at the same time so strongly descriptive". Another reviewer mentioned that Alice Corkran wrote with "simplicity and absence of straining after effect", showing her true talent.

Down the Snow Stairs was also highly praised. One newspaper said it was "quite as enthralling as 'Alice in Wonderland', but much more human and real." Another review called it "one of the most charming children’s stories imaginable."

After 1890, Alice Corkran mostly wrote non-fiction books. These books were also well-received. One of her obituaries (a notice of her death) even called her book about the artist Frederic Leighton an excellent biography.

Longer Works by Alice Corkran

Here is a list of some of Alice Corkran's longer books, including novels and non-fiction works. The information comes from various library catalogs and archives.

The column headings mean:

• Cat. means the book was found in the British Library Catalogue.
• BL means a digital copy is available online at the British Library.
• IA means a digital copy is available online at the Internet Archive.
• HT means a digital copy is available online at Hathi Trust.

One book, The Fatal House, was very different from her other works. It was a low-cost mystery story. A newspaper called it "sufficiently full of mystery and horror." The story was about a house that brought bad luck to everyone who lived there.

Collections of Stories

Alice Corkran also published two collections of her short stories:

• Mischievous Jack and Other Stories included "Mischievous Jack and the Old Fisherman," "A Little King," and "Boppy's Repentance."
• The Young Philistine, and Other Stories featured the title story "The Young Philistine," and others like "How Pere Perrault Spent his Legacy." Critics said this collection had "a delicacy of touch, a fine humour, and a pathos."

Alice Corkran also contributed stories to other collections:

• "Pea Blossom" was in Stories Jolly: Stories New: Stories Strange & Stories True (1889).
• "The Adventures of a Would-Be King of the Giants" was in The Children's Hour (1896). This book was sold to help children with illnesses.
• An unnamed story was in 52 Stories for the Little Ones (1902).

Alice Corkran's Later Life and Death

Alice Corkran's mother, Louisa, passed away in 1882. Her mother had been ill for some time, and Alice had cared for her in her final years. Alice's father died in 1884. Both her parents are buried together in Brompton Cemetery.

In 1892, Alice had an accident. She was hit by a horse-drawn carriage in London. Her leg was badly hurt, and she was in shock. She recovered slowly and could not return to writing until the end of that year.

In 1901, Alice was living with her sister Harriet and a writer named Richard Whiteing. She continued to live with Whiteing, who had separated from his wife, until at least 1911.

Both of Alice's sisters died in 1911. Henrietta, who never married, passed away in March. Her sister Mary had married Barclay V. Head and had one daughter, Alice Augusta Louisa. Alice Corkran was the last surviving child of her family.

In her later years, Alice Corkran struggled with money and her health. She died suddenly on February 2, 1916. Her niece, Alice Augusta Louisa Head, helped manage her will.