Amy Ella Blanchard facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Amy Ella Blanchard
Amy Ella Blanchard ca. 1900
Born	(1854-06-28)June 28, 1854 Baltimore, Maryland
Died	July 4, 1926(1926-07-04) (aged 72) Bailey Island, Maine
Nationality	American
Partner(s)	Ida Waugh

Amy Ella Blanchard (born June 28, 1854 – died July 4, 1926) was a very active American writer. She wrote many popular books for children.

Her Early Life

Amy Ella Blanchard was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1854. Her parents were Daniel Harris Blanchard and Sarah Reynolds.

She went to public schools. Later, she studied art in New York City and Philadelphia.

Her Writing Career

Amy Ella Blanchard first worked as an art teacher. She taught at the Woman's College in Baltimore, which is now Goucher College. She taught while she was still studying art herself. After that, she taught drawing and painting for two years in Plainfield, New Jersey.

Her first poem was printed in a Salem newspaper when she was 16 years old. Three years later, she published her first book. But it was not until 1893 that her stories became very popular.

Front cover of Bonnie Bairns (1889) by Ida Waugh

In 1888, she published her first book with artist Ida Waugh. It was called Bonny Bairns. In this book, the pictures came first, and then Amy Ella Blanchard wrote poems to go with them. The book was very nice and pretty. The pictures were well made and looked great. The poems were fun to read and interesting for young readers.

Her Life and Friends

Amy Ella Blanchard was a close friend and working partner of artist Ida Waugh (1846-1919). They met when Amy Ella Blanchard was hired to teach Ida Waugh's younger brother, who later became the painter Frederick Judd Waugh.

They lived together in Philadelphia and New York City. Their homes were often places where other writers would gather.

In 1906, Blanchard moved to Washington, D.C. She lived at 1080 31st Street, N.W. During this time, she became a very popular writer of books for girls.

Blanchard and Waugh had summer homes next to each other in Bailey Island, Maine. They helped build a chapel there in 1916. In the winters, they stayed in Redding Ridge, Connecticut.

From 1923 to 1925, Amy Ella Blanchard won first prize for three years in a row. This was in a national writing contest for American women writers. The contest was held by the National League of American Pen Women, which she was a member of.

She passed away on July 4, 1926, in Bailey Island. She was found at her desk by her maid. She is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, Woodlawn, Baltimore County, Maryland, as she had wished.

Her Published Works

Amy Ella Blanchard wrote many books, including:

• As Others See Us (publication date unknown)
• The Awakening of Martha (1923)
• Baby Blossom (Worthington Co., 1888)
• Because of conscience: being a novel relating to the adventures of certain Huguenots in old New York (J. B. Lippincott company, 1901)
• Becky: a story, (W. A. Wilde company, ca. 1922)
• Betty of Wye (publication date unknown)
• Bless it, illust. by Ida Waugh (Worthington Co., 1890)
• Bonny Bairns (poetry), illust. by Ida Waugh (Worthington, 1888)
• Bonny Lesley of the border (W.A. Wilde, 1904)
• The butterfly: Verses", illust. by Ida Waugh (Worthington Co., 1890)
• Daisies and Raindrops (poetry), illust. by Ida Waugh (E.P. Dutton & Company, 1882)
• A daughter of freedom: a story of the latter period of the war for independence", (W. A. Wilde Company, 1900)
• A Dear Little Girl (publication date unknown)
• A Dear Little Girl at School (George W. Jacobs & Co., 1910)
• A Dear Little Girl's Summer Holidays (George W. Jacobs & Co., 1911)
• A Dear Little Girl's Thanksgiving Holidays (George W. Jacobs & Co., 1912)
• Dimple Dallas: the further fortunes of a sweet little maid", illust. by Ida Waugh (George W. Jacobs & Co., 1900)
• An everyday girl: a story" (W. A. Wilde, ca. 1924)
• Fagots and Flames: A Story of Winter Camp Fires (1916)
• The Four Corners, "Four Corners" series (G. W. Jacobs & company, 1906)
• The Four Corners Abroad, "Four Corners" series, illust. by Wuanita Smith (G.W. Jacobs, 1909)
• The Four Corners at College, "Four Corners" series (publication date unknown)
• The Four Corners at School, "Four Corners" series (publication date unknown)
• The Four Corners in California, "Four Corners" series, illust. by Wuanita Smith (G.W. Jacobs, 1907)
• The Four Corners in camp, "Four Corners" series (G. W. Jacobs & company, 1910)
• The Four Corners in Egypt, "Four Corners" series (G. W. Jacobs & company, 1914)
• The Four Corners in Japan, "Four Corners" series (G.W. Jacobs & company, 1912)
• From Tenderfoot to Golden Eaglet: A Girl Scout Story, (Wilde, 1921)
• A frontier knight: a story of early Texan border-life, also by William F. Stecher (W.A. Wilde Company, 1904)
• A gentle pioneer, being the story of the early days in the new West (W.A. Wilde Company, 1903)
• A Girl of '76, illust. by Ida Waugh (W.A. Wilde Company, 1898)
• A Girl Scout of Red Rose Troop (1918)
• Girls Together (publication date unknown)
• The Glad Lady (Dana Estes & Company, 1910)
• Hearts and clubs: a comedy in three acts (The Penn Pub. Co., 1913)
• Her Very Best (publication date unknown)
• A heroine of 1812: a Maryland romance (W. A. Wilde company, 1901)
• Holly Berries (poetry), illust. by Ida Waugh (1882)
• Ida Waugh's Alphabet Book: For Little Ones Who, If They Look, Will Find their Letters in This Book (poetry), illust. by Ida Waugh (J.B. Lippincott, 1888)
• An independent daughter (J.B. Lippincott Co., 1900)
• Janet's College Career (publication date unknown)
• A Journey of Joy (two girls and their chaperone on a trip through Europe) (1908)
• Kittyboy's Christmas (publication date unknown)
• Life's Little Actions (publication date unknown)
• Little Maid Marian, "Little Maid" series (1908)
• A little maid of Picardy, "Little Maid" series (W.A. Wilde company, ca. 1919)
• Little Miss Mouse (publication date unknown)
• Little Miss Oddity (1902)
• A Little Tomboy (1903)
• A loyal lass: a story of the Niagara campaign of 1814 (W. A. Wilde, 1902)
• Mabel's Mishap (publication date unknown)
• Mammy's baby, illust. by Ida Waugh (Worthington Co., ca. 1890)
• Miss Vanity(publication date unknown)
• Mistress May, illust. by Ida Waugh (George W. Jacobs, ca. 1901)
• My own dolly, illust. by Ida Waugh (Griffith and Farran, 1883)
• Nancy first and last (J.B. Lippincott Company, 1917)
• A revolutionary maid: a story of the middle period of the war for independence, illust. by Ida Waugh (W.A. Wilde, 1899)
• A Sweet Little Maid, "Little Maid" series, illust. by Ida Waugh (G.W. Jacobs, 1899)
• Taking a stand (G.W. Jacobs & co., 1896)
• Talbot's angles, illust. by L. J. Bridgman (Dana Estes & Company, ca. 1911)
• Tangles & Curls or Little Boys and Little Girls (poetry), illust. by Ida Waugh (Worthington, 1888)
• Tell Me a Story (poetry), illust. by Ida Waugh (Worthington, 1888)
• Three Little Cousins (publication date unknown)
• Three pretty maids (J.B. Lippincott company, 1897)
• Twenty little maidens, illust. by Ida Waugh (J.B. Lippincott Company, 1893)
• Two Maryland Girls (publication date unknown)
• Two Girls (publication date unknown)
• Wee babies: printed in colours from original designs (poetry), illust. by Ida Waugh (E.P. Dutton & Co., 1882)
• Wee tots, illust. by Ida Waugh (Worthington Co., 1890)
• When Mother Was a Little Girl (poetry), illust. by Ida Waugh (Ernest Nister, 1909)
• Wits' end (D. Estes & company, 1909)
• Worth his while (George W. Jacobs, 1901)

She also wrote some books for the Camp Fire Girls series, including:

• The Camp Fire Girls of Brightwood: a story of how they kindled their fire and kept it burning (1915)
• In Camp with the Muskoday Camp Fire Girls (W. A. Wilde company, ca. 1917)