Edward Bellamy facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Edward Bellamy
Edward Bellamy, circa 1889
Born	(1850-03-26)March 26, 1850 Chicopee, Massachusetts, US
Died	May 22, 1898(1898-05-22) (aged 48) Chicopee, Massachusetts, US
Occupation	Author
Signature

Edward Bellamy (born March 26, 1850 – died May 22, 1898) was an American writer and journalist. He is best known for his famous book, Looking Backward. This novel described a perfect future world. Bellamy's ideas inspired many people to form "Nationalist Clubs". These clubs worked to spread his political thoughts.

After working as a journalist and writing some other books, Bellamy published Looking Backward in 1888. It became one of the most popular books in the United States during the 1800s. Many thinkers who felt unhappy with the problems of the Gilded Age loved it. In the early 1890s, Bellamy started a newspaper called The New Nation. He worked to bring together the Nationalist Clubs and the growing Populist Party. He wrote a follow-up book, Equality, in 1897. He passed away the next year.

Edward Bellamy's Life Story

Growing Up

Edward Bellamy was born in Chicopee, Massachusetts. His father, Rufus King Bellamy, was a minister. His mother, Maria Louisa Putnam Bellamy, also came from a family of ministers.

Bellamy went to public school in Chicopee Falls. Later, he studied at Union College in New York for a short time. After college, he traveled to Europe for a year, spending time in Germany. He briefly studied law but decided not to become a lawyer. Instead, he became a journalist. He worked for the New York Post and then the Springfield Union in Massachusetts.

When he was 25, Bellamy got tuberculosis. This was a serious illness that he suffered from his whole life. To try and get better, he spent a year in the Hawaiian Islands from 1877 to 1878. When he came back to the United States, he stopped working as a daily journalist. He chose to focus on writing books, which was less demanding on his health.

Bellamy married Emma Augusta Sanderson in 1882. They had two children together.

His Writing Career

Bellamy's first few books, like Six to One (1878) and Dr. Heidenhoff's Process (1880), were not very well known. They were mostly psychological stories.

Everything changed when he wrote Looking Backward, 2000–1887. This book, published in 1888, was a utopian science fiction story. It quickly became very popular. His publisher could barely print enough copies to meet the demand. Within a year, it sold about 200,000 copies. By the end of the 1800s, it had sold more copies than almost any other American book. Only Uncle Tom's Cabin and Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ sold more. The book was also very popular in the United Kingdom.

In Looking Backward, a peaceful revolution had changed America. Private property was gone, and the government owned businesses. This got rid of social classes and many problems Bellamy thought came from them. In his perfect future, there were no politicians, lawyers, or soldiers. Instead, everyone between 21 and 45 worked voluntarily. After 45, everyone retired. Work was easy with machines, hours were short, and vacations were long. Bellamy believed this new way of life would make people kinder and more honest.

The Bellamy Movement

Bellamy's book inspired many readers to start "Nationalist Clubs". The first one began in Boston in late 1888. His idea of a country without social problems, achieved by stopping competition and having the government own industries, was very appealing. Many thinkers felt that America's Gilded Age had a dark side. By 1891, there were at least 162 Nationalist Clubs.

Bellamy used the word "Nationalism" instead of "socialism" to describe his ideas. He did this because he wanted his book to sell widely. He also wanted his political ideas to reach as many people as possible.

Bellamy himself became very involved in the political movement. Especially after 1891, he started his own magazine, The New Nation. He worked to unite the Nationalist Clubs with the growing People's Party. For three and a half years, Bellamy dedicated himself to politics. He published his magazine, tried to influence the People's Party, and promoted the Nationalist movement. This period ended in 1894 when The New Nation had to stop publishing due to money problems.

Many activists from the Nationalist Clubs joined the People's Party. Bellamy then returned to writing. He started working on a follow-up to Looking Backward called Equality. In this book, he explored his ideal society in more detail. He also wrote about topics like animal rights and protecting nature. This book was published in 1897 and was his last major work.

Some of Bellamy's short stories were published in 1898. His novel The Duke of Stockbridge; a Romance of Shays' Rebellion came out in 1900.

Death and Lasting Impact

Edward Bellamy died from tuberculosis in Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts. He was 48 years old.

His home in Chicopee Falls, where he lived his whole life, was named a National Historic Landmark in 1971. This means it is a very important historical place.

Edward Bellamy was the cousin of Francis Bellamy. Francis Bellamy is famous for writing the Pledge of Allegiance.

Bellamy Road in Toronto, Canada, is named after the author.

Edward Bellamy's Books

Novels

• Six to One (1878)
• Dr. Heidenhoff's Process (1880)
• Miss Ludington's Sister (1885)
• Looking Backward, 2000–1887 (1888)
• Equality (1897)
• The Duke of Stockbridge; a Romance of Shays' Rebellion (1900)

Short Stories

• "At Pinney's Ranch"
• "The Blindman's World"
• "Deserted"
• "An Echo Of Antietam"
• "Hooking Watermelons"
• "Lost"
• "A Love Story Reversed"
• "The Old Folks' Party"
• "A Positive Romance"
• "Potts's Painless Cure"
• "A Summer Evening's Dream"
• "To Whom This May Come"
• "Two Days' Solitary Imprisonment"
• "With The Eyes Shut"

See Also

In Spanish: Edward Bellamy para niños

• Nationalist Clubs
• The Nationalist
• Equality Colony
• Dutch Bellamy Party