Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) was an American novelist, short story writer, and abolitionist. Her nineteen-page letter to publisher James T. Fields, dated circa December 22, 1870, is a confidential letter discussing her financial predicament.
Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) was an American novelist, short story writer, and abolitionist who wrote over thirty books. She was born and raised in Litchfield, Connecticut.
In 1832, the Beecher family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, where Stowe met and married Reverend Calvin Ellis Stowe, a professor of biblical literature. The couple had seven children.
Stowe published her best-known work, the anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, in 1852. The book became a best-selling and influential novel in the 19th century. The novel also contributed to popularizing negative stereotypes about Black people.
The Stowe family moved to Hartford, Connecticut, and built a large house after Calvin Stowe's retirement in 1863. As the only employed member of the family, Harriet Beecher Stowe faced financial difficulties that led to the sale of the house and move to a cottage in 1870.
Stowe died in Hartford, Connecticut in 1896.
The Harriet Beecher Stowe nineteen-page letter to James T. Fields, dated circa December 22, 1870, is an autograph manuscript signed by her. In the letter, Stowe congratulates Fields, one of her American publishers, on his upcoming retirement, shares memories of Nathaniel Hawthorne, and relates her difficult financial situation. The letter also has an inscription, "Received Dec 22, 1870 J.T.F." in the upper margin of the first page, in the hand of Fields.
Purchased, 2023.
Processed by Amy Lau in 2025.
An 1853 edition of Harriet Beecher Stowe's A Key to Uncle Tom's Cabin was separated and cataloged.