Title One colonial woman's world : the life and writings of Mehetabel Chandler Coit / Michelle Marchetti Coughlin

Published Amherst : University of Massachusetts Press, 2012

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Description 1 online resource (288 pages) Contents The years before the diary, 1673/1688 -- Coming of age, 1688/1693 -- Marriage and motherhood, 1694/1696 -- Establishing roots, 1697/1706 -- Comings and goings, 1707/1711 -- Mistress and matriarch, 1712/1725 -- Letters from Martha, 1726/1730 -- Transitions, 1731/1744 -- Endings, 1745/1758 Summary "This book reconstructs the life of Mehetabel Chandler Coit (1673-1758), the author of what may be the earliest surviving diary by an American woman. A native of Roxbury, Massachusetts, who later moved to Connecticut, she began her diary at the age of fifteen and kept it intermittently until she was well into her seventies. A previously overlooked resource, the diary contains entries on a broad range of topics as well as poems, recipes, folk and herbal medical remedies, religious meditations, and financial accounts. An extensive collection of letters by Coit and her female relatives has also survived, shedding further light on her experiences. Michelle Marchetti Coughlin combs through these writings to create a vivid portrait of a colonial American woman and the world she inhabited. Coughlin documents the activities of daily life as well as dramas occasioned by war, epidemics, and political upheaval. Though Coit's opportunities were circumscribed by gender norms of the day, she led a rich and varied life, not only running a household and raising a family, but reading, writing, traveling, transacting business, and maintaining a widespread network of social and commercial connections. She also took a lively interest in the world around her and played an active role in her community. Coit's long life covered an eventful period in American history, and this book explores the numerous - and sometimes surprising - ways in which her personal history was linked to broader social and political developments. It also provides insight into the lives of countless other colonial American women whose history remains largely untold."--Project Muse Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index Notes Print version record Subject Coit, Mehetabel Chandler, 1673-1758 -- Diaries Coit, Mehetabel Chandler, 1673-1758. SUBJECT Coit, Mehetabel Chandler, 1673-1758 -- Diaries Coit, Mehetabel Chandler, 1673-1758 Coit, Mehetabel Chandler, 1673-1758 fast Subject Women -- Connecticut -- Biography Women -- United States -- History -- 18th century -- Biography SOCIAL SCIENCE -- Women's Studies. Manners and customs Women SUBJECT New London (Conn.) -- Social life and customs -- 18th century Connecticut -- Social life and customs -- 18th century Connecticut -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85031161 Subject Connecticut Connecticut -- New London United States Genre/Form Biographies Diaries History Form Electronic book ISBN 9781613762165 161376216X 1558499660 9781558499669

Other Titles Life and writings of Mehetabel Chandler Coit

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