JULIA WARD HOWE Signed Letter, 1889

AutographsJulia Ward Howe "Battle Hymn" Author Signed Letter

JULIA WARD HOWE, American Abolitionist, Social Activist, and Poet; Composer of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic".
(1889), Autograph Letter Signed, "Julia W. Howe," 1 page, 6.75" x 4.5," Fine. This original, handwritten, letter is docketed on back with the date March (?) 26, 1889. In this letter, Julia Ward Howe responds to an autograph seeker:
"My dear Madam, Your card was badly blotted with the lines of your letter. Here in the country I cannot get a blank card to take its place, so have used the reverse of a friend's visiting card for my autograph. Yours truly, Julia W. Howe."
This letter has a strip of clear archival tape repairing a split along the top fold on the back. There is a small amount of paper thin and loss at the center from removal from an prior mounting, creating a small hole. This is a pleasant signed note to an autograph collector in the 1800s.

Julia Ward Howe (1819-1910) achieved lasting fame by writing the words to "Battle Hymn of the Republic," which were set to William Steffe's already-existing music, and first published in the Atlantic Monthly in 1862. The piece quickly became one of the most popular songs of the Union during the American Civil War. After the war she focused her activities on the causes of pacifism and women's suffrage. She was a member of the Unitarian church. In 1870 she was the first to proclaim Mother's Day, with her "Mother's Day Proclamation." From 1872 to 1879, she assisted Lucy Stone and Henry Brown Blackwell in editing the "Woman's Journal." On January 28, 1908 Julia Ward Howe became the first woman elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters.