Radical Woman in A Classic Town: Frances Willard of Evanston

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Radical Woman in A Classic Town: Frances Willard of Evanston An Exhibit at Northwestern University Library, January 18 April 16, 2010 Figure 1, Model of Frances Willard's Head by Helen Farnsworth

In 1858, at the age of 19, she and her younger sister, Mary, came from their family's home in Wisconsin to attend the North Western Female College as boarding students.

1 Radical Woman in A Classic Town: Frances Willard of Evanston An Exhibit at Northwestern University Library, January 18 April 16, 2010 Figure 1, Model of Frances Willard's Head by Helen Farnsworth Mears Chapter The exhibit begins with scenes of Evanston as Frances Willard knew it. In 1858, at the age of 19, she and her younger sister, Mary, came from their family's home in Wisconsin to attend the North Western Female College as boarding students. The rest of the Willard family moved to Evanston the next year. They found a congenial home in the vibrant community, growing up around three academic institutions (Northwestern University, Garrett Biblical Institute, and the Female College). Methodism was the tie that bound many of Evanston s families to the young village, which offered an unusual blend of intellectual activity, religious conviction, and social conscience (abolitionist, pro-temperance) on the fringes of the bustling commercial center of Chicago. The social experiment that was Evanston provided a natural setting for Willard s own first steps as a speaker, organizer, and leader. Figure 2, A Classic Town: The Story of Evanston, by Frances Willard, 1891

Evanston and Northwestern Early Evanston was shaped by the University in many ways

Northwestern s founders had purchased and platted the land so that the sale or rental

Evanston became particularly attractive to Methodist residents when the University s

2 Evanston and Northwestern Early Evanston was shaped by the University in many ways including the layout of the town itself. Northwestern s founders had purchased and platted the land so that the sale or rental of plots would finance the University. Evanston became particularly attractive to Methodist residents when the University s charter was amended in 1855 to exclude the sale of liquor within four miles of the campus. Figure 3, View of Evanston, 1874 Figure 4, Evanston, Early 1870s, Looking South from University Hall

When Frances Willard came to Evanston in 1858, the single building containing

3 When Frances Willard came to Evanston in 1858, the single building containing Northwestern University s classrooms, chapel, and offices was located at the corner of Davis Street and Hinman Avenue. The only structure on what is now the Northwestern campus was Dempster Hall, housing the Garrett Biblical Institute. University Hall (described by Willard as "a poem in stone") was built in Figure 5, University Hall, circa 1875 Figure 6, Dempster Hall (Garrett Biblical Institute), 1855 Figure 7, "Old College", circa 1874

The North-Western Female College Figure 8, The North-Western Female College, 1860s The

Willard found a congenial environment at the Female College.

claimed as the first newspaper in Evanston.

4 The North-Western Female College Figure 8, The North-Western Female College, 1860s The North-Western Female College opened in 1855 the same year as the University, but not affiliated with it by William P. Jones, a strong advocate of higher education for women. Willard found a congenial environment at the Female College. She wrote poetry for the Casket and Budget, the College s newspaper, which the girls claimed as the first newspaper in Evanston. She and another girl were the sole members of the graduating class of 1859 (Willard was named valedictorian and her classmate salutatorian). Figure 9, Frances Willard, circa Figure 10, North-Western Female College Students, circa 1860

5 Figure 11, Circular (Catalog) of the North-Western Female College, Academic Year

6 Figure 12, William P. Jones, President of the North-Western Female College Figure 13, "A Plea for the Better Education of Women"

The Willards in Evanston When Willard s parents, Josiah and Mary Willard, followed their daughters to Evanston in 1859, they

The eldest child, Oliver, attended the Garrett Biblical Institute, where he was a classmate of future Northwestern University

Frances s sister, Mary, died in 1862, and in 1865 the Willards moved into a newly built home on Chicago Avenue.

Josiah Willard died in 1868; then, after Oliver Willard s death, ten years later, Mrs.

7 The Willards in Evanston When Willard s parents, Josiah and Mary Willard, followed their daughters to Evanston in 1859, they rented a house-known as Swampscot-on Northwestern University-owned land at the southwest corner of Church and Judson Streets. The eldest child, Oliver, attended the Garrett Biblical Institute, where he was a classmate of future Northwestern University president Charles Fowler. Frances s sister, Mary, died in 1862, and in 1865 the Willards moved into a newly built home on Chicago Avenue. As at Swampscot, their neighbors were ministers, Northwestern University faculty, and civic leaders of Evanston. Josiah Willard died in 1868; then, after Oliver Willard s death, ten years later, Mrs. Willard added an annex to the north side for his widow and their children, creating the double house still standing today at 1730 Chicago. Rest Cottage, as Frances Willard called it, remained her beloved home until her death. Figure 14, Swampscot, the Willards' First Home in Evanston Figure 15, "My Four": Frances Willard's Family

8 Figure 16, "Rest Cottage," circa 1893 Figure 17, The Willard Family, circa 1890

9 Sources of Items and Photographs Figure 1 Model of Frances Willard s head for statue placed in Statuary Hall, U.S. Capitol Building, 1905, Helen Farnsworth Mears. Sculptor Mears ( ) had worked with Lorado Taft on the sculptures at the World's Columbian Exposition, among many other commissions. On loan from the Frances Willard House Museum. For more on the statue, see the final case in this exhibit Figure 2 A Classic Town: The Story of Evanston, by An Old Timer, Frances E. Willard (Chicago: Women s Temperance Publishing Association, 1891) Figure 3 Looking south to the Northwestern campus (Heck Hall, University Hall, and (far left) Old College). Copy of original print from unidentified source in the Northwestern University Archives Figure 4 Stereographic card by Alexander Hesler. Photographer Hesler documented early Evanston in street views, photographs of individual homes, and portraits of students, faculty, and Evanston residents. From the Northwestern University Archives' extensive collection of Hesler photographs Figure 5 Willard considered University Hall, built in 1869, as "the first permanent building of the noble group that makes our otherwise commonplace village a 'Classic town.' " This photograph shows the building before clocks were added to the tower in Northwestern University Archives Photograph Collection Figure 6 Built in 1855 to house the Garrett Biblical Institute. Northwestern University Archives Photograph Collection Figure 7 "Old College," circa The first Northwestern building was moved to the current campus in It remained in use as a classroom building until 1973, when it was razed after being damaged by lightning. Northwestern University Archives Photograph Collection Figure 8 The North Western Female College building, less grand than Principal William Jones had hoped (see sketch of planned campus on catalog), was located near Sherman and Lake Avenues. The original structure burned in 1856, reducing the school to one pair of horses and a wagon, as Jones said, but he rebuilt and reopened quickly, raising the money by lecturing on Indian lore and poetry. Modern print probably from stereographic original, Northwestern University Archives' Photograph Collection

10 Figure 9 Willard at the age of her arrival in Evanston. No photographer identified. Modern enlarged print; the original is probably from the Northwestern Female College autograph book. On loan from the Frances Willard Memorial Library & Archives; original in Frances Willard Collection, Northwestern University Archives Figure 10 Frances Willard is second from the left Photographer unknown. Modern print from a stereographic card. On loan from the Frances Willard Memorial Library and Archives Figure 11 Note that, while the classic groves of Evanston are mentioned as an enticement, propinquity to Northwestern University is not. Northwestern University Archives; Records of the North-Western Female College, Series 36/2 Figure 12 For more on Jones, see the William P. Jones Papers, , Series 36/1 Photograph by Brands Studio, Northwestern University Archives' Photograph Collection. Photo is undated, but (per note on the back) may have been donated to the NU Library in 1884 by Frances Willard herself. Figure 13 A Plea for the Better Education of Women, page 1, by William P. Jones Jones was a life-long advocate of higher education for women. He returned to the lecture circuit to raise money for student loans so that more young women could afford to attend the Female College. Northwestern University Archives; William P. Jones Papers, , Series 36/1 Figure 14 After Mary E. Willard died, at the age of nineteen, the family left Swampscot. The property was later purchased by William Deering, long-time NU trustee and benefactor, who built a stately home on the site. Photograph on loan from the Frances Willard Memorial Library and Archives Figure 15 This montage, showing (clockwise from top left) Josiah Flint Willard ( ), Mary Thompson Hill Willard ( ), Mary Eliza Willard ( ), and Oliver Atherton Willard ( ), was published in Willard's autobiography, Glimpses of Fifty Years (1889). Modern scan from the image in the book Figure 16 Rest Cottage. The house, built by Josiah Willard on land rented from Northwestern, was based on a design by Andrew Jackson Downing, in the Gothic style then popular for "cottages." Mrs. Willard bought the land (lots 16 and 17 on Block 15) after her husband's death. This photograph shows the house with its northern annex, added in The house became a National Historic Landmark in Modern print from an original, on loan from the Frances Willard Memorial Library and Archives

11 Figure 17 Frances Willard and her mother continued to live at Rest Cottage, which became a busy branch office of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union where Willard's colleagues and friends visited. After her mother always her steadfast supporter--died in 1892, and when her own health began to fail, Willard spent less time in the Evanston home. She continued to travel around the country, and later spent much time in England with her counterpart in the British Woman's Temperance Association, Lady Henry Somerset. Photograph on loan from the Frances Willard Memorial Library and Archives.

Guide to the Records of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Art Committee AC.0066

Guide to the Records of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Art Committee AC.0066 Finding aid prepared by Elizabeth Andrews This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit June 24, 2010