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THE WOMEN OF THE BERKSHIRES
Long before the ERA and the "Womens' Lib" movement, there were some women from earlier wealthy families who shaped the destiny of the Berkshires as we know it today. They refused to be sublimated by the social male dominance of their times. In many instances, their contributions were not only felt in the Berkshires, but went on to influence our national thinking, and our universal regards of what once were considered to be only the "fairer sex".
Catharine Maria Sedgwick
Born on December 28, 1789, Catharine Sedgwick was the daughter of Theodore Sedgwick and Pamela Dwight in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Her mother was descended from old New England aristocrats. Her father was born in comparative poverty, but he rose to achieve prosperity and political influence as an outspoken Federalist. He became a member of Congress, speaker of the House of Representatives, and justice of the State Supreme Court. This had a great influence on Catharine. Her mother ailed mentally and physically from being overworked in family domestic chores and responsibilities. Catharine took the "cue" and decided to never marry, except to her career. She wrote over 100 novels, short stories, essays, children's stories and biographies on the American scene, to achieve prominence as the first truly American author of note. She was a close friend of Fanny Kemble. She died in 1867 at the age of 77. She is buried in the "Sedgwick Pie" at Stockbridge Cemetery.
Fanny Kemble
She was born in England in 1809. Her parents were actors. She followed their careers and became a famous actress. In 1834, she married Pierce Butler, a plantation owner and moved to his Georgia plantation. Appalled by the brutality of slavery, she divorced him in 1850 and became a staunch abolitionist. She ultimately moved to Lenox, first residing at the Curtis Hotel, to later build her own "cottage", which she called "The Perch" on the street that bears her name. She gave many lectures, many given at the Church On The Hill, wrote poetry and a novel, as well as other literary pieces, which includes her own autobiography. She had earlier retired from acting as the result of a disfiguring illness, but remained prominent in Berkshire society. She died in 1893 and is buried along with her father at Kensal Green Cemetery in London. Her "cottage" no longer exists, but is commemorated by a boulder bearing a memorial plaque across the street from the Canyon Ranch main entrance.
Edith Wharton
Born to a wealthy family as Edith Newbold Jones in New York City in 1862, destined to become a famous writer, she suffered the indignities of being considered as only a "decoration" in aristocratic social circles. She considered herself as being an "only child", despite that she had two older brothers whose age difference was too vast to consider them as siblings. During her early childhood she, along with her family resided in Europe, mainly in France. Her father, whom she was very close to, died when she was still very young, which affected her emotionally. She was never emotionally close to her mother, because she "played the role of a societal decoration". Edith began writing poetry and short stories when she was still very young, as her mother admonished her for being "too intelligent and intellectual" to fit into society, and that marriage was the only acceptable role for her to fit into. Ultimately, one of her brothers introduced her to Edward Wharton, heir to a wealthy Bostonian family, whom she married in 1885. It was an unhappy marriage, causing her to have a nervous breakdown during its early years. The therapy of writing resulted in her recovery and she continued to get stronger. In 1902, her husband, nicknamed "Teddy", presented her with a birthday present, a large tract of land in Lenox, Massachusetts. It was there where she designed and built her own "cottage", which she called "The Mount". She owned and lived there for ten years, where her creativity escalated. In 1905, "The House of Mirth", her first successful novel, was completed. By 1912, she had also completed "Ethan Frome" and "The Valley of Decision" while residing there. "Teddy", who was a poor money manager and had squandered his family fortune, forcing her to sell "The Mount" during that year, which she would regret for the rest of her life. In 1913, she moved to Paris, where she had felt more at home, as experienced during her childhood. She was definitely a non-conformist. She broke a social "taboo" by getting a French divorce. She was to remain in Europe for the remainder of her life, only to return to the United States to receive the Pulitzer Prize and receive an honorary degree at Yale in 1921, after she wrote her most successful novel, "The Age of Innocence". She was very active in European society and received the French Medal of Freedom for her volunteer work during the First World War. She died in Paris in 1937, and is buried at the American Cemetery in Versailles. "The Mount" has been procured by the Edith Wharton Foundation and is open to the public during the warm weather months.
Gertrude Robinson-Smith
She was born to a wealthy family in New York City in 1880. If it weren't for her, we would not know Tanglewood as it is today. In 1934, she was contacted by Henry Hadley, a symphony orchestra conductor to fulfill a mission which was close to their hearts....a music festival in the Berkshires. As both had spent their summers in the Berkshires and loved the area, they knew that this was a vital missing link to make the place more culturally attractive. As a result of her untiring efforts and her social influence, the first Berkshire Music Festival took place at the Hanna Horse Farm in 1935. It was a modest success in which 60 musicians from the New York Philharmonic performed a "pops" type of program. The festival was repeated in 1936 at an alternate site. Meanwhile, she began to search for a full-sized symphony orchestra. The extended search finally led to the Boston Symphony Orchestra with an agreement for the entire orchestra to perform on the following year. By 1937, the Tappen family decided to donate their "cottage" and grounds called "Tanglewood" to the Boston Symphony Orchestra as a permanent music festival performance site. During that summer the orchestra performed there for the very first time. Serge Koussevitsky, the symphony's music director, insisted that the orchestra perform within a large tent. Unfortunately, the tent was not waterproof, and on August 12th, a violent downpour came down from the sky to flood and inundate the tent during a concert of Wagnerian music. After a "drying out" interruption, the concert continued. After the concert ended Gertrude began a drive to raise $100,000. to build a waterproof home for the orchestra. By 1938, the structure had been erected as designed by Joseph Franz, an engineer from Stockbridge. This is the same landmark, now referred to as the "Koussevitsky Memorial Shed" that houses the present day BSO performances. Gertrude died in 1963, and there is a memorial plaque within, commemorating her vital role in making Tanglewood what it is today.
Mabel Choate
She was born in New YorkCity in 1870, the youngest member of the Joseph Choate family. Her father had commissioned Stanford White, the famous American architect to design and execute the construction of "Naumkeag", his 26 room "cottage" in Stockbridge. It was completed in 1886, where the family spent many a happy summer. A few years after the death of Joseph Choate, which occurred in 1917, Mabel inherited "Naumkeag", where she lived for many years, keeping it up and ultimately co-designed its beautiful gardens, assisted with the talents of Fletcher Steele, the famous American landscapist. She pioneered to keep the Berkshires true to its history and environmental heritage, and was responsible for the moving and restoration of the "Mission House" that was originally built in 1739, to where it stands today. Thanks to her efforts she worked with others in establishing the Berkshire Playhouse in Stockbridge. Mabel deeded "Naumkeag" and the "Mission House" to the Trustrees of Reservations, a non-profit organization, to maintain the properties true to their original profiles. Both are open to the public during the warm weather months. She died in 1958.
Notes by Richard Erlanger
COMBINE A VISIT TO "THE MOUNT" AND "NAUMKEAG" FOR A SPECIALLY THEMED TOUR ABOUT "THE WOMEN OF THE BERKSHIRES"....