The Legacy of Judith Sargent Murray

And speaking of Judith Sargent Murray, her modern editor Bonnie Hurd Smith will speak about that pioneering American feminist this month as part of the Old Town Hall Lectures in Salem.

Here’s the event description:

Thursday, January 20, 2011
Forming a New Era in Female History: The Life & Legacy of Judith Sargent Murray
Illustrated lecture and book signing

Using excerpts from Murray’s letters, Smith traces the remarkable life of the 18th-century essayist from Gloucester, Massachusetts, who called for women’s full and equal participation in the new American nation.

Independent scholar Bonnie Hurd Smith is currently editing Murray’s letters for publication. Her many published works on Murray include I am Jealous for the Honor of Our Sex: A Brief Biography (2010), Mingling Souls Upon Paper: An Eighteenth-century Love Story (2008), and editions of Murray’s letters.

Those books are available through HistorySmiths.