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Exploring Knowledge: Skills in Writing, History, and Health

Where to start?? There are so many topics I would like to study and have more information about. I would like to have more knowledge and skills about history and writing. Health, money, and laws are also of interest to me.

https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/blog/womans-exponent-womens-rights-and-suffrage?lang=eng

I Want To Be Creative

I have always wanted to learn to make soap, candles, and rugs. I would also like to learn weaving. How’s that for a list of things I will probably never have the time left on earth to learn. I also want to add this. There are a lot of good books which I will never have the time to read.

Writing is something I would like to have a better knowledge of. I want to take some courses in writing. One thing my writing needs improvement on is dialogue. For me, history goes with writing. Writers are recorders of history so I would wish for better knowledge of history.

Health, Money, and Laws

These are all topics that most of us should have more knowledge of. They affect all of our lives. The better I understand health and the things that affect my health, the better my body and life will be. As I get older I wish for a better understanding of how my body works. I need to know and understand about medicines and medical tests and procedures. Health also has the elements of history and writing. Here again, it is writers who document health reports and studies.

Doesn’t everyone wish for more knowledge about money? How to earn money, spend it wisely and invest it to make more money. I know I have always wanted to learn more about those topics.

Another topic I have often wished I was better informed on the topic of laws. I have sometimes encountered situations in which I would have like to be more informed about laws. Lawyers are very expensive and thankfully I have not had much need for lawyers.

Kritzolina  Creative Commons 

My Creative Side

Someday, I am going to find the time to learn how to make candles, rugs and weaving. I also want to take a course in pottery at some point. These are all topics I hope to explore some day. I would also like to learn to do some real weaving. These are my topics I would like to learn more about. Dreams for the future.

Daily writing prompt
Which topics would you like to be more informed about?

history, Women and History

The Legacy of Elizabeth Blackwell: First Female Doctor

Elizabeth Blackwell Born in England

Elizabeth was born the daughter of Hannah Lane and Samuel Blackwell in 1821, their third child. She was born in Bristol, England. Her family enjoyed a prosperous lifestyle there. However, riots broke out and they lost their business. Her father made the decision to move the family to America while she was still a young girl. Samuel Blackwell felt he would have more job opportunities in America. He also wanted to support the anti-slavery movement and women’s rights movement for his daughters. The Blackwell family settled in New York in 1832.

Education

Samuel Blackwell did not want his children educated by the church. Therefore, they received their education through their parents and private tutors. Elizabeth could speak several languages, including French and German, as well as English. She also received education in music and literature. Elizabeth was fortunate that her father believed in education for his daughters as well as for his sons. This was a time when usually women did not have the same opportunities for education as men. In fact, it was rare for a woman to have access to higher education at all. For Elizabeth to become a doctor, she had to confront entrenched views. She had to challenge preconceived ideas about the roles of women in society.

First Work Experiences

When Elizabeth was eighteen, her father died unexpectedly. He left her mother, Hannah, with nine young children to support for. For some time, Elizabeth, along with her two sisters and mother, worked as teachers to support the family. Teaching was one of the few occupations that society accepted for women at that time. Together, the Blackwell women opened a private academy for young women in Cincinnati, Ohio. Elizabeth also moved to Henderson, Kentucky, to take a teaching position. However, her anti-slavery views clashed with the school’s teachings. She left after her first year.

During this time period, Elizabeth had a close friend who was dying of a disease that affected women only. This friend was the person who most influenced Elizabeth to pursue a career in medicine. She confided to Elizabeth how embarrassing it was for her to let male doctors examine her. Her friend wished that women were allowed to enter the medical field and treat women like her. This was the first time that Elizabeth had ever considered the possibility of studying to become a doctor. She had never considered medicine as a career. In fact, she had found the study of the body, diseases, and sickness to be appalling and disgusting. In honor of her friend’s thoughts and wishes, Elizabeth set her sights on becoming the world’s first woman doctor. It would not be an easy path to forge.

Elizabeth Fights for a Career as a Woman Doctor

At the beginning of her quest to earn a medical degree, many of her friends were against the idea. They tried to discourage her. They didn’t feel she had any chance of becoming a doctor due to being a woman. Elizabeth persisted even though she had no idea where to begin. So she began by studying with private doctors John and Samuel Dickinson, who were willing to teach her. She also spent a lot of time reading and studying on her own. From there, she began to apply to different medical schools. She was always told that they would not accept her because she was a woman.

Geneva Medical College

Finally, one school did admit her to their medical program of study. It was the Geneva Medical College in New York. Although she was admitted to the college, it was not going to be an easy road to her medical degree. The male students treated her as an oddity. They joked about her. Some went so far as to bully her. Some professors refused to let her in their classrooms and demonstrations. Elizabeth refused to give up no matter how much abuse she received and just worked and studied even harder. In Jan 1849, it paid off, and she received her medical degree and graduated first in her class. I wonder how chagrined and embarrassed those boys who had bullied her felt.

Elizabeth Blackwell medical degree

Continuing Studies

After graduating with her medical degree, she moved to London and Paris, where she continued studying. Here, she took courses in midwife studies. Unfortunately, it was here that she would be infected with an eye infection from one of her patients. She lost her eye due to the infection and thus ended her ambition of becoming a surgeon.

Doctoring in New York

Upon returning to New York, she set about helping poor women and children. She opened several facilities for women and children to receive medical treatment. She also opened the first medical college for women in New York. Elizabeth helped her younger sister Emily enter the field of medicine. Together, they opened and operated facilities for poor women and children, as well as supported many other causes. Doctor Rebecca Cole would be the first black woman doctor to work with Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell at her Infirmary for women and children.

Civil War

During the Civil War, Elizabeth helped the Union effort with her knowledge of medical practices. This included advocating for clean, sanitary conditions as well as proper personal hygiene in Union hospitals and army camps. She also worked with President Lincoln in establishing The US Sanitary Commission. She trained other nurses in proper sanitary procedures for wartime. These trained nurses helped to reduce diseases from spreading through hospitals and among the men in the army camps.

Elizabeth Blackwell’s Achievements

  • First woman to receive a medical degree
  • Worked and studied at Bartholomew’s Hospital in London
  • Opened a private practice when no hospital would hire her
  • Opened the New York Dispensary for poor women and children
  • Opened the New York Infirmary for indigent women and children
  • First woman listed on the British Medical Register
  • Opened the first medical college for women
  • Worked with President Lincoln during the Civil War to establish the US Sanitary Commission in 1861
  • Lectured at the London School of Medicine for Women
  • Inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame 1973
  • Founded the National Health Society in 1871. Its goal was to teach people about the importance of cleanliness and living a healthy lifestyle
  • This is only a short list of the achievements of Elizabeth Blackwell. I am sure there are many others as well.

Books by Elizabeth Blackwell

  • The Religion of Health
  • Essays in Medical Sociology
  • The Human Element in Sex
  • Pioneer Work in Opening the Medical Profession to Women
  • Medicine as a Profession for Women
  • Address on the Medical Education of Women

Again, this is only a short list of books and articles written by Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell. I believe she also wrote many articles about women’s health, as well as articles about sanitation, cleanliness, and hygiene.

Elizabeth Blackwell: A Lasting Legacy

Elizabeth forged a path into the medical field for many other women to follow, including her sister Emily. The two of them together changed perceptions in the medical profession. They worked together or separately to advance the acceptance of women. The field had viewed women as inferior, ignorant, and lacking sense. It also considered women as not having the mental attitude for the medical profession. Elizabeth proved them wrong.

Copyright

L.M. Hosler 2025

 


 


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Embracing Evening Bliss: My Favorite Time of Day

I love mornings when I don’t have to rush getting out of bed. I don’t have to rush off to do a million things that need to be done. But every day I look ahead to when the craziness of each day turns into enjoying a relaxing evening.

But my favorite time of the day is evenings. Supper has been enjoyed, kitchen cleaned up and dishes put away. Then it’s time to sit with a cup of tea or a soda on the front porch. In the summer, the heat lifts a little bit and children are sometimes catching lighting bugs. I relax to the sound of the birds doing their evening serenades. I enjoy talking with the neighbors if they happen to be outside. It’s also a great time to relax with my favorite book until dark forces me to take the book inside.

Then it’s time for pajamas and maybe some television if I am lucky enough to find something worth watching. And it’s snack time. Time for the goodies to come out. Popcorn, chips, or some chocolate make evenings my favorite time of the day.

Daily writing prompt
What’s your favorite time of day?

Entertainment, Uncategorized, writing

Exploring Fiona Davis “The Spectacular”: A Book Review

A few years ago I joined our local book club. I love reading and I hoped to find new authors that I would enjoy reading their books. I have indeed found a few new authors that I am now trying to read all of their books. I really enjoy John Grisham, Linda Castello, and Nora Roberts. Now, I am going to read more books by Fiona Davis.

I have just finished the book “The Spectacular” written by Fiona Davis. I found it very interesting and entertaining. It first starts off in 1992 then reverts back to 1956. The story begins with Marion, the main character, being escorted back to Radio City Music Hall. For a short time, she had been one of the famous Rockettes. Then the story shifts to 1956. At that time, she faced difficult choices about her future. She needed to decide what she really wanted to do with her life. In the 1950s, many believed that women should be wives. They thought women should stay at home as mothers. But Marion had taken dance lessons all of her life and loved dancing. For Marion, this led her to difficult family issues.

The New York City Bomber

As Marion moves ahead with her life, relationships shift and change for her. One of these relationships is with her sister Judy. Marion and Judy’s relationship had been strained for several years. Just when their relationship appeared to be improving, the New York Bomber sets off a bomb at Radio City Music Hall, endangering both the audience and the Rockettes. The New York Bomber had been setting off bombs in public places for years throughout New York City and never been caught.

The Handsome Young Doctor

Marion meets a young doctor. He is working with the mentally ill. They set to work together to try to find the bomber. Peter Griggs creates a profile on the bomber. However, the police don’t put much faith in his profile. But working together, Marion and Peter Griggs just might be able to find the bomber when the police can’t.

In conclusion

I very much enjoyed this book. The characters were very real and it was a great story. I love history. This was the first time I had ever heard of the New York Bomber. He really did exist and terrified New York City for some years. The book is fiction but the bomber was real. The bomber added excitement to the book and held my attention. It also kept you interested. You wanted to find out if Marion would follow her father’s wishes and marry her high school sweetheart. Alternatively, would she follow her heart?

history, History, Uncategorized

Exploring Grisham’s An Innocent Man: A Wrongful Conviction

Great Book And A True Story

John Grishman is a well known author of at last count fifty books. Grishman is an attorney turned crime novelist. Having studied the law and worked in courtrooms, he has an inside knowledge as to how the law works. I have really enjoyed the majority of his books, but I still have several I haven’t read yet. But I did finish his book based on a true story titled “An Innocent Man” written and published in 2006 and I am currently reading his latest novel FRAMED which is an account of ten miscarriages of justice.

An Innocent Man Novel

This novel is the story of the life long struggles of a young man who almost died on death row before having his name cleared and regaining his freedom. It’s the story of a young man with a promising future in major league baseball who ends up on death row.

The story starts with Ron Williamson as a young boy exploring his athletic skills not only in baseball but other sports as well. It then moves to his career in the baseball minors teams and his realization that he has an injury that will never let him move to major league baseball.

After losing his dream of becoming a major league ball player, Ron’s life gradually begins to decline until he and a close friend are arrested for the murder of Debra Sue Carter. With no real evidence other than jail house snitches Ron is convicted and sentenced to death row. This takes place in the courts of a small county in Oklahoma where Ron is not the only victim of a very bad police investigation. There are several others who are wrongfully convicted and may still be serving time.

Justice Denied

Ron Williamson and his lawyers filed every appeal possible but all were denied until the Innocent Project took his case and eventually after eleven years Ron Williamson finally walked out of prison as a free man.

This was an awesome book in regards to how anyone can end up charged and convicted of something they had nothing to do with. A few parts of the story such as the different trials were a bit dry but other than that I would recommend reading any of John Grisham’s books. I personally was appalled at some of the law enforcement tactics which led to not only Ron Williamson’s conviction but other victims of the system.

Money and Finance, Uncategorized

Exploring Diverse Topics in Writing

Time For Some New and Different Articles

I have usually been writing articles dealing with women and history but I am going to switch gears here and go with some of my other articles that I have written a few years ago. Some deal with money management, some deal with health and diets. Perhaps some of you might suggest some other topics I could add.

Just A Writer

Just so everyone knows I am not a person with a degree in much of anything although I do have a degree in accounting and a diploma in computer programming from years ago. So I am an expert in nothing that I write about. Most of my articles are from my own experience and should not be taken as if it’s the absolute truth. Articles on money management are from my own experience in raising a family through rough times such as the last four years of inflation and high gas prices. Believe me when I say, it takes careful management of your money to help you survive through hard times.

Hope You Enjoy

Hope you enjoy the articles and send me some feedback. Perhaps some of you might suggest some other topics I could add. And remember I am just the writer.

history, History, Uncategorized, Women and History

The Inspiring Life of Nellie Bly: Pioneering Female Journalist

Elizabeth Cochran Better Know as Nellie Bly

Nellie Bly at twenty one years old while working as a foreign journalist in Mexico

Nellie Bly Early Years

Nellie Bly was born in 1864 in Cochran Mills, Pennsylvania at a time when women were expected to stay at home, have babies, take care of their men and be happy doing that. Women had very few rights at that time, little education and they rarely had good career choices. Nellie was born into a large family of fifteen. Her father had ten children before he married Nellie’s mother, who then gave birth to another five children. Nellie was named Elizabeth Jane but was also nicknamed “Pink or Pinky”. Later when she began her career as a newspaper woman, she changed her name to Nellie Bly as her pen name. Nellie’s father died when she was six years old and the family fell into hard times. Her mother remarried but it is said that her new husband was abusive. Sometime later her mother divorced the stepfather leaving Nellie and her mother to support the family by operating a boarding house just outside of Pittsburgh.

Nellie had wanted to become a teacher and briefly attended the Indiana Normal School, now know as Indiana University of Pennsylvania. However, the family’s finances forced her to give up her teaching dream. It was at this time that Nellie left school to help her mother run the boarding house but she still had dreams of what she wanted to do with her own life.

Nellie Begins Her Career as a Reporter

Nellie began her career as a writer and reporter in 1885 at the Pittsburgh Dispatch newspaper. She had written an angry letter to the paper’s editor in response to an article that she felt disrespected young girls and women. After reading Nellie’s letter, the editor offered her a job working for the paper. Very few women were ever offered opportunities like this and Nellie quickly accepted the offer. She was generally given assignments that were considered of interest to women. Here Nellie could give a voice to issues that concerned women such as poor women who had to support themselves as well as the working conditions these women found themselves in. Of course, some of her articles didn’t sit well with the business class and this was the reason she was reassigned to writing just for the women’s page such as society news. Nellie soon grew tired of these boring assignments and wanted more of a challenge. She found her challenge by going to Mexico as a foreign correspondent for the paper where she spent several months writing about the lives and conditions she found in Mexico. After a few months however, she drew the displeasure of the Mexican dictator Porfirio Diaz when she wrote articles critical of his leadership and government. Nellie was forced to leave the country but later she published her book “Six Months in Mexico”. It seems Nellie’s honesty as a reporter was not always appreciated and tended to get her into trouble.

Nellie Exposes the Insane Asylum Blackwell Island

In 1887 Nellie decided it was time to move to New York where she took a job at The New York World paper as a reporter. Her first real assignment with the New York World paper was to go undercover as an insane girl to the Blackwell Island mental institute. How many of us would willing have ourselves committed to an insane asylum? Not very many of us I am sure. Here she spent ten days living locked up with insane women. She saw and experienced everything that a truly insane person would experience. As a result, she wrote a series of articles exposing the mental health facility and she was able to bring about awareness for the mentally insane and instigate an investigation into Blackwell Island. This brought about much needed reforms for mental health institutions. Her story of her time in the mad house later became the movie, “Ten Days in a Mad House”. It was an awesome movie but I believe it was rather dramatized as they tend to do with movies.

Some of the reforms that were brought about by Nellie’s daring venture into Blackwell Island institute for the mentally insane included:

  • Better food for the patients
  • Better health care
  • Warmer clothing and more blankets
  • More oversight into the doctors and nurses treatment of the patients
  • Warm baths instead of icy cold baths
  • Cleaner clothing, towels and personal care items

Blackwell Island for the Mentally Insane Asylum

The Blackwell Mental Institute for the insane where Nellie Byl spent confined for ten days

Nellie Travels the World in Seventy Two Days

Nellie also had the opportunity to travel around the world to beat the previous fictional world record of eighty days. When Nellie brought up the idea of beating the old record her editor told her it wasn’t a job for a female so Nellie challenged him to send both her and a man at the same time. Her editor gave her the assignment. She left Hoboken, New Jersey on Nov 14th, 1889 by ship, traveling to London. From London she took trains to Paris and throughout Europe. From there she traveled to Egypt then on to the Suez Canal then headed towards Middle Eastern countries. From there, she next journeyed through Asian countries and into Japan. From Japan she headed home to San Francisco, Ca. Her journey consisted mostly of travel by trains and ocean liners but there are also reports of various other means of transportation such as horses and Asia rickshaws. Nellie completed her journey in record time with a total of twenty one seven hundred and 40 miles in seventy days, six hours and eleven minutes. I am not sure Nellie was aware at the time she began her journey that the Cosmopolitan magazine was also sending another female reporter, Elizabeth Bisland, on the same mission.

During those seventy two days as Nellie traveled the world, the editor of The New York World used her trip to drive up circulation of the newspaper. Nellie would send dispatches to the paper on where she was every day. The newspaper sponsored a contest offering a prize of a trip to the person who made the most accurate guess as to how long her trip would take.

Upon her return arrival in San Francisco on Jan 25th 1890 Nellie was greeted with crowds of admirers and was given a special train to make her trip back to New York. When she arrived in New York she was honored with parades, brass bands and fireworks to celebrate her victory and safe return. She later wrote her book titled “Around the World in Seventy Two Days”.

Nellie’s Many Accomplishments

Nellie Bly was certainly a woman ahead of her time. In a time when women were looked on as nothing more than a wife, mother, housekeeper and laundress, she blazed a path of her own. In 1895 Nellie married Robert Livingston a man quite a bit older than her. After his death, Nellie wrote numerous articles covering the women’s suffrage movement. Her words and her stories were a powerful tool for women everywhere. Nellie also covered the First World War reporting from the Eastern front lines. Nellie received numerous awards for her work throughout her lifetime and she certainly left her mark on the journalist world. In 1998 Nellie Bly was indicted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame.

Nellie Bly was a leader whose work influenced women’s lives in many ways. Her early work exposed factories and influenced changes in safety. She became a role model for young women who dreamed of becoming something more than a wife and mother.

Copyright  2019 L.M. Hosler

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From Commoner to Queen of England: The Journey of Elizabeth Woodville

The White Queen Novel

The White Queen novel is written by Philppa Gregory, a historian with a keen interest in English kings and queens. Philppa Gregory combines her love of history, writing and researching into this compelling story of Elizabeth Woodville, the daughter of a squire and a young widow with two young sons. This is the story of one young woman’s rise to the height of power, her fall from power, her struggles to save her children and the love she has for King Edward IV. The book is well written and Philppa Gregory does a great job with researching any of her books. Although it is fiction, it is based on real people’s life’s and real events that occurred during their lifetime.

This is the story of great royal families fighting for power and the throne of England as the greatest prize of all. Many of these great families would fight against their cousins in a war that became know as “The War of The Cousins” and later known as the War of The Roses. This was a time when friends, cousins and brothers could turn on each other in the middle of a battlefield in a moments notice.

Queen Elizabeth Woodville

Elizabeth’s Story

Elizabeth Woodville was considered to be a commoner and not good enough to marry a king, even though her mother Jacquetta of Luxembourg came from the royal family of Burgundy and had been married to the Duke of Bedford. Elizabeth’s father however, had been merely a squire in the Duke’s service so Elizabeth had no real prospects of a royal marriage. She was also the young widow of Sir Thomas Grey and had two small sons.

Elizabeth waited alongside the roadside hoping for a chance to petition the king to have her land returned to her. When the young King Edward saw her waiting alongside the road with her two boys he was instantly captivated by the beautiful lady. Edward attempted to make Elizabeth his mistress but she firmly refused, she would settle for nothing but becoming his wife and his queen. They soon married in secret and against the wishes of his top advisers and counsel who were hoping to make a match with a princess of France and King Edward.

Elizabeth is soon anointed as Queen Elizabeth. Through her new husband begins to move her many family members into positions of power and wealth through marriages, which infuriates Edward’s great friend and mentor the Earl of Warwick. The Earl of Warwick schemes and brings about an uprising in which he tries to have Edward’s younger brother George made king and put on the throne.

This is only one of the many uprisings and rebellions that King Edward and Queen Elizabeth faced as they ruled England and their own family grows. There would be many battles and much blood shed as the royal couple fight to stabilize England and keep the throne for their sons.

Elizabeth’s Young Sons: Heirs to the Throne

Young Prince Edward and his younger brother Prince Richard

Elizabeth came birth to several daughters and two sons who were the heirs to the throne after their father King Edward. King Edward, unfortunately dies while the two boys were too young to be named king. Edwards younger brother, Richard took the throne instead and the two young heirs were sent to live in the tower. One of the greatest mysteries in the story of Elizabeth Woodville, is the story of the two sons who were imprisoned in the tower and disappeared with no trace and no bodies were ever discovered. To this day, no one knows what really happened to the two young princes, Rumors were that King Richard had the two boys murdered so that he could be crowned king. However, there were several others who could have murdered the boys or given the order to have them killed. The author of The White Queen, gives a different theory on what may have happened to the heirs to the throne. The boys disappearances have never been solved and their killers were never found.

Reasons I Recommend Reading The White Queen

I have read several of Philppa Gregory’s books and I have loved every one that I have read. She uses actual people, dates and events to tell a fascinating story. Every book has been a page turner and hard to put down. In this story of The White Queen she describes battles, conflicts and emotions that I felt as if I were transported back time and as if I were right there in the middle of all the conflict. Thank goodness I was only reading about these treacherous and bloody times.

I personally love this type of story because of the history and that I know these things actually happened and people lived these stories.

I recommend this book for many reasons

  1. If you are like me and like stories base on history you will enjoy this book
  2. For those who like action to keep your interest there is lots of action detailing many of the battles of the War Of The Cousins
  3. Romance: Who wouldn’t like a love story involving the King of England who marries a squire’s daughter just because he falls in love with her even though she has no title or great wealth or power
  4. It is an intensely emotional story as Elizabeth the mother of the princes in the tower fights to save her sons
  5. Because the characters are based on real people, they seem very real

I would encourage anyone to read the story “The White Queen” by Philppa Gregory. This story has also been made into a television mini series which is very good. Philappa Gregory also wrote “The White Princess” Which is the story of Elizabeth’s oldest daughter and her marriage to Henry VII. The White Princess has also been made into a television mini series.

Copyright L.M. Hosler 2024

Uncategorized

True Sisters is a novel written by Sandra Dallas

A Story of Struggles Survival and Love

True Sisters is a novel written by Sandra Dallas. While this story is not an actual true story and the characters are not based on real people, it is a story of an event in American history. It is based on journals, accounts and stories from the people who survived the hardships of the 1,300 mile journey across the United States from Iowa to Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the story of strong courageous women.
This novel is about the struggle for survival against enormous hardships. At the same time it is also the story of strong, courageous women from very different backgrounds who learn to love each other and form bonds as strong as any blood sisters, thus making them True Sisters.

The Immigrants

Ella Buck is a young married woman, who along with her husband Andrew, and her sister Nannie have come from Edinburgh, Scotland as new Mormon converts. They made the decision to seek a better life and follow their faith all the way to Salt Lake City, Iowa. Brigham Young has declared that the Utah territory will be the Mormons new Zion. They will sail from Europe, then go by train to Iowa where they are to meet up with other new Mormon converts.Ella is pregnant with the couple’s first child and Nannie is hoping to find a husband when they arrive in Salt Lake City. All three are full of hope and confident of a bright, happy and prosperous future when they reach Salt Lake City. But they have no idea what hardships they will face along the way west.

Statue Honoring The Thousands Who Made The Journey Across America

Annie and John Sully

Annie Sully had been given little choice about making the trip to America and the journey west. She had not converted to Mormonism and did not want to give up her own faith but her husband John had converted and he had made the decision to leave London and join the other converts in Iowa. Annie had been quite content with her life in London. Her father had left her a successful gentlemen’s clothing shop which Annie was happy to continue the business with her husband. Annie also had three small children and is pregnant with a fourth child. She is quite concerned with giving birth in a strange country while pushing a handcart across the country for 1,300 miles. Nevertheless, John has sold their business and even given most of their money to the elders of the church so that others can afford to make the trip also. Annie has made the choice to follow John against her better judgment, but she will face many trials, heartache and hardships along the way. But she will also find other women who will love her, and care for her and her family even though she holds steadily to her own faith.

Louisa and Thales Tanner

Louisa Tanner is a newly married young woman whose husband is Thales Tanner, one of the missionary leaders. He is in charge of one hundred of the new converts who will be heading west. Louisa feels she is very lucky to have such an important man as her husband. Along with Louisa, her sister Huldah and her elderly parents will be making the journey west. Not all of them would survive the grueling journey.

Jessie Cooper

Jessie Cooper and Louisa Tanner have always been good friends. Before Louisa married Thales Tanner, he had previously courted Jessie. The two friends did not let this come between them, because truthfully Jessie was happy that Louisa had married Thales. She felt that Louisa was a much better match for Thales. Jessie was sure that when she arrived in Salt Lake City that she would find a husband of her own. Jessie and her brothers Ephraim and Sutter had made the decision to leave their tenant farm in the hopes of finding good fertile land in the Salt Lake Valley. So they sold their small farm and belongings and paid for their passage to America. They met the handcart train in Iowa. Jessie and her brothers were optimist and excited about their future never guessing what hardships lay in store for them. 

The Journey Begins

Near the end of July 1856, the Martin Company of converted Mormons slowly started on the long journey. Everyone was in high spirits and excited to be on their way. Families would walk and push and pull their handcarts which held their meager possessions. Each person was allowed seventeen pounds to be put on their carts but along the way much of their worldly goods would end up being left behind.
The carts were made of green lumber and poorly made. There were no oxen or horses to pull the carts, they would be pulled by human power only.This is the story of these four brave, courageous women as they faced unbelievable dangers, heartbreak, death of loved ones and hardships on their journey. These women would have to learn to help, love and lean on each other. There would of course, be many other members of the Martin Company they would meet and help along the way but these four would become Truly Sisters for the rest of their lives.


Reasons I Recommend Reading True Sisters

  • I truly enjoyed reading True Sisters. I had never even heard of this part of our American history until I read this book. If you enjoy reading about history, this is a great novel
  • The book is well written and the characters well developed
  • It is an emotional story that will tug at your heart. It did mine
  • It is the type of book that will keep you interested from start to finish