Martha Finley (pen name: Martha Farquharson; April 26, 1828 – January 30, 1909)[1] was an American teacher and author of numerous works for children, the best known being the 28-volume Elsie Dinsmore series which was published over a span of 38 years. Her books tend to be sentimental, with a strong emphasis on religious belief. The daughter of Presbyterian minister Dr. James Brown Finley and his wife and cousin Maria Theresa Brown Finley, she was born on April 26, 1828, in Chillicothe, Ohio. She died in 1909 in Elkton, Maryland.
Early years
Martha Finley was born on April 26, 1828, in Chillicothe, Ohio. Her father. Dr. James B Finley, was the oldest son of General Samuel Finley, a Revolutionary officer, major in the Virginia line of cavalry, afterward general of militia in Ohio, and of Mary Brown, daughter of one of Pennsylvania's early legislators. Her maternal grandmother was the daughter of Thomas Butler, who was a great-grandson of that Duke of Ormond who was influential in making the treaty of Utrecht. The Finleys and Browns were of Scotch-Irish descent and had martyr blood in their ancestry. The name of their clan was Farquarharson, the Gaelic of Finley, and for many years Miss Finley used that name as her pen-name.[2]
The Butlers were military men. Five of Miss Finley's great-uncles of that name were in the war of the Revolution, two of them on George Washington's staff. One of her great-uncles, Dr. Samuel Finley, was one of the early presidents of Princeton College. Her grandfathers, both on her father's and mother's side, were wealthy. Her grandfather Finley received large tracts of land from the Government in acknowledgment of his services to his country during the Revolution. He laid out and owned the town of Newville, Pennsylvania. Some of his land was in Ohio, and he finally removed to that State.[3]
In the winter of 1853, Finley began her literary career by writing a newspaper story and a little book published by the Baptist Board of Publication. Many of her early works were short stories contributed to the children's sections of Sunday-school papers. Originally written anonymously, the stories’ success led her publishers to ask her to include her name. At the time her family objected to her the publishing under her own name, so she chose "Martha Farquharson" as her pen name.[5]
Between 1856 and 1870, she wrote more than twenty Sunday school books and several series of juveniles, one series containing twelve books. These were followed by Casella (Philadelphia, 1869), Peddler of LaGrave, Old Fashioned Boy (Philadelphia, 1871), and Our Fred (New York City, 1874). It is through her "Elsie" and "Mildred" series that she became popular as a writer for the young. Finley did not write exclusively for the young. She wrote three novels, Wanted—A Pedigree (Philadelphia, 1879), Signing the Contract (New York, 1879), and Thorn in the Nest (New York. 1886).[3]
Personal life
Finley resided in Elkton, Cecil County, Maryland, in a cottage which she built.[3] On March 3, 1892, she became a member of the Singerly Fire Company, the town's fire department, when she was issued stock certificate 33, which granted her full privileges of membership.
There is no evidence to indicate other types of participation in the organization, as most likely Singerly generously benefited from financial contributions from the civic-minded, progressive writer, yet she was the only woman listed on the rolls of the Elkton fire department until the mid-1970s [6]
List of publications
Ella Clinton; or, By Their Fruits Ye Shall Know Them, Presbyterian Publications Board, 1856 – online at Project Gutenberg
Aunt Ruth, Philadelphia, 1857
Marion Harvie, Presbyterian Publications Board, 1857
Annandale: A story of the times of the Covenanters, Presbyterian Publications Board, 1858
Lame Letty, Philadelphia, 1859
Try: Better Do It, Than Wish It Done, Presbyterian Publications Board, 1863
Little Joe Carter, The Cripple, Presbyterian Publications Board, 1864
