Florence Treadwell Boynton

Florence Elizabeth Treadwell Boynton (December 25, 1876 – March 23, 1962) was an American educator, artist, designer, and social reformer. She was "California's chief exponent of rhythmic gymnastics,"[1] and promoted "Open Air Motherhood", a parenting philosophy that maximized children's outdoor time.

Florence Treadwell Boynton
A young white woman with dark hair, wearing a light-colored dress and a brimmed hat
Florence Treadwell Boynton, from a 1911 newspaper
Born
Florence Elizabeth Treadwell

December 25, 1876
San Francisco, California, U.S.
DiedMarch 23, 1962 (age 85)
Berkeley, California, U.S.
OccupationEducator
SpouseCharles Calvin Boynton
Children8

Early life

Florence "Mina" Treadwell was born in San Francisco in 1876, the daughter of miner and inventor John Bartlett Treadwell[2] and Mary "May" Sulgwynn Wentworth Treadwell; the family understood May Wentworth to be the daughter of inventor Isaac Singer.[3] Florence Treadwell was raised in Oakland, where she and Isadora Duncan were close friends from girlhood.[4][5]

Career

Temple of Wings, interior (c. 1915)
Temple of Wings, interior (c. 1915)

Treadwell taught music and dance, and opened a dance studio in her Berkeley home, called the Temple of Wings[6] or Temple of Winds,[7][8] inspired by Isadora Duncan's work.[4][5][9] She started four seasonal dance festivals. She promoted "Open Air Motherhood", a parenting philosophy that maximized children's outdoor time, beginning with outdoor birth,[1] with attended reforms in clothing,[10] footwear, diet, and education.[11] "It is not necessary that all women of a country be mothers," she said in 1911. "But it is necessary that all the children of a country be mothered and cared for in the best possible way".[12]

Personal life

Florence Treadwell was engaged to Augustin Duncan and William Randolph Hearst before she married attorney Charles Calvin Boynton.[3] They had eight children together.[13] Her husband died in 1960, and she died in Berkeley, in 1962, at the age of 85.[14] Her home and studio, the Temple of Wings, is listed in the California State Historic Resources Inventory, and in 1991 was designated City of Berkeley Landmark.[7][15][16]

References

  1. Wales, R. Ellis. "Allow Us to Introduce: Florence Treadwell Boynton" Good Housekeeping 52(4)(April 1911): 449-452; quote on 449.
  2. "Contest Filed Against Will by Bay Matron". Oakland Tribune. 1932-06-15. p. 6. Retrieved 2022-11-28 via Newspapers.com.
  3. Riess, Suzanne B. (1978). "Florence Treadwell, and Berkeley", an oral history interview with Boynton's son, Judd Boynton. Regional Oral History Office, Bancroft Library.
  4. Mckeon, Olive (2020-09-01). "Florence Treadwell Boynton in Progressive Era Berkeley: Early Modern Dance and California's Political Unconscious". Dance Chronicle. 43 (3): 243–269. doi:10.1080/01472526.2020.1819100. ISSN 0147-2526. S2CID 227241122.
  5. Mitchell, Margaretta K. (1985) "Dance for Life: Isadora Duncan and her California Dance Legacy at the Temple of Wings" Isadora Duncan Archive.
  6. Grieg, Michael (1959-01-25). "The Temple of the Wings". The San Francisco Examiner. pp. 158, 159. Retrieved 2022-11-28 via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Berkeley Landmarks :: The Temple of Wings". Berkeley Heritage. Retrieved 2022-11-17.
  8. Miller, Michael (August–September 2010). "Concrete Memories Brought to Life by the Concretist". Concrete Decor. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  9. Cerny, Susan (January 26, 2002). "Dance theories of Isadora Duncan were taught in Berkeley for years". Berkeley Daily Planet. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  10. "Mrs. Boynton Declares Modern Woman's Garb Almost Indecent". Oakland Tribune. 1909-12-03. p. 13. Retrieved 2022-11-17 via Newspapers.com.
  11. Weinstein, Dave (2008). It Came from Berkeley: How Berkeley Changed the World. Jones & Bartlett Learning. pp. 57–58. ISBN 978-1-4236-0254-5.
  12. Boynton, Florence Treadwell (1911-03-22). "Open Air Motherhood". The Chattanooga News. p. 9. Retrieved 2022-11-16 via Newspapers.com.
  13. "'God of the Open Air' Inspires Children in Wall-less Home with Spirit That Drives Out the Jazz Demon". Stockton Evening and Sunday Record. 1919-08-04. p. 2. Retrieved 2022-11-28 via Newspapers.com.
  14. Moffat, Frances (1962-03-27). "Inside Society: In Life, in Death A Non-Conformist". The San Francisco Examiner. pp. 21, 22. Retrieved 2022-11-28 via Newspapers.com.
  15. "Temple of Wings Historical Marker". Historic Marker Database. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
  16. Ketcharp, Diana (1991-10-07). "On the Wings of Uncertainty". Oakland Tribune. pp. B1, B2. Retrieved 2022-11-28 via Newspapers.com.
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