Margaret Bell Houston

Margaret Bell Houston (also Margaret Bell Houston Kauffman, 1877 – June 22, 1966) was an American writer and suffragist who lived in Texas and New York.[1] Houston published over 20 novels, most of them set in Texas.[2] Her work was also published in Good Housekeeping and McCalls in serial format.[1]

Margaret Bell Houston
Born1877 (1877)
Cedar Bayou, Texas
DiedJune 22, 1966(1966-06-22) (aged 88–89)
St. Petersburg, Florida
NationalityAmerican
EducationSt. Mary's College
American Academy of Dramatic Arts
Columbia University
Occupation(s)Writer and suffragist

Early life

Houston was born in Cedar Bayou, Texas, in 1877, to Sam Houston Jr. and his wife Lucy Anderson. Her paternal grandparents were Sam Houston and Margaret Lea Houston.[3] She began writing at age eight.[1] She was the sister of Dallas resident Harry Howard Houston (1883–1935).[4]

Education

Houston attended St. Mary's College, the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and Columbia University.[5] She was first published in the newspapers, the Brenham Banner and the Dallas News.[1]

Personal life

Houston moved to Dallas and married a businessman named Kauffman.[6] In 1913, she was the first president of the Dallas Equal Suffrage Association (DESA).[7] Under her tenure as president of DESA, the group grew to around 200 members.[6] She also started writing her first novel, Little Straw Wife (1914), during that time.[8]

Houston moved to St. Petersburg, Florida, in 1953.[5] Cottonwoods Grow Tall (1958), written after her move to Florida received "critical praise as a work of literary merit".[9] Kirkus Reviews called it a "femininely accented story".[10]

Houston died in St. Petersburg on June 22, 1966.[11] Her body was transported back to Dallas to be buried at Restland Cemetery.[5]

Selected publications
  • Cottonwoods Grow Tall. New York: Crown Publishers. 1958. OCLC 1445014.
  • Yonder. New York: Crown Publishers. 1955. OCLC 6227307.
  • Bride's Island. New York: Crown Publishers. 1951. OCLC 285589.
  • Pilgrim in Manhattan. New York: D. Appleton-Century Co. 1940. OCLC 6629304.
  • Window in Heaven. New York: D. Appleton-Century Co. 1937. OCLC 7602976.
  • Hurdy-gurdy, a Novel. New York: D. Appleton. 1932. OCLC 2416057.
  • Moon of Delight. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company. 1931. OCLC 3467236.
  • Lanterns in the Dusk. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company. 1930. OCLC 2051973.
  • The Singing Heart, and Other Poems. Dallas: Cokesbury Press. 1926. OCLC 1617077.
  • The Witch Man. Boston: Small, Maynard & Company. 1922. OCLC 1817150.
  • Little Straw Wife. New York: H.K. Fly Company. 1914. OCLC 2416054.
  • Prairie Flowers. Boston: R.G. Badger. 1907. OCLC 18373036.

References
  1. Glasscock, James W. (9 October 1938). "Sam Houston's Granddaughter, Noted Poet, Arrives in Valley". Harlingen Valley Sunday Star Monitor Herald. Retrieved 15 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.
  2. "Houston Descendant to be Buried Today". Amarillo Globe Times. 15 July 1966. Retrieved 15 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.
  3. "Sam Houston's Granddaughter Writes Monitor-Index Serial". Moberly Monitor Index. 13 July 1931. Retrieved 15 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.
  4. "Obituary for Harry Howard Houston (Aged 52)". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. 6 November 1935.
  5. Bard, William E. (15 June 2010). "Houston, Margaret Bell". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  6. Enstam 2001, p. 31.
  7. Enstam 1998, p. 158.
  8. Enstam 2001, p. 32.
  9. Enstam 1998, p. 157.
  10. "Cottonwoods Grow Tall". Kirkus Reviews. 25 September 1958. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  11. "Granddaughter of Sam Houston Dies; Rites Set". El Paso Herald Post. 15 July 1966. Retrieved 15 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.

Bibliography


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