Bride Neill Taylor

Bride Neill Taylor (January 12, 1858 – May 29, 1937) was an American writer, educator and civic leader. She was known for her short stories written in the tradition of realism.[1] Taylor was also known for her non-fiction writing, which included writing about women's issues.[2] She worked to preserve the studio of Elisabet Ney as a museum,[3] and later wrote a biography of Ney.[4] She was also an early member of the Texas State Historical Association.[5]

Biography

Taylor was born in Peoria, Illinois in 1858 and she and her family moved to Austin in 1871.[6] Taylor's family were immigrants from Ireland, and Taylor was "an articulate Catholic."[7] Her education took place in private schools in Austin, "including several convent schools."[6] She also attended the Nazareth Academy in Kentucky where she graduated in 1876.[6] She married Thomas Frederick Taylor, a civil servant, in April 1880.[6] Taylor's brother, Charles P. Neill, was also a civil servant in Austin.[8] Her husband's work took them to Washington, D.C. shortly after they were married.[6]

Taylor began working as a journalist by starting as a "society editor" and drama critic for a Washington Paper,[1] the Sun Capitol.[6] Later, she became the Washington correspondent for an Austin paper, the Statesman.[6] Taylor and her husband moved back to Austin when her mother became sick in 1883.[6]

In 1883, she went to the University of Texas so that she could teach, and then taught in the public schools in Austin for four years.[6] On December 1, 1893, Taylor and eight other women formed the American History Club.[9] She also had one of her short stories, "When Hester Came," published in Lippincott's Notable Stories in 1893.[10][11] Taylor was one of three women who took part in the initial gathering for the Texas State Historical Association in 1897.[12] She became a charter member,[13] and stood up for women's involvement in the group.[14] She was involved with the Texas Woman's Press Association, where she was a charter member.[3]

In 1907, Taylor requested that Paulists come to Austin to work with the University of Texas.[15] She championed other Catholic causes in the city as well.[7] Taylor helped found the Seton Infirmary, the St. Vincent's Aid Society, St. Austin's Chapel another mission churches.[6] Taylor also "made many trips to Galveston" in order to alert the bishop, N.A. Gallagher, the head of the diocese, that there was a need for more access to Catholic worship, especially for students.[16]

Taylor worked as a journalist up until her death in Austin on May 29, 1937.[6] She was buried in Mount Calvary Cemetery in Austin.[6]

Selected works
  • A Great Texas Artist. Austin, Texas: R.E. McCleary. 1897. OCLC 260095700.
  • Elisabet Ney, Sculptor. New York: Devin-Adair. 1916. OCLC 39694888.
  • Taylor, Bride Neill (July 1929). "The Beginnings of the State Historical Association". The Southwestern Historical Quarterly. 33 (1): 1–17. JSTOR 30237205.

References

Citations
  1. "The Literary Women of Texas". Galveston Daily News. 22 August 1898. Retrieved 26 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.
  2. Grider & Rodenberger 1997, p. 64.
  3. "UT Museum Tells of Women in History". Abilene Reporter. 19 July 1974. Retrieved 26 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.
  4. Gillett, Laura (23 November 1926). "Notes About Books". Georgetown Megaphone. Retrieved 27 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.
  5. "Affairs of the Association". Southwestern Historical Quarterly. 9 (1): 290. July 1905. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  6. Cottrell, Debbie Mauldin (15 June 2010). "Taylor, Bride Neill". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  7. Niehaus 2008, p. 20.
  8. "Neill, Charles Patrick, 1865-1942. Charles Patrick Neill correspondence, ca. 1874-1930: PRELIMINARY BOX LIST". Harvard University Library. Archived from the original on 3 October 2016. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  9. Frantz, Helen B. (9 June 2010). "American History Club". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  10. "Lippincott's Magazine (ad)". Evening Times. 24 November 1893. Retrieved 27 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.
  11. "Literary Notes". Albert Lea Enterprise. 14 December 1893. Retrieved 27 April 2016 – via Newspaper Archive.
  12. Grider & Rodenberger 1997, p. 57.
  13. McDonald, Archie P. (15 June 2010). "Texas State Historical Association". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  14. Taylor 1929, p. 4.
  15. Niehaus 2008, p. 28.
  16. "Mrs. Thomas F. Taylor, Champion for the Paulists in Austin, early 1900s-1908". St. Austin Catholic Parish. 19 April 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2016.

Sources
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