But Bly was hopeless at understanding the financial aspects of her business and ultimately lost everything. By Barbara Maranzani Updated: Nov 12, 2020. History 101: Nellie Bly. She also interviewed influential and controversial figures, including Emma Goldman in 1893. Wanting to write pieces that addressed both men and women, Bly began looking for a newspaper that would allow her to write on more serious topics. How many siblings did Mary Todd Lincoln have? How many siblings did Frances Hodgson Burnett have? [72], A large species of tarantula from Ecuador, Pamphobeteus nellieblyae Sherwood et al., 2022, was named in her honour by arachnologists.[73]. Her sharply critical articles angered Mexican officials and caused her expulsion from the country. She moved to New York City in 1886, but found it extremely difficult to find work as a female reporter in the male-dominated field. Wanting to write pieces that addressed both men and women, Bly began looking for a newspaper that would allow her to write on more serious topics. A year later, at 9:40a.m. on November 14, 1889, and with two days' notice,[27][clarification needed] she boarded the Augusta Victoria, a steamer of the Hamburg America Line,[28] and began her 40,070 kilometer journey. Bly switched back to reporting, later on writing stories on Europe's Eastern Front during World War I and the Woman Suffrage Parade of 1913. 2022. www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/nellie-bly. copyright 2003-2023 Homework.Study.com. [28] Bly's journey was a world record, though it only stood for a few months, until George Francis Train completed the journey in 67 days.[31]. Nellie Bly was the most famous American woman reporter of the 19th century. How many sisters did Martha Washington have? Returning to Pittsburgh, she temporarily continued working for The Pittsburgh Dispatch before leaving for New York City in 1887. The newspapers editor, George Madden, saw potential in her piece and invited her to work for the Dispatch as a reporter. The stunt made her famous. Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division Washington, D.C. She recounted her adventures in her final book, Around the World in 72 Days. She had circumnavigated the globe, traveling alone for almost the entire journey. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. In 1887, 23-year-old reporter Nellie Bly had herself committed to a New York City asylum to expose the horrific conditions for 19th-century mental patients. In 1887, Bly relocated to New York City and began working for the New York World, the publication that later became famously known for spearheading "yellow journalism." New York: Crown, 1994. With Christina Ricci, Judith Light, Josh Bowman, Anja Savcic. For ten days Elizabeth experienced the physical and mental abuses suffered by patients. Ten Days in the Madhouse. A Celebration of Women Writers. How many brothers and sisters did George Washington Carver have? The newspapers editor, George A. Madden, was so impressed with the letter that he published a note asking the Lonely Orphan Girl to reveal her name. [14] Her second article, "Mad Marriages", was about how divorce affected women. How many siblings did Queen Victoria have? It was one of the few things that helped set her apart from her 14 siblings. Cihak and Zima (photographer), Ida B. Wells-Barnett, ca. Baker's career as an actress took place from 1921-1934 and she performed in 13 films. Bly suffered a tragic loss in 1870, at the age of six, when her father died suddenly. How many siblings did Queen Elizabeth I have? In the piece, writer Erasmus Wilson (known to Dispatch readers as the "Quiet Observer," or Q.O.) Engraving. Bernard, Karen. Born Elizabeth Cochran Seaman, Nellie Bly grew up in Pennsylvania in an area that is now a suburb of Pittsburgh. [45] The winning proposal, The Girl Puzzle by Amanda Matthews, was announced on October 16, 2019. no. Bly later compiled the articles into a book, being published by Ian L. Munro in New York City in 1887. At a time when women reporters were generally restricted to womens page reporting, Bly covered wider issues beyond just gardening or lifestyle and concentrated on slum life and other important topics. She went undercover to expose an insane asylums horrors. Smithsonian Institute Archives Image # SIA 2010-1509. Now Nellie Bly is getting her due., Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland's History-Making Race Around the World. How many siblings did Anne Sullivan have? Upon her husbands death in 1904, Bly took the helm of his Iron Clad Manufacturing Co. During her time there, she began manufacturing the first practical 55-gallon steel oil drum, which evolved into the standard one used today. In 1888, inspired by Jules Vernes 1873 novel Around the World in Eighty Days, Bly aimed to turn the fictional tale into reality. (June 2002) 217-253. [74], Cover of the 1890 board game Round the World with Nellie Bly. Bly died of pneumonia at the age of 57 in 1922. After a ten-day stay at the asylum, it was at the behest of the newspaper that Bly was freed. How many siblings did Martha Washington have? Unfortunately, Bly did not manage the finances well and fell victim to fraud by employees that led the firm to declare bankruptcy. Kroeger, Brooke. Blys successful career reached new heights in 1889 when she decided to travel around the world after reading the popular book by Jules Verne, Around the World in 80 Days. Pace, Lawson. Her report was compiled into a book, Ten Days in a Mad-House (1887), and led to lasting institutional reforms. Thought lost, these novels were not collected in book form until their re-discovery in 2021.[75]. How many sisters did Susan B. Anthony have? The reporter known as Nellie Bly was born Elizabeth Jane Cochran in Cochran's Mills, Pennsylvania, where her father was a mill owner and county judge. 1893-1894. Interestingly, rival newspaper New York Cosmopolitan had sent their reporter Elizabeth Bisland on a similar journey but she arrived four days later. How many siblings did Rachel Carson have? Nellie Bly was known for her pioneering journalism, including her 1887 expos on the conditions of asylum patients at Blackwell's Island in New York City and her report of her 72-day trip around the world. After the company suffered losses from embezzlement, Bly returned to journalism and reported from Europe during World War I. Between 1889 and 1895, Nellie Bly also penned twelve novels for The New York Family Story Paper. Nellie Bly: Daredevil, Reporter, Feminist. Nellie Bly, pseudonym of Elizabeth Cochrane, also spelled Cochran, (born May 5, 1864, Cochran's Mills, Pennsylvania, U.S.died January 27, 1922, New York, New York), American journalist whose around-the-world race against a fictional record brought her world renown. How many siblings did Dorothy Height have? We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right,contact us! Elizabeth knew that she would need to support herself financially. While in charge of the company, Bly put her social reforms into action and Iron Clad employees enjoyed several perks unheard of at the time, including fitness gyms, libraries and healthcare. How many siblings did Mary McLeod Bethune have. Popularly known by her pen name Nellie Bly, Elizabeth Cochran was an American journalist and writer who was a pioneer in the field of investigative journalism. [10] In 1880, Cochrane's mother moved her family to Allegheny City, which was later annexed by the City of Pittsburgh. Her father, Michael Cochran, owned a lucrative mill and served as associate justice of Armstrong County. A steam tug named after Bly served as a fireboat in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Bly continued to produce regular exposs on New Yorks ills, such as corruption in the state legislature, unscrupulous employment agencies for domestic workers, and the black market for buying infants. Astrological Sign: Taurus, Death Year: 1922, Death date: January 27, 1922, Death State: New York, Death City: New York, Death Country: United States, Article Title: Nellie Bly Biography, Author: Biography.com Editors, Website Name: The Biography.com website, Url: https://www.biography.com/activist/nellie-bly, Publisher: A&E Television Networks, Last Updated: April 19, 2021, Original Published Date: April 2, 2014. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Similar reportorial gambits took her into sweatshops, jails, and the legislature (where she exposed bribery in the lobbyist system). Portrait of Nellie Bly. How many blood siblings did Queen Isabella have? Blys six-part series on her experience in the asylum was called Ten Days in the Madhouse and quickly made Bly one of the most famous journalists in the country. siblings: Harry Cummings Cochrane. How many siblings did Amy Carmichael have? He later became a merchant, postmaster, and associate justice at Cochran's Mills (which was named after him) in Pennsylvania. Nellie Bly was born Elizabeth Jane Cochran on May 5, 1864 in Cochran's Mill, Pennsylvania. Patents 808,327 and 808,413). Elizabeth traveled light, taking only the dress she wore, a cape, and a small travelers bag. Bly's celebrity reached an international level with her mission to travel around the world in 80 days, just as the character Phileas Fogg did in Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days. Gertrude Kasebier (photographer), Zitkala Sa, Sioux Indian and activist, c. 1898. (New York, N.Y.), 14 Nov. 1889. Jarena Lee, 1849. [56], Bly was also a subject of Season 2 Episode 5 of The West Wing in which First Lady Abbey Bartlet dedicates a memorial in Pennsylvania in honor of Nellie Bly and convinces the president to mention her and other female historic figures during his weekly radio address. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. She lived there as an international correspondent for the Dispatch for six months. This prompted Elizabeth to write a response under the pseudonym "Lonely Orphan Girl". National Women's History Museum. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. After the fanfare of her trip around the world, Bly quit reporting and took a lucrative job writing serial novels for publisher Norman Munro's weekly New York Family Story Paper. Her first articles, on conditions among working girls in Pittsburgh, slum life, and other similar topics, marked her as a reporter of ingenuity and concern. Does Nellie have any. Her expos of conditions among the patients, published in the World and later collected in Ten Days in a Mad House (1887), precipitated a grand-jury investigation of the asylum and helped bring about needed improvements in patient care. Madden offered her an opportunity to write another column, and after she submitted her column on how divorce affects women, he hired her for the newspaper (giving her the pseudonym Nellie Bly). Chapultepec Castle, Mexico City. Although Elizabeth never regained the level of stardom she experienced after her trip around the world, she continued to use her writing to shed light on issues of the day. Also around this time, she retired from journalism, and by all accounts, the couple enjoyed a happy marriage. Though New York World continuously covered her travel diaries, it was later in 1890 that Bly published a book about the experience, titling it Around the World in 72 Days. However, after only a year and a half, Elizabeth ran out of money and could no longer afford the tuition. In response to an article in the. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Ultimately, the costs of these benefits began to mount and drain her inheritance. "Nellie Bly." [53] In 2019, the Center for Investigative Reporting released Nellie Bly Makes the News, a short animated biographical film. The students will discuss diversity within the economics profession and in the federal government, and the functions of the Federal Reserve System and U. S. monetary policy, by reviewing a historic timeline and analyzing the acts of Janet Yellen. [68], Bly is one of 100 women featured in the first version of the book Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls written by Elena Favilli & Francesca Cavallo. She stayed there until the World rescued her ten days later. When Bly was six, her father died suddenly and without a will. [39] Bly was the first woman and one of the first foreigners to visit the war zone between Serbia and Austria. Elizabeths investigations brought attention to inequalities and often motivated others to take action. He had 10 children with his first wife, Catherine Murphy, and 5 more children, including Elizabeth Cochran his thirteenth daughter, with his second wife, Mary Jane Kennedy. Combine Elizabeth Cochranes life story with the life stories of, Connect Elizabeth Cochranes work to that of fellow muckraker, Elizabeth Cochrane was one of many Americans who fought to eradicate what she perceived as the evils of modern life. Quick Quiz: Around The World With Nellie Bly. Nellie Bly had 14 siblings (10 half-siblings; 4 full blooded siblings). [48], Bly was the subject of the 1946 Broadway musical Nellie Bly by Johnny Burke and Jimmy Van Heusen. Chicago- Norwood, Arlisha and Mariana Brandman. She began working for the New York Evening Journal in 1920 and reported on numerous events, including the growing womens suffrage movement. [20] Penniless after four months, she talked her way into the offices of Joseph Pulitzer's newspaper the New York World and took an undercover assignment for which she agreed to feign insanity to investigate reports of brutality and neglect at the Women's Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell's Island, now named Roosevelt Island. National Women's History Museum, 2022. Search results for "The Babysitter Chronicles" at Rakuten Kobo. On train, ship, rickshaw, horse, and donkey . Elizabeth Bisland Wetmore (February 11, 1861 - January 6, 1929) was an American journalist and author, perhaps now best known for her 1889-1890 race around the world against Nellie Bly, which drew worldwide attention. In conjunction with one of her first assignments for the World, she spent several days on Blackwell's Island, posing as a mental patient for an expos. [34] Due to her husband's failing health, she left journalism and succeeded her husband as head of the Iron Clad Manufacturing Co., which made steel containers such as milk cans and boilers. Her trip around the world in 72 days brought her even further fame. She regularly sent articles reporting about the lives and customs of Mexican people which were later published as a book titled, Six Months in Mexico. How many siblings did Louisa May Alcott have? It was for the Dispatch that she began using the pen name Nellie Bly, borrowed from a popular Stephen Foster song. Nellie Bly Lesson for Kids: Biography & Facts. In 1895, Bly married millionaire manufacturer Robert Seaman. Now Nellie Bly is getting her due. The Washington Post. National Women's History Museum. She left the newspaper industry after her marriage to serve as the president of her husbands company, Iron Clad Manufacturing Co. As a social reformer she gave over-the-top perks to her employees but the scheme cost the company so dearly that it went bankrupt. Corrections? Elizabeth Cochran Seaman (born Elizabeth Jane Cochran; May 5, 1864 - January 27, 1922), better known by her pen name Nellie Bly, was an American journalist, who was widely known for her record-breaking trip around the world in 72 days, in emulation of Jules Verne 's fictional character Phileas Fogg, and an expos in which she worked undercover to Within her lifetime, Nellie Bly published three non-fiction books (compilations of her newspaper reportage) and one novel in book form. In it, she explores the country's people and customs, and even stumbles upon marijuana. Her work, which was later reprinted as a book titled Ten Days in a Mad House spurred a large-scale investigation of the institution as well as the much-needed improvements in health care. Nellie Bly was never one to sit idle while the world rushed by. Elizabeths writing career started abruptly and unintentionally. She married millionaire Robert Seaman in 1895, but after his death she suffered financial reverses, and she returned to newspaper work on the New York Journal in 1920. In 1885, Elizabeth read an article in the Pittsburgh Dispatch that argued a womans place was in the home, to be a helpmate to a man. She strongly disagreed with this opinion and sent an angry letter to the editor anonymously signed Lonely Orphan Girl..