Ellen Forrester

Ellen Forrester (1828 – 1883) was an Irish nationalist and poet.[1][2][3]

Ellen Forrester
Born
Ellen Magennis

1828
Clones, County Monaghan
Died6 January 1883 (aged 54–55)
Belfast
Resting placeSalford, Greater Manchester
NationalityIrish

Life

Ellen Forrester was born Ellen Magennis in 1828, probably in Clones, County Monaghan. She was the sixth child of the local schoolmaster. Her mother was a Presbyterian who then converted to Catholicism. She moved to England at age 17, working as a nursery governess in Liverpool. She then moved to Manchester, where she married a stonemason, Michael Forrester, around 1847. Michael Forrester drank heavily, and died of consumption at a young age, leaving Forrester with 5 children aged from 10 years and younger.[1]

She had written poetry most of her life, so to support her family she began submitting verse to English and Irish journals. Three of her children also wrote poetry: Arthur (1850-1895), Fanny (1852-1889), and Mary (b. 1857).[4] Forrester was a committed nationalist, and helped Caroline Douglas raise money for the defence fund for the Manchester Martyrs. Her son Arthur joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood in 1866 and was a leading Lancashire Fenian. She sought help from her friend, Michael Davitt, when Arthur was arrested in 1869. During Davitt's own imprisonment in Millbank penitentiary, he requested permission for Forrester to visit him but this was denied as she was deemed to be a "notorious Fenian-sympathiser."[1]

Around 1860 Forrester published her first volume of poetry, Simple strains. This was followed by a collection of songs in 1869, Songs of the rising nation, which also included verse from Arthur and Fanny Forrester. Towards the end of her life Forrester struggled with poverty and poor health, but according to accounts of her life she was in continuing good humour. in 1872 she applied to the Royal Literary Fund describing herself as a "cripple" and dependant on her two daughters who worked in factories. This application was rejected.[4] She died on 6 January 1883 in Salford, she was buried in a local catholic cemetery.[1]

References
  1. Clarke, Frances (2009). "Forrester, Ellen (Magennis)". In McGuire, James; Quinn, James (eds.). Dictionary of Irish Biography. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  2. "Ellen Forrester: Irish Woman Poet". Elliptical Movements. 14 November 2014. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  3. W., Reilly, Catherine (2000). Mid-Victorian poetry, 1860-1879 : an annotated biobibliography. London [England]: Mansell. p. 169. ISBN 9781847141798. OCLC 228658603.
  4. Working-class women poets in Victorian Britain : an anthology. Boos, Florence Saunders, 1943-. Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview Press. 2008. pp. 34–35, 237–239. ISBN 9781551115962. OCLC 184738590.CS1 maint: others (link)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.