Jeanne Gehret's Blog: http://SusanBAnthonyFamily.com/, page 5

I’m more likely to understand someone after I’ve list...

I’m more likely to understand someone after I’ve listened deeply to them. In my day-to-day and in my writing life, I often use the enneagram, a personality type system that examines people’s innate tendencies and finds directions in which they can grow. This is especially important for the three main characters in my Dauntless Series: Annie, Daniel, and Susan B. Anthony.

Today I’m introducing three blogposts on this topic co-authored with Anita Plat-Kuiken, a fellow graduate of the Haden Institute. Both of us have used the enneagram to understand ourselves and others.

A tool for writing novels

As a tool for writing novels, the enneagram helps me recognize my characters’ inherent needs, fears, strengths, and flaws. It also makes plotting easier by showing how people can change and grow beyond their habitual ways of being.

This is especially useful since all of my characters have passed on. I can’t check my understanding of them against their own self-definitions. Fortunately, readers of historical fiction allow their authors a certain amount of creative license!

What is the enneagram?

The ancient wisdom of the enneagram indicates that all of humankind falls into one of nine personality types. Though people are different, some individuals are surprisingly similar to one another. For a video explaining this system in more detail, spend two minutes looking at this overview by Bea Chestnut. Anita and I have borrowed heavily for our understanding from Chestnut’s book (see below).

Throughout our next three posts, Anita and I will suggest types for Annie, Daniel, and Susan B. Anthony in my Dauntless Series. Then we’ll back up our choices with specific examples taken from two of my books.

Get ready for some stimulating discussion! We hope you’ll find this exploration interesting and fun, as we do.

Two last things

If looking at the Anthonys through the “ennea-lens” doesn’t intrigue you, check back soon. For your sake, I’m going to space these topical posts out over the next couple months. In between, you’ll still find plenty of more straightforward Anthony lore to keep you engaged.

As for the rest of you: have you used the enneagram? If so, what interests you about it? What type are you? What type do you think I am? Give me your comments in the space below. I read and respond to every one.

Other enneagram resources to enjoy




The Enneagram Made Easy, by Renee Baron and Elizabeth Wagele (book)
The Enneagram, a Christian Perspective, by Richard Rohr and Andreas Ebert (book)



Understanding the Enneagram, by Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson



https://www.beatricechestnut.com/enneagram



The Complete Enneagram, 27 Paths to Greater Self-Knowledge, by Bea Chestnut (book)

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Susan B.’s 200th

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It is good to see Susan venerated on her birthday, especially since she was often regarded as troublesome during her lifetime. I wonder how troubled she would be by some of the current causes that have tried to co-opt her support posthumously.

[image error]Susan B. Anthony and Daniel Read Anthony

Though I have not been blogging recently, my interest in Susan never flags. My focus since 2012 has been on Susan in the context of her family, which was very important to her, especially formative about her attitudes on the abolition of slavery.

Today’s Google slideshow about her mentioned how important the family’s Sunday antislavery dinners were, and even noted her brother Merritt’s involvement with crusader John Brown in Kansas. However, Google failed to mention her other abolitionist brother Daniel, whose influence on Kansas society and on Susan was much greater. This assures me that my work on Daniel in my Dauntless Series is still plowing new ground.

My first historical novel on Daniel’s family, The Truth About Daniel, was published in 2017. Now I am putting the finishing touches on the rough draft of the second book in the Dauntless Series and hope to have it published by the end of this anniversary year. In this new book, Susan’s abolitionist activities and reform methods both inspire her Kansas family and critique it. The novel examines the Civil War from three important viewpoints: that of a slave, an abolitionist, and a family that was attacked by abolitionists.

It features the many ways women were affected by the war, a
theme that historians often forget to notice in their focus on soldiers,
battles, generals, and bloodshed. I like to think that Susan, who was always living
and writing herstory, would approve
of my approach.

If you are looking for an easy-read biography of Susan based on the biography that she authorized during her lifetime, please check out my book Susan B. Anthony And Justice For All, available on Amazon and Kindle. And stay tuned for my next novel where she makes cameo appearances.

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One More River to Cross at Underground Railroad Heritage Area

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When fleeing slaves from the southern U.S. reached Niagara Falls, they knew they had one more river to cross. But what a river it was with its roiling cataract. The new Underground Railroad Heritage Area in Niagara Falls, NY. chronicles some of the notable African-Americans who escaped across the river and helped others to make their way to freedom.

Recently I had the privilege of touring the new museum. For those unfamiliar with the term, “Underground Railroad” refers to a series of places where escaping slaves could receive shelter and assistance after leaving the South. Following the North Star, they headed for the northern U.S., where slavery was outlawed.

However, after the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, bounty hunters could recapture slaves in the north and return them to bondage. For this reason, it was far better for these fugitives to go all the way to Canada. When they reached Niagara Falls, they had one more river to cross.

Anthony Involvement in the Underground Railraoad

The Anthony family approved of this civil disobedience of helping slaves escape. They hosted many antislavery dinners at their farm home in Rochester, and three of their children (Susan, D.R., and Merritt) campaigned against slavery with speeches, petition campaigns, and physical warfare. Among the family’s closest friends were Undergound Railroad “conductors” (owners of safe houses) Amy and Isaac Post and Frederick Douglass.

Active or Passive Escapees?

Sometimes conductors used the code word “parcel” for a fugitive needing assistance. This term erroneously suggests that freedom seekers were passive goods carried away from slavery by other (usually white) people’s initiatives. The term gives little credit to the courage and intelligence exhibited by fleeing slaves themselves. (I strove for the correct balance in The Truth About Daniel, when I wrote about the escape of Randall Burton on Martha’s Vineyard.)

The Underground Railroad Heritage Area tips the racial balance by showing black abolitionists at work, united in the effort to help freedom seekers cross their last barrier  to freedom, the Niagara River.. A daring feat, to say the least. More next time.

 

 

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Daniel Anthony’s Abolitionist Activities

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[image error]“Well mercy me!” as they might have exclaimed in the 19th century. It seems I never published the post explaining why Daniel Anthony’s abolitionist activities were controversial. So let’s play catch-up. The photo above, from a mural in Pleasant Hill, Missouri, should give you a clue.

When Susan B. Anthony was four, her brother Daniel Read Anthony was born on August 22, 1824. The family called him “D.R.” to distinguish him from Susan’s father, whose name was also Daniel. Brother and sister grew up to be ardent abolitionists.

Jayhawkers and Bushwhackers

Before the Civil War, while Susan was hosting speaking tours for the New York State Antislavery Society, D.R. joined Jennison’s Jayhawkers on the Kansas-Missouri border, sparking fear in slaveholders’ hearts by laying waste to farms and liberating their slaves. Some blamed the Jayhawkers’ raids for inciting rage in Quantrill and his band, who attacked Lawrence.

After the jayhawkers raided Missouri slaveholders, they would free people in bondage and also “liberate” livestock. That is why midwesterners either hated or revered the jayhawkers, depending on politics of the onlooker. (Click here for a previous post about the livestock issue.)

The Border War between Kansas and Missouri involved Southern sympathizers (“bushwhackers,” usually from Missouri) tampering with Kansas elections. Bushwhackers were typically young plantation residents who made guerilla raids and retreated to the safety of their homes. The only way the abolitionists could rout them out was to attack the homes where the bushwhackers received provisions and protection.

The Kansas Seventh

Later, when the Civil War began, D.R. helped Charles Jennison organize a Union cavalry unit called the Kansas Seventh. They were so thorough in burning out bushwhackers that only the chimneys survived, nicknamed “Jennison’s tombstones.”

As hated as he was by some for the border raids, D.R. was also called “The Moses of Kansas” for the number of African-Americans he liberated. Sometimes as many as a hundred slaves followed the Seventh across the Kansas border into freedom.

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New Underground Railroad Exhibit at Niagara Falls

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A whole new source of information on the Underground Railroad is opening next weekend in Niagara Falls, starting May 4. I’m excited because it will offer more in-depth background for my historical novels in The Dauntless Series, featuring abolitionists Daniel Read Anthony and his sister Susan.

Here’s the scoop on the new museum:

Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center
825 Depot Avenue W.

Niagara Falls, NY 14305

 Email:info@niagarafallsundergroundrailroad.org


Why is this new museum important?

States bordering Canada, particularly in the East, were the last frontier for enslaved people seeking freedom before the Civil War. Niagara Falls, NY, just across the river from Canada, admitted many freedom seekers traveling through New York State. I am familiar with many such stories that took place near my home in Rochester, and always wondered what happened to those travelers after they left here.

Gala Opening

The opening weekend includes a gala on Friday, a dinner on Saturday, and community day (for the general public) on Sunday. Thereafter it will assume a regular schedule.Read all about it here.

Their website offers some intriguing and detailed stories about an organized group of African-American waiters who risked their lives and businesses to help enslaved people to cross the border. Click on the tab “Underground Railroad Sites” to read about these individuals and some of the places where those escapes occurred.

For those of us who love the grandeur of the falls at Niagara, it’s just one more reason to visit this well-known northern city. Hope to see you there!

The Anthony Connection

Daniel and Susan B. Anthony lived in Rochester, about 60 miles from the famous falls at Niagara. Each of them, but especially Daniel, lent a hand to escaping fugitives. It would not have been unusual for either of them to visit Niagara Falls, since it was already a well-known tourist attraction during their time. Already my mind is conjuring up images of them speaking to a waiter and setting foot on one of the paths that led to river crossings.

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Susan B. Anthony’s Brother Worked near Frederick Douglass

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[image error] Correction: The Anthonys worked in the Reynolds Arcade, across the street from this building. Frederick Douglass had his office in the Talman Building. Sorry for the confusion.

was home to Frederick DougThis is the Talman Building in Rochester, NY, where Susan B. Anthony’s brother and father ran an insurance business. The brother will be the focus of my talk this Saturday, April 21 (details below). It features  Daniel Read Anthony, who emigrated to Leavenworth, KS. There he served as  mayor, postmaster, and publisher. But those meager facts don’t begin to tell his life story!

This talk recounts some of the research I did in Rochester and Leavenworth for my 2017 historical novel The Truth About Daniel. It’s hard to describe my excitement as I explored museums, scrapbooks, maps, and newspaper articles on this controversial man. As I walked the streets where he lived, my image of him became clearer. I learned how he:

ran a highly-political newspaper,
spirited slaves away from their owner,
traded insults and gunshots, and
supported his sister Susan’s campaign for women’s rights.

I was stunned to discover that he left Leavenworth in the winter of 1864 to marry a refined woman heiress from Martha’s Vineyard, who left everything familiar to make her home with him in that Wild West town. Come see my collection of images that include rare photos of Daniel himself and his wife Annie at this talk on Saturday:

Powerpoint presentation by Jeanne Gehret
The Truth About Daniel: Susan B. Anthony’s Forgotten Brother
Saturday, April 21, 1-2:30
Rochester Public Library, Central (Rundel) branch
115 South Avenue
Sponsored by Rochester’s Rich History Series

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Susan B. Anthony’s Brother Worked in Talman Building

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[image error]This is the Talman Building in Rochester, NY, where Susan B. Anthony’s brother and father ran an insurance business. The brother will be the focus of my talk this Saturday, April 21 (details below). It features  Daniel Read Anthony, who emigrated to Leavenworth, KS. There he served as  mayor, postmaster, and publisher. But those meager facts don’t begin to tell his life story!

This talk recounts some of the research I did in Rochester and Leavenworth for my 2017 historical novel The Truth About Daniel. It’s hard to describe my excitement as I explored museums, scrapbooks, maps, and newspaper articles on this controversial man. As I walked the streets where he lived, my image of him became clearer. I learned how he:

ran a highly-political newspaper,
spirited slaves away from their owner,
traded insults and gunshots, and
supported his sister Susan’s campaign for women’s rights.

I was stunned to discover that he left Leavenworth in the winter of 1864 to marry a refined woman heiress from Martha’s Vineyard, who left everything familiar to make her home with him in that Wild West town. Come see my collection of images that include rare photos of Daniel himself and his wife Annie at this talk on Saturday:

Powerpoint presentation by Jeanne Gehret
The Truth About Daniel: Susan B. Anthony’s Forgotten Brother
Saturday, April 21, 1-2:30
Rochester Public Library, Central (Rundel) branch
115 South Avenue
Sponsored by Rochester’s Rich History Series

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Historic Rochesterian Burns Up the West

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Historic Rochesterian Daniel Read Anthony, brother of Susan B., wielded both fire and bullets to bring about the end of slavery in the Wild West. Pictured behind me is the city of Leavenworth, Kansas around 1860, where Daniel emigrated after selling insurance in Rochester, New York for several years.

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Throughout his life, Daniel also supported his sister’s more peaceful but equally radical attempts to bring about equal rights for women.

How did his convictions mesh with Susan’s? And what methods did he use? Learn all about it at this upcoming talk:

Powerpoint presentation by Jeanne Gehret
The Truth About Daniel: Susan B. Anthony’s Forgotten Brother
Saturday, April 21, 1-2:30
Rochester Public Library, Central (Rundel) branch
South Avenue
Sponsored by Rochester’s Rich History Series

 

 

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Library Talk on Susan B. Anthony’s Contentious Brother

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This desk at the Leavenworth County Historical Society belonged to Daniel Read Anthony, publisher of the Leavenworth Times.

Susan B. Anthony and her brother Daniel Read Anthony remained close all their lives. Daniel  lived in Rochester for several years before starting a contentious newspaper in Leavenworth, Kansas. This roll top desk where I am sitting belonged to him. I like to think that he penned some of his flaming editorials right here.

My visit to his adopted home will be one of the topics I’ll discuss this month at my Powerpoint talk at the Central (Rundel) Library’s “Rochester’s Rich History” talk. Here’s the scoop:

“The Truth About Daniel: Susan B. Anthony’s Forgotten Brother”
Powerpoint presentation by Jeanne Gehret
Saturday, April 21, 1-2:30
Rochester Public Library, Central (Rundel) branch
115 South Avenue
Sponsored by Rochester’s Rich History Series

D.R., as he was called, sold insurance in Rochester for several years while saving money to move to Kansas. His own life was anything but risk-free as he rushed into burning buildings, spirited slaves away from owners, and traded both insults and gunshots on the streets of Leavenworth. Meanwhile he encouraged and supported Susan B. Anthony’s campaign for women’s rights.

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Susan B. Anthony’s Forgotten Brother

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[image error] The “The Truth About Daniel: Susan B. Anthony’s Forgotten Brother”
Powerpoint presentation by Jeanne Gehret
Saturday, April 21, 1-2:30
Rochester Public Library, Central (Rundel) branch
115 South Avenue
Sonsored by Rochester’s Rich History Series

Preparing this presentation has been fun, since it offers another opportunity for me to gather facts in one place on this many-faceted man. This blog has offered many sound bytes about him. However, the Powerpoint talk will present a concise overview of his long and controversial life.

It’s always a pleasure to talk about Rochester’s rich history. Hope to see you there!

P.S. The talk is based on my 2017 historical novel The Truth About Daniel.  You can get a signed copy at the presentation. Or order it on Amazon or Kindle.

 

 

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