Edwina Stanton Babock

Description of Photograph: black and white photograph of Edwina Stanton Babcock resting her left arm on a table

      Babcock is the seventh daughter of Col. Edwin Stanton Babcock and his wife Sarah Anna McLachlin. She was born in Nyack, New York, one of a family of eleven, eight of whom grew to maturity. She played most of her early life with her three younger brothers and their boy friends, girl playmates being scarce.

      The third story of the old Babcock home was often the scene of plays written and given by Edwina and the three brothers. The neighborhood children were admitted for pins and paper currency, sometimes for a piece of gingerbread. As a child, Miss Babcock depended entirely upon her imagination for entertaining friends, as toys were few and parties non-existent.

      Miss Babcock's only schooling was one year at a little private "dame" school at Nyack, the family finances ill affording that. The public schools being thought at that time undesirable, she had little education, being taught merely to play the violin and piano and a little composition writing at home. Later her very strong impulse

to write for publication was systematically discouraged, until the writer and educator, H. A. Guerber, then living in Nyack, after seeing a sheaf of the young girl's poems, induced Edwina Babcock to come to her for English and French and the study of comparative literatures.

      Miss Babcock contributed to The Outlook, The Outing Magazine, The Atlantic Monthly, Harper's Monthly Magazine, The Pictorial Review, The Century, and also wrote two books of verse, "Greek Wayfarers" and "The Flying Parliament."

      Miss Babcock was ranked among the best short story writers of her day. Her novel is entitled: "Under The Law." 

Have a question about the photograph? Just type it in the comment box and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. I only publish content that is closely related to the subject folks.