The Writer Who Highlighted the Wit of Women
Katherine Abbott Sanborn was born in Hanover in 1839. Her father was a professor at Dartmouth, and the family lived in a house on the west side of the green. As a child Kate displayed formidable intelligence, and perhaps this was the reason her parents chose to educate her at home. She received an education that was exceptionally deep and broad. Her parents had a wide circle of friends, and they entertained frequently. Kate grew up socializing with many learned and accomplished guests, with politicians as well as poets.
By the age of 17 Kate was ready to become a teacher herself. After several years of running a school in her home, she moved away to pursue her career elsewhere. She taught English Literature at Smith College and Elocution at the Packer Institute in Brooklyn. She also published prolifically – literary criticism, history, books about her life, and children’s fiction. In New York she was a very popular lecturer, and her lectures were regularly reported in the city’s major newspapers. When she tired of city life, Sanborn moved to the countryside, where she often gathered her friends. Two books, Adopting an Abandoned Farm and Abandoning an Adopted Farm, record this experience.
In 1885 Sanborn published a collection of writings by women in a book she entitled The Wit and Wisdom of Women. In the 21st century, when female comedians are commonplace, it is hard to imagine a time when it was widely believed that women lacked a sense of humor. Sanborn had to dig hard to find examples for the book; though many humorous writings by women existed they had been largely ignored. The book was so successful that it was reprinted numerous times.
Sanborn died in 1917 and was buried in the Dartmouth Cemetery in Hanover.