In 1895, Elizabeth retired from writing and married Robert Livingston Seaman. It was one of the few things that helped set her apart from her 14 siblings. The World built up the story by running daily articles and a guessing contest in which whoever came nearest to naming Cochranes time in circling the globe would get a trip to Europe. How many brothers and sisters did George Washington Carver have? Search results for "The Babysitter Chronicles" at Rakuten Kobo. Feb. 1, 2000; Accessed April 27, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1601472. Nellie Bly's stint in the facility wasn't necessarily how she envisioned making a name for herself. The high point of Cochranes career at the World began on November 14, 1889, when she sailed from New York to beat the record of Phileas Fogg, hero of Jules Vernes romance Around the World in Eighty Days. [16] Cochrane originally intended that her pseudonym be "Nelly Bly", but her editor wrote "Nellie" by mistake, and the error stuck. Nellie was born on May 5, 1864 in a city called Cochran's Millis in the United States. How many siblings did Warren G. Harding have? With Christina Ricci, Judith Light, Josh Bowman, Anja Savcic. Bly continued to publish influential pieces of journalism, including interviews with prominent individuals like anarchist activist and writer Emma Goldman and socialist politician and labor organizer Eugene V. Debs. Born Elizabeth Jane Cochran, Nellie Bly was famed for pioneering new investigative journalism when she worked as an undercover journalist in New York's most notorious mental institution. [50], Bly has been portrayed in the films The Adventures of Nellie Bly (1981),[51] 10 Days in a Madhouse (2015),[52] and Escaping the Madhouse: The Nellie Bly Story (2019). Bly told the assistant matron: "There are so many crazy people about, and one can never tell what they will do. 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. The town was founded by her father, Judge Michael Cochran. [19] When Mexican authorities learned of Bly's report, they threatened her with arrest, prompting her to flee the country. Cochrans editor chose the name Nelly Bly from a Stephen Foster song. Her time was 72 days 6 hours 11 minutes 14 seconds. When Bly was six, her father died suddenly and without a will. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. Omissions? Also, her 1889 record-breaking trip around the world in 72 days, in emulation of Jules Verne's fictional character Phileas Fogg, was a historic move for a woman at that time. However, after only a year and a half, Elizabeth ran out of money and could no longer afford the tuition. She died of pneumonia on January 27, 1922. Ultimately, the costs of these benefits began to mount and drain her inheritance. New-York Historical Society Library. With an attempt to break the faux record of the character of Phileas Fogg, Bly began her 24, 899 mile journey on November 14, 1889, boarding the Augusta Victoria. Christina Ricci starred as Bly and Transparent's Judith Light played the role of the head nurse. Best Known For: 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. How many siblings did Sybil Ludington have? Unfortunately, Bly did not manage the finances well and fell victim to fraud by employees that led the firm to declare bankruptcy. Elizabeths boss did not want to anger Pittsburghs elite and quickly reassigned her as a society columnist. The most famous of Elizabeths stunts was her successful seventy-two-day trip around the world in 1889, for which she had two goals. [22], Committed to the asylum, Bly experienced the deplorable conditions firsthand. Within her lifetime, Nellie Bly published three non-fiction books (compilations of her newspaper reportage) and one novel in book form. Answer and Explanation: Nellie Bly had 14 siblings (10 half-siblings; 4 full blooded siblings). 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). How many siblings did Sojourner Truth have? How many siblings did Martha Washington have? She also interviewed influential and controversial figures, including Emma Goldman in 1893. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. How many siblings does Bessie Coleman have? National Women's History Museum. of Congress. In a tribute after her death, the acclaimed newspaper editor Arthur Brisbane remembered Bly as the best reporter in America., Kroeger, Brooke. When Bly was six, her father died suddenly and without a will. 10 Days in a Madhouse: Directed by Timothy Hines. Journalist Nellie Bly began writing for the Pittsburgh Dispatch in 1885. 1893-1894. This lesson will teach you about Nellie Bly, her adventures, her inventions, and why she wrote under a fake name! How many siblings did Victoria Woodhull have? [10] In 1880, Cochrane's mother moved her family to Allegheny City, which was later annexed by the City of Pittsburgh. Her article's headline was "Suffragists Are Men's Superiors" and in its text she accurately predicted that it would be 1920 before women in the United States would be given the right to vote. When Robert died in 1904, Elizabeth briefly took over as president of his companies. Now Nellie Bly is getting her due", "Young and Brave: Girls Changing History", "Into the Madhouse with Nellie Bly: Girl Stunt Reporting in Late Nineteenth-Century America", "Nellie Bly's Lessons in Writing What You Want To", "Ten Days in a Madhouse: The Woman Who Got Herself Committed", George Francis Train, The Bostonian Who Really Was Phileas Fogg, "Almost 100 Years After Her Death, Nellie Bly Is Back", "Nellie Bly, journalist, Dies of Pneumonia", "Industries Business History of Oil Drillers, Refiners", "Nellie Bly, Girl Reporter: Daredevil journalist", "Marching for the Vote: Remembering the Woman Suffrage Parade of 1913", "Elizabeth Jane Cochran National Women's Hall of Fame", "Four Accomplished Journalists Honored on U.S. Postage Stamps", "Nellie Bly Marguerite Higgins Ethel L. Payne Ida M. Tarbell March Women's History Month Lady Journalists on Postage Stamps", "Amanda Matthews of Prometheus Art Selected to Create Monument to Journalist Nelly Bly on Roosevelt Island, Press Release", "Monument honoring journalist Nellie Bly opens: "This installation is spiritual", "New York Press Club Announces its 2020 Journalism Award Winners", "Fearless Feminist Reporter Nellie Bly Hits the Big Screen", "Judith Light hopes 'The Nellie Bly Story' will prompt mental health discussions", "All the Real-Life Scary Stories Told on American Horror Story", "Ladyghosts: The West Wing 2.05, 'And It's Surely to Their Credit', "Nellie Bly Goes Undercover at Blackwell's Island", "What Girls are Good For: Happy birthday Nellie Bly", "What Girls Are Good For - A Novel Of Nellie Bly", "Author: There's gold in them thar southern Black Hills", "The Mad Girls of New York: A Nellie Bly Novel", "New Book Gives Rebel Girls The Bedtime Tales They Deserve", "Round the world with Nellie Bly The Worlds globe circler", "Adventurer's Park Family Entertainment Center Brooklyn, NY", "The nautical adventures of the Trillium ferry in Toronto", "Ann Arbor Native David Blixt Discovered a Cache of Long Lost Novels by Journalist-Adventurer Nellie Bly", "American Woman Imprisoned in Austria; Liberated When Identified by Dr. Friedman", 10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1601472, "Nellie Bly: Pioneer journalist extraordinaire", "Dislocating the Masculine: How Nellie Bly Feminised Her Reports", Library of Congress "Nellie Bly: A Resource Guide", The Daring Nellie Bly: America's Star Reporter, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nellie_Bly&oldid=1141296960, Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Bronx, New York), Indiana University of Pennsylvania alumni, Pennsylvania state historical marker significations, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from January 2023, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2020, Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Elly Cochran, Elizabeth Jane Cochrane, and most commonly known as Nellie Bly as her pen-name, Information, photos and original Nellie Bly articles at, This page was last edited on 24 February 2023, at 09:53. In response to an article in the Pittsburg[h] Dispatch that criticized the presence of women in the workforce, Bly penned an open letter to the editor that called for more opportunities for women, especially those responsible for the financial wellbeing of their families. Her report of the horrifyingly appalling conditions prevailing inside the asylum was an eye-opener for the general public and authorities alike. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. How many siblings did Marie Antoinette have? MLA Norwood, Arlisha and Mariana Brandman. How many siblings did Florence Nightingale have? Working for Joseph Pulitzer's New York World, Bly gained national fame for her undercover work as a patient in a women's mental asylum in New York City. The Girl Puzzle Monument honoring activist and journalist Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman, pen name Nellie Bly (1864-1922), is a public sculptural installation by American artist Amanda Matthews, CEO/Partner of Prometheus Art Bronze Foundry and Metal Fabrication.The installation is located on the northern tip of Roosevelt Island in Lighthouse Park (named after the Blackwell Island Light) in the New . Those words, describing New York City's most notorious mental institution, were written by journalist Nellie Bly in 1887. New-York Historical Society Library. 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. Nellie Bly: Daredevil, Reporter, Feminist. The Historic New Orleans Collection, acc. 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. Oportunidades Iguales Para Las Mujeres En El Trabajo y La Educaccion, Womens Strike for Equality, New York, Fifth Avenue, 1970, Eugene Gordon photograph collection, 1970-1990. [citation needed] Julia Duffy appeared as Bly in the July 10, 1983 Voyagers! She was satisfied to know that her work led to change. How many siblings did Queen Victoria have? [14] Her second article, "Mad Marriages", was about how divorce affected women. Shortly after her first article was published, Elizabeth changed her pseudonym from Lonely Orphan Girl to Nellie Bly, after a popular song. In 1888, Bly suggested to her editor at the New York World that she take a trip around the world, attempting to turn the fictional Around the World in Eighty Days (1873) into fact for the first time. 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. 2022. www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/nellie-bly. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nellie-Bly, Spartacus Educational - Biography of Nellie Bly, Social Welfare History Project - Biography of Nellie Bly, The MY HERO Project - Biography of Nellie Bly, National Women's History Museum - Biography of Nellie Bly, Nellie Bly - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up), Nellie Blys Book: Around the World in Seventy-two Days. In the piece, writer Erasmus Wilson (known to Dispatch readers as the "Quiet Observer," or Q.O.) Nellie Bly was a journalist at a time when there were very few women in the workforce. Her father, Michael Cochran, owned a lucrative mill and served as associate justice of Armstrong County. It was no mere armchair observation, because Bly got herself committed . Chicago- Norwood, Arlisha and Mariana Brandman. On May 5, 2015, the Google search engine produced an interactive "Google Doodle" for Bly; for the "Google Doodle" Karen O wrote, composed, and recorded an original song about Bly, and Katy Wu created an animation set to Karen O's music. The young, intrepid reporter who graced the pages of the New York World at the end of the 19th century led a busy life. Her report was compiled into a book, Ten Days in a Mad-House (1887), and led to lasting institutional reforms. How many siblings did James Meredith have? Bly's future began to look brighter in the early 1880s, when, at the age of 18, she submitted a racy response to an editorial piece that had been published in the Pittsburgh Dispatch. In 1911, she returned to journalism as a reporter for the New York Evening Journal. Nellie Bly was an unwavering advocate for social change, a journalistic dynamo, and a force of nature. 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. Death date: January 27, 1922. Women in Art and Literature: Who Said It? [2], Elizabeth Jane Cochran was born May 5, 1864,[3] in "Cochran's Mills", now part of Burrell Township, Armstrong County, Pennsylvania. [54] A fictionalized version of Bly as a mouse named Nellie Brie appears as a central character in the animated children's film An American Tail: The Mystery of the Night Monster. Nellie Bly tied the nuptial knot in 1895 with the millionaire manufacturer Robert Seaman. She lived there as an international correspondent for the Dispatch for six months. In 1904, when her husband died, Bly took over the reign of the company. How many sisters did Charles Dickens have? She also covered major stories like the march of Jacob Coxeys Army on Washington, D.C. and the Pullman strike in Chicago, both of which were 1894 protests in favor of workers rights. [74] From early in the twentieth century until 1961, the Pennsylvania Railroad operated an express train named the Nellie Bly on a route between New York and Atlantic City, bypassing Philadelphia. Elizabeths report about Blackwells Island earned her a permanent position as an investigative journalist for the World. In 1889, the paper sent her on a trip around the world in a record-setting 72 days. Led by New York Assistant District Attorney Vernon M. Davis, with Bly assisting, the asylum investigation resulted in significant changes in New York City's Department of Public Charities and Corrections (later split into separate agencies). "Nellie Bly." Unable to maintain the land or their house, Bly's family left Cochran's Mill. [21], It was not easy for Bly to be admitted to the Asylum: she first decided to check herself into a boarding house called "Temporary Homes for Females". [13] Her first article for the Dispatch, titled "The Girl Puzzle", argued that not all women would marry and that what was needed were better jobs for women. Elizabeth traveled light, taking only the dress she wore, a cape, and a small travelers bag. How many sisters did Martha Washington have? Her sharply critical articles angered Mexican officials and caused her expulsion from the country. During World War I, she traveled to Europe as the first woman to report from the trenches on the front line. Bly followed her Blackwell's expos with similar investigative work, including editorials detailing the improper treatment of individuals in New York jails and factories, corruption in the state legislature and other first-hand accounts of malfeasance. Engraving. 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. In 1895, Bly married millionaire industrialist Robert Seaman, who was 40 years her senior, and she became legally known as Elizabeth Jane Cochrane Seaman. His farm, mill, and the surrounding area became known as "Cochran's Mill" (part of a suburb of Pittsburgh). How many siblings did Rachel Carson have? [17] Madden was impressed again and offered her a full-time job. The articles were subsequently collected in Six Months in Mexico (1888). [49], During the 1990s, playwright Lynn Schrichte wrote and toured Did You Lie, Nellie Bly?, a one-woman show about Bly. In her first act of stunt journalism for the World, Elizabeth pretended to be mentally ill and arranged to be a patient at New Yorks insane asylum for the poor, Blackwells Island. claimed that women were best served by conducting domestic duties and called the working woman "a monstrosity." 1890. She uncovered the abuse of women by male police officers, identified an employment agency that was stealing from immigrants, and exposed corrupt politicians. Well never share your email with anyone else, Nellie Bly became a star journalist by going undercover as a patient at a New York City mental health asylum in 1887 and exposing its terrible conditions in the, Bly looked for work to help support her family, but found fewer opportunities than her less-educated brothers. 1750. How many siblings did Mary Todd Lincoln have? 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 report on a mental institution from within. She was a pioneer in investigative journalism. One of her first undertakings for that paper was to get herself committed to the asylum on Blackwells (now Roosevelt) Island by feigning insanity. When Bly was six, her father died suddenly and without a will. Furthermore, her hands-on approach to reporting developed into a practice now called investigative journalism. On train, ship, rickshaw, horse, and donkey . Unknown photographer, A Typical Boomer Family, ca. Nellie Bly died of pneumonia when she was 57. Though most of her works were based on throwing light at the appalling condition of women in the society, and the need to uplift them, she is best remembered for her work on an asylum expos in 1887 in which she faked insanity to get into a mental asylum and reported about the horrific condition of the mental patients. Her reporting not only raised awareness about mental health treatment and led to improvements in institutional conditions, it also ushered in an age of investigative journalism. 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. 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. [citation needed] The character of Lana Winters (Sarah Paulson) in American Horror Story: Asylum is inspired by Bly's experience in the asylum. [4][5][6] Her father, Michael Cochran, born about 1810, started out as a laborer and mill worker before buying the local mill and most of the land surrounding his family farmhouse. Ten Days in a Mad-House is a book by American journalist Nellie Bly. Second, she wanted to prove that women were capable of traveling just as well asif not better thanmen. How has Title IX impacted women in education and sports over the last 5 decades? http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030193/1889-11-14/ed-3/seq-1/, By: Arlisha R. Norwood, NWHM Fellow; Updated by: Mariana Brandman, NWHM Predoctoral Fellow in Womens History | 2020-2022. 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. She faced rejection after rejection as news editors would not consider hiring a woman. The editor chose "Nellie Bly", after the African-American title character in the popular song "Nelly Bly" by Stephen Foster. How many brothers and sisters did Ella Baker have? Her reporting on life in the asylum shocked the public and led to increased funding to improve conditions in the institution. [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]. Unscrupulous employees bilked the firm of hundreds of thousands of dollars, troubles compounded by protracted and costly bankruptcy litigation. How many siblings did Eleanor of Aquitaine have? How many siblings did Emily Dickinson have? Her New York debut, at age 23, was a harrowing two-part expos of the Woman's Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell's (now Roosevelt) Island for which she had feigned insanity and fooled a battalion of Bellevue doctors and curious reporters from competing papers to get inside. NASA on The Commons, via flickr, Home / Modernizing America, 1889-1920 / Modern Womanhood / Life Story: Nellie Bly. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. She only attended one year of boarding school, because the financial burden placed on the family following her father's death forced her to quit school. Nellie Bly was born Elizabeth Jane Cochran on May 5, 1864 in Cochran's Mill, Pennsylvania. Bolstered by continuous coverage in the World, Bly earned international stardom for her months-long stunt, and her fame continued to grow after she safely returned to her native state and her record-setting achievement was announced. American National Biography. Unable to maintain the land or their house, Blys family left Cochran's Mill. She began working for the New York Evening Journal in 1920 and reported on numerous events, including the growing womens suffrage movement. [29][30] During her travels around the world, Bly went through England, France (where she met Jules Verne in Amiens), Brindisi, the Suez Canal, Colombo (in Ceylon), the Straits Settlements of Penang and Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan. Cihak and Zima (photographer), Ida B. Wells-Barnett, ca. She went undercover to expose an insane asylums horrors. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}Who Is Dilbert Cartoonist Scott Adams? How many sisters did Ernest Shackleton have? 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. At the . Elizabeth is often described as a muckraker. This article was most recently revised and updated by, 8 of Nellie Bly's Most Sensational Stories. First, she wanted to beat the record set in the popular fictional world tour from Jules Vernes Around the World in Eighty Days. [11], In 1885, a column in the Pittsburgh Dispatch titled "What Girls Are Good For" stated that girls were principally for birthing children and keeping house. During her early journalism career, Bly wrote Six Months in Mexico (1888), which describes her time as a foreign correspondent in Mexico in 1885. Elizabeth too began writing under the pen name Nellie Bly after the Stephen Foster song. [35], That same year, Iron Clad began manufacturing the steel barrel that was the model for the 55-gallon oil drum still in widespread use in the United States. Elizabeth Cochran (she later added a final e to Cochran) received scant formal schooling. Elizabeth had fourteen siblings. 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 Bly suffered a tragic loss in 1870, at the age of six, when her father died suddenly. Her fathers death when she was quite young had left the Cochran family with meagre means. Nellie Bly had 14 siblings (10 half-siblings; 4 full blooded siblings). [9] In 1879, she enrolled at Indiana Normal School (now Indiana University of Pennsylvania) for one term but was forced to drop out due to lack of funds. Life Story: Elizabeth Cochrane, aka Nellie Bly (1864-1922) World-Traveling Journalist and Muckraker The story of an investigative journalist who used her career to shed light on the horrors of urban life and break gender stereotypes. http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/bly/madhouse/madhouse.html, Janet Yellen: The Progress of Women and Minorities in the Field of Economics, Elinor Lin Ostrom, Nobel Prize Economist, Chronicles of American Women: Your History Makers, Women Writing History: A Coronavirus Journaling Project, We Who Believe in Freedom: Black Feminist DC, Learning Resources on Women's Political Participation, https://doi.org/10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1601472, https://wams.nyhistory.org/modernizing-america/modern-womanhood/nellie-bly/, www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/nellie-bly, https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/07/28/she-went-undercover-expose-an-insane-asylums-horrors-now-nellie-bly-is-getting-her-due/, https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org/learn/women-forging-way/nellie-bly-around-the-world. In business, her curiosity and independent spirit flourished. The park reopened in 2007[71] under new management, renamed "Adventurers Amusement Park". Her world tour made her a celebrity. Her report on the horrifyingly conditions inside the asylum led to numerous reforms in the living condition of the mental patients. He later became a merchant, postmaster, and associate justice at Cochran's Mills (which was named after him) in Pennsylvania. Nellie Bly tied the nuptial knot in 1895 with the millionaire manufacturer Robert Seaman. For the same, she feigned insanity to get into the asylum and have a first-hand experience of the treatment meted out to patients. http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/bly/madhouse/madhouse.html. Michael Cochrans rise from mill worker to mill owner to judge meant his family lived very comfortably.