Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation

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Overview

While the "fathers" were off founding the country, what were the women doing? Running their husband’s businesses, raising their children plus providing political information and advice. At least that’s what Abigail Adams did for John, starting when he went off to the Continental Congress, which eventually declared the independence of the American colonies from the British. While the men were writing the rebellious words, the women were living the revolution, with the Redcoats on their doorsteps. John’s advice to Abigail as the soldiers approached Braintree: if necessary "fly to the woods with our children." That was it, she was on her own, as she was for most of the next ten years while Adams represented the newly independent nation abroad.

Abigail Adams is the best known of the women who influenced the founders, but there are many more, starting with Martha Washington, who once referred to herself as a “prisoner of state” for the constraints placed on her as the first First Lady. She was the one charged with balancing the demands of a Republic of the "common man" on the one hand, while insisting on some modicum of courtliness and protocol so that the former colonies would be taken seriously by Europe. She also took political heat in the press from the president’s political opponents when he was too popular to criticize.

And there are women like Esther Reed, married to the president of Pennsylvania, who, with Benjamin Franklin’s daughter Sarah Bache, organized a drive to raise money for Washington’s troops at Valley Forge. In 1780 the women raised more than three hundred thousand dollars. Reed wrote a famous patriotic broadside titled The Sentiments of an American Woman, calling on women to wear simpler clothing and hairstyles in order to save money to contribute to the cause. It worked! The women who ran the boarding houses of Philadelphia where the men stayed while writing the now sacred documents of America had their quite considerable say about the affairs of state as well.

This will be the story of some of those women, as learned through their seldom seen letters and diaries, and the letters from the men to them. It will be a story of the beginnings of the nation as viewed from the distaff side.

Editorial Reviews

Amanda Fortini

Founding Mothers is essentially a series of entertaining mini-biographies and engaging vignettes. Roberts fleshes out familiar textbook figures like Abigail Adams or Dolley Madison, and rescues more obscure women from the footnotes of academic dissertations.
— The New York Times

Maria Fish

Exploiting a wide range of historical evidence from military records to recipes, private correspondence, pamphlets and songs, Roberts succeeds in presenting something entirely new on a topic seemingly otherwise exhausted … Founding Mothers is a welcome addition to American Revolution biography, which is saturated by the lives of the Founding Fathers. It fills in blanks and adds substance, detail and dimension to what until now has seemed a strangely distant and utterly masculine mythology.
— USA Today

More Reviews (5) Fewer Reviews

The Washington Post

With Founding Mothers, Roberts fills a gap in our coverage of the era without straying far from the familiar story of colonial resistance, the struggle for independence and the climactic writing of the U.S. Constitution. We don't lose sight of the white male titans who built the nation; we just see them from the vantage point of the women they wooed and the families they worried about -- usually at a distance -- during America's longest war. — Joyce Appleby

Publishers Weekly

ABC News political commentator and NPR news analyst Roberts didn't intend this as a general history of women's lives in early America-she just wanted to collect some great "stories of the women who influenced the Founding Fathers." For while we know the names of at least some of these women (Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, Eliza Pinckney), we know little about their roles in the Revolutionary War, the writing of the Constitution, or the politics of our early republic. In rough chronological order, Roberts introduces a variety of women, mostly wives, sisters or mothers of key men, exploring how they used their wit, wealth or connections to influence the men who made policy. As high-profile players married into each other's families, as wives died in childbirth and husbands remarried, it seems as if early America-or at least its upper crust-was indeed a very small world. Roberts's style is delightfully intimate and confiding: on the debate over Mrs. Benedict Arnold's infamy, she proclaims, "Peggy was in it from the beginning." Roberts also has an ear for juicy quotes; she recounts Aaron Burr's mother, Esther, bemoaning that when talking to a man with "mean thoughts of women," her tongue "hangs pretty loose," so she "talked him quite silent." In addition to telling wonderful stories, Roberts also presents a very readable, serviceable account of politics-male and female-in early America. If only our standard history textbooks were written with such flair! 7 illus. not seen by PW. Agent, Bob Barnett. (On sale Apr. 13) Forecast: If booksellers position Roberts's book as a history of early America-and not as a women's studies text-it could have greater appeal. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

When most people think about those who helped fight for the independence of and create the government of the United States, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin come to mind. They rarely mention Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, or Eliza Pinckney. However, these and many other women played a significant role, including raising money for the troops, lobbying their spouses to fight for liberty and independence, and eventually hosting events where members of government could meet and discuss issues in a civilized manner. Roberts provides details on the lives and activities of these women and how they helped the country to survive. Though the book is fascinating, the author detracts from the work with her reading; she makes asides that do not appear to fit within the story and is overly strident as if she demands that we listen to her and believe what she is telling us or else. Another narrator might have been more effective. However, Founding Mothers will find a home in most public and academic libraries, especially those with strong women's studies and early American history collections.-Danna Bell-Russel, Library of Congress Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

Adult/High School-Focusing mainly on the wives, daughters, sisters, and mothers of the Founding Fathers, this lively and engaging title chronicles the adventures and contributions of numerous women of the era between 1740 and 1797. Roberts includes a surprising amount of original writings, but uses modern language and spellings to enable readers to enjoy fully the wit and wisdom of these remarkable individuals. While their men were away serving as soldiers, statesmen, or ambassadors, the women's lives were fraught with difficulty and danger. They managed property, and raised their children and often those of deceased relatives, while trying to make their own contributions to the cause of liberty. They acted as spies, coordinated boycotts, and raised funds for the army. Through it all, they corresponded with their husbands, friends, and even like-minded women in England. Readers will enjoy seeing how many of these individuals showed their mettle when they were still in their teens. Black-and-white photographs of portraits, a small selection of recipes, and a cast of characters are included.-Kathy Tewell, Chantilly Regional Library, VA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Washington Post Book World

“Roberts has uncovered hundreds of personal anecdotes and woven them together in a single, suspenseful narrative with great skill.”

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780060090258
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date: 4/13/2004
Edition description: First Edition
Edition number: 1
Pages: 384
Sales rank: 380,787
Product dimensions: 6.12 (w) x 9.00 (h) x 1.21 (d)

Meet the Author

Cokie Roberts

Cokie Roberts is a political commentator for ABC News and a senior news analyst for National Public Radio. From 1996 to 2002, she and Sam Donaldson co-anchored the weekly ABC interview program, This Week. She is the bestselling author of We Are Our Mothers' Daughters, Ladies of Liberty, and Founding Mothers.

Steve Roberts is the author of From Every End of This Earth and My Fathers' Houses. He has worked as a journalist for more than forty years and appears regularly as a political analyst on the ABC radio network and National Public Radio. Since 1997 he has been the Shapiro Professor of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University.

Cokie and Steve Roberts are the New York Times bestselling authors of From This Day Forward. They write a weekly column syndicated in newspapers across the country by United Media. The parents of two children and grandparents of six, Cokie and Steve live in Bethesda, Maryland.

	Acknowledgments and author's note
	Introduction
Ch. 1	Before 1775 : the road to revolution	1
Ch. 2	1775-1776 : independence	37
Ch. 3	1776-1778 : war and a nascent nation	78
Ch. 4	1778-1782 : still more war and home-front activism	109
Ch. 5	1782-1787 : peace and diplomacy	144
Ch. 6	1787-1789 : constitution and the first election	186
Ch. 7	After 1789 : raising a nation	227
	Cast of characters	279
	Recipes	283
	Notes	289
	Index	351

First Chapter

Founding Mothers
The Women Who Raised Our Nation

Chapter One

Before 1775:
The Road to Revolution

Stirrings of Discontent

When you hear of a family with two brothers who fought heroically in the Revolutionary War, served their state in high office, and emerged as key figures in the new American nation, don't you immediately think, "They must have had a remarkable mother"? And so Charles Cotesworth Pinckney and Thomas Pinckney did. Today Eliza Lucas Pinckney would be the subject of talkshow gabfests and made-for-TV movies, a child prodigy turned into a celebrity. In the eighteenth century she was seen as just a considerate young woman performing her duty, with maybe a bit too much brainpower for her own good.

George Lucas brought his English wife and daughters to South Carolina in 1734 to claim three plantations left to him by his father. Before long, however, Lucas left for Antigua to rejoin his regiment in fighting the war against Spain, leaving his sixteen-year-old daughter in charge of all the properties, plus her ailing mother and toddler sister. (The Lucas sons were at school in England.) Can you imagine a sixteen-year-old girl today being handed those responsibilities? Eliza Lucas willingly took them on. Because she reported to her father on her management decisions and developed the habit of copying her letters, Eliza's writings are some of the few from colonial women that have survived.

The South Carolina Low Country, where Eliza was left to fend for the family, was known for its abundance of rice and mosquitoes. Rice supported the plantation owners and their hundreds of slaves; mosquitoes sent the owners into Charleston (then Charles Town) for summer months of social activities. Though Wappoo Plantation, the Lucas home, was only six miles from the city by water, seventeen by land, Eliza was far too busy, and far too interested in her agricultural experiments, to enjoy the luxuries of the city during the planting months.

The decision about where to live was entirely hers (again, can you imagine leaving that kind of decision to a sixteen-year-old?), as Eliza wrote to a friend in England in 1740: "My Papa and Mama's great indulgence to me leaves it to me to choose our place of residence either in town or country." She went on to describe her arduous life: "I have the business of three plantations to transact, which requires much writing and more business and fatigue of other sorts than you can imagine. But least you should imagine it too burdensome to a girl at my early time of life, give me leave to answer you: I assure you I think myself happy that I can be useful to so good a father, and by rising very early I find I can go through much business." And she did. Not only did she oversee the planting and harvesting of the crops on the plantations, but she also taught her sister and some of the slave children, pursued her own intellectual education in French and English, and even took to lawyering to help poor neighbors. Eliza seemed to know that her legal activities were a bit over the line, as she told a friend: "If you will not laugh immoderately at me I'll trust you with a secret. I have made two wills already." She then defended herself, explaining that she'd studied carefully what was required in will making, adding: "After all what can I do if a poor creature lies a dying and their family taken it into their head that I can serve them. I can't refuse; but when they are well and able to employ a lawyer, I always shall." The teenager had clearly made quite an impression in the Low Country.

The Lucases were land-rich but cash-poor, so Eliza's father scouted out some wealthy prospects as husband material for his delightful daughter. The young woman was having none of it. Her father's attempts to marry her off to a man who could help pay the mortgage were completely and charmingly rebuffed in a letter written when she was eighteen. "As you propose Mr. L. to me, I am sorry I can't have sentiments favorable enough of him to take time to think on the subject ... and beg leave to say to you that the riches of Peru and Chile if he had them put together could not purchase a sufficient esteem for him to make him my husband." So much for her father's plan to bring some money into the family. She then dismissed another suggestion for a mate: "I have so slight a knowledge of him I can form no judgment of him." Eliza insisted that "a single life is my only choice ... as I am yet but eighteen." Of course, many women her age were married, and few would have brushed off their fathers so emphatically, but the feisty Miss Lucas was, despite the workload, having too much fun to settle down with some rich old coot.

Eliza loved "the vegetable world," as she put it, and experimented with different kinds of crops, always with a mind toward commerce. She was keenly aware that the only cash crop South Carolina exported to England was rice, and she was determined to find something else to bring currency into the colony and to make the plantations profitable. When she was nineteen, she wrote that she had planted a large fig orchard "with design to dry and export them." She was always on the lookout for something that would grow well in the southern soil. Reading her Virgil,she was happily surprised to find herself "instructed in agriculture ... for I am persuaded though he wrote in and for Italy, it will in many instances suit Carolina."

By her own account, Eliza was always cooking up schemes. She wrote to her friend Mary Bartlett: "I am making a large plantation of oaks which I look upon as my own property, whether my father gives me the land or not."

Founding Mothers
The Women Who Raised Our Nation. Copyright © by Cokie Roberts. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

Reading Group Guide

Introduction

"While the men were busy founding the nation, what were the women up to?" Cokie Roberts answers this question in Founding Mothers, a revealing and remarkable book that chronicles the American Revolution through the eyes of its unsung heroes.

They were wives, mothers, sisters, and daughters. They were patriots, politicians, and philosophers. Though their signatures don't appear on the Declaration of Independence, their influence on the founding of the nation was as instrumental as that of the men whose names are inked in history.

From Abigail Adams and Martha Washington to lesser-known figures like Catharine Littlefield Greene and Sally Livingston Jay, Roberts unfolds the stories of our Founding Mothers -- the women who tended home and hearth often under dire circumstances, ran farms and businesses, fought on the front lines of battle, wrote propaganda that called a nation to arms, acted as spies, and raised money for the troops. In many instances, their political and social sentiments proved more insightful than those of the men in the Continental Congress.

In Founding Mothers, Roberts gives voice to women who faced an uncertain future, believed in the revolutionary concept of a democratic society, and offered a steady hand to guide the fledgling nation. She weaves together anecdotes, diary excerpts, and correspondence; draws on military records, newspaper accounts, songs, and poetry; and intersperses her own insightful commentary throughout.

In a letter to her husband, Abigail Adams pondered whether future generations would care about the personal sacrifices they and others had made on behalf of the nation. "Posterity who are to reap the blessings," she wrote, "will scarcely be able to conceive the hardships and sufferings of their ancestors." More than two hundred years after she penned these words, Founding Mothers makes it clear that the nation we know today would not exist without the bravery, foresight, and steadfastness of Abigail Adams and her compatriots. These are the women who raised our nation.

Questions for Discussion

What inspired you to read Founding Mothers? Why do you suppose the contributions of women in the Revolutionary era have been largely overlooked by historians? Would the founding of the nation have occurred without these women?

Which woman would you say had the single greatest impact during the Revolution? How about during the first years of the new government?

Despite a lack of legal and social rights, including the right to own property and receive a formal education, how did the women presented in Founding Mothers assert their authority and exercise their intelligence?

How did life differ for women depending on where they lived—the North versus the South, the city versus rural areas? How else did geographical circumstances impact their lives?

Women often accompanied their husbands to army camps during the war, including Martha Washington, Kitty Greene, and Lucy Knox. Were you surprised they chose to do this? How did these three women in particular contribute to the often harsh life of a military camp and foster the war efforts?

By telling the stories of our Founding Mothers, this book also sheds light on the men of the time. Did you learn anything new about these men, including Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, and Alexander Hamilton, seeing them from the perspective of their female contemporaries?

How important was the "civilizing" role that women played in the years leading up to, during, and after the Revolution? Can you reference examples from the book that show how integral it was for the women to be able to step in and "calm down the men," or even to act as intermediaries, as Abigail Adams did in the dispute between her husband and James Madison?

Catharine Macaulay supported the American Revolution and was a vocal proponent of democratic governments in general. Why did Macaulay, an Englishwoman, take such an interest in the American cause? How did she contribute to it?

How did Martha Washington define the role of First Lady? Are her influences still evident today? Her political savvy was remarkable, but is there anything that can be learned from Martha Washington on a personal level?

Only a limited number of women could have accomplished what Abigail Adams and Mercy Otis Warren did -- those who had access to the men shaping the future of the nation. What about the women who didn't have the advantage of providing direct counsel or publishing their discourses? How did they contribute to the Revolutionary War and the founding of the nation?

Cokie Roberts intersperses her thoughts and commentary throughout the book. Does this enhance the narrative? In what ways?

About the Author

Cokie Roberts, author of We Are Our Mothers' Daughters, is the political commentator for ABC News and serves as Senior News Analyst for National Public Radio. From 1996-2002 she and Sam Donaldson co-anchored the weekly ABC interview program This Week. Roberts co-authored From This Day Forward with her husband Steven V. Roberts, and together they write a weekly column syndicated in newspapers around the country by United Media and serve as contributing editors to USA Weekend.

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ISU_paa

Posted April 17, 2012

I read this book for a class assignment, and used the book to a

I read this book for a class assignment, and used the book to analyze leadership. Personally, I think that anyone who has an interest in U.S. History should read this book, if nothing else for the interesting historical facts. I really loved hearing about how John Edwards was related to Aaron Burr, the story surrounding Benedict Arnold's wife, and the correspondence between Martha Washington and Abigail Adams. I already had a pretty extensive knowledge of American History going into this book, and I still learned a lot from it. No one else talks about the stories surrounding the women behind the men we all have heard so much about, so it was nice to hear an alternative perspective. Unfortunately, the book was a slow read, and got monotonous at times. Cokie Roberts had a great idea to write the book, but as a previous post says, it was poorly executed. Her organization was poor to say the least. Also, she tended to go off on tangents which seemed to detract heavily from the important points of the book. If you're looking for an enjoyable, easy-read type of book, this one isn't for you. However, if you want to hear a new perspective on an old story, I would highly recommend giving this book a try. Like I said, as someone with a strong interest in history, I enjoyed the book, even though it was a bit of a task to actually read it.
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ISU_lberg

Posted April 14, 2012

“Founding Mothers” was written by ABC News political

“Founding Mothers” was written by ABC News political commentator Cokie Roberts. Cokie was born the daughter of a US Congressman and has spent her entire life immersed in the Washington DC political scene where she has observed first-hand the important role that women play both behind the scenes and, increasingly, on the public stage (including her own mother, who won a special election to fill her father’s seat in the House following his untimely death). Cokie’s interest in history and her unique life experiences prompted her to intelligently and sensitively discuss the role of women during the nation’s formative years. “Founding Mothers” is a collection of private journals and personal correspondence that reveal surprising stories of the fascinating women and their roles during the nation’s formative years leading up to our Declaration of Independence and the Revolution, who without their exemplary drive and determination our new country might never have survived.
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LarisaB

Posted April 9, 2010

I Also Recommend:

Great Idea, So-so Execution

I agree with some other reviewers: this book takes a topic that's not well understood and makes a unique approach, but is poorly written and organized. I understand the desire to be engaging, but I think the material would have done that for itself, without side notes trying to draw modern comparisons or make jokes. Basing her research in women's letters, Roberts brings a whole world to life. However, she allows the relationships between women and the timeline to guide her writing, where in my opinion, a more scholarly approach -- perhaps by organizing it topically and drawing a few more conclusions -- would have been much stronger. In the end, I have a vivid picture of what women's lives were like, and what role they played in the early days of our country, but I'm not sure what to make of it, because it was all so scrambled. Still, when such things come up in conversation (which is sadly rare), it has a lot to offer in terms of interesting factoids.
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MainerMary

Posted April 8, 2010

I Also Recommend:

Enjoyable story of the women who helped found our nation.

If you like history especially the early history of America, you'll like this book. I had previously listened to the "John Adams" audio disc. Hearing this history of the women who were a major part of the same era provided an interesting counterpart to that book. I find such audio books make history live in a way reading the book doesn't always do.
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Karen127

Posted July 1, 2009

I Also Recommend:

Written for a 12 year old girl

I am a devoit reader of books on the early years of this country and have especially loved Founding Brothers (Ellis), John Adams (McCullough)and Benjamin Franklin (Isaacson) as well as Ferlings Adams versus Jefferson. As a professional woman I looked forwaard to this book especially seeking a more detailed discussion of Abigail Adams, a most fascinating woman. I could not have been more disappointed. Ms. Robert's writing was simplistic, patronizing and written for the aforementioned 12 year old girl. Factually, it was not accurate (note to Cokie-there was no vice presidential candidate in either 1796 or 1800). Don't waste your time with this book.
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Anonymous

Posted December 15, 2008

Well-researched and engrossing book

Cokie certainly did her research with this one. Founding Mothers is a wonderful and thought-provoking glimpse into the lives of some of America's most important women. I found myself humbled many times by the stories of these incredible women. Not only did they raise broods of children, they also kept their husbands' businesses running, dealt with extended separation from their loved ones, traveled to the battlefields with their soldier husbands, ran from the British invaders, and witnessed their own children, friends, and family members die. Yet through it all, they persevered and helped form a country unlike any other on earth. Women today could take a page from these courageous Founding Mothers! Great book, Cokie!
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Anonymous

Posted June 16, 2005

A different approach to the beginnings of our country

Roberts did an excellent job with detail in the book and covered a topic which many historians have yet to cover. The use of letters written by the founding mothers provides the basis for Roberts' research. I absolutely loved her added comments in the book, they made it very enjoyable. I would recommend this to anyone but I'm sure women will enjoy it more than men.
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Anonymous

Posted January 20, 2005

Great subject, disappointing book

After reading biographies on John Adams, Alexander Hamiltion, and George Washingion, I was really excited about reading about our founding mothers. This is one area that needs more research done on it. I bought the tapes, and started listening to the book, and became very disappointed. Ms. Roberts is not a historian, she is a reporter, and this shows in her book. Throughout the book she shares her opinions, and tries to be funny. Sometimes she makes statements that seem to be exaggerated. It seems that Ms. Roberts is just writing for women, by her comments. She should have had more confidence that this important topic, would be read by both females and males. Its obvious Ms. Roberts did her research, and many interesting stories are told in this book. I could not get past her bias and opinions in this book. It would be great if a real historian, like Doris Kearns Goodwin, tackled this subject matter.
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Anonymous

Posted December 30, 2004

A Reviewer, Reader of History Novels

Wonderful book that gives a new look in to the times of the American Revolution and what was happening through the womens eyes. A book any Women or Man should read.
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Anonymous

Posted April 19, 2004

Lovely Introduction To Neglected History

Wonderfully readable, yet satisfiyingly researched, history of the women who stood behind the men who made American history. Fascinating story and not 'feminist' at all; a great story for women, men and older children, and another example of how even the best-known historical events have many unexplored sides. (Haven't you ever wondered about Mrs. Einstein?) For a fascinating exploration of the opposite story--a man's view of fatherhood, marriage and staying home with the kids, I loved 'I Sleep At Red Lights: A True Story of Life After Triplets,' by Bruce Stockler.
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Anonymous

Posted May 21, 2004

MRS. ROBERTS TELLS THE STORY OF WHO WAS REALLY RUNNING THE GREAT EXPERIMENT

Mrs. Roberts has collected the few scraps of paper actually written by women who could write. She has authenticated stories about these women who were in fact managing what would become The United States of America. The Founding Fathers were gentlemen and their tasks well documented. This is the first collective view of what was going on in the colonies on a day to day basis. It is not surprising to me. However I am so happy that it has been written for my nieces to read. The roles they took on and accomplished are not in their high school American History books. While the stories are serious accounts of colonial life. The humor of a southern funeral put me on the floor in laughter. The unselfish melting of a fine pewter collection is remarkable. You have to read the book to understand these comments. The length to which the Foundiing Mother's would go is I am told what any Mother would do. I wonder? It made a great Mother's Day gift and I suspect would be a great surprise to many of today's busy Fathers.
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Anonymous

Posted June 12, 2004

A Good Read

This is a good book, but as one would expect, it is a bit politically correct for a book written about early America. Such are the times in which we live.
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Anonymous

Posted April 22, 2004

Finally, a history that makes sense!

I loved this book! It made me think and laugh at the same time. Impressively researched, beautifully written; this does a lot of justice to the gene. Thank you Cokie!
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Overview

Related Subjects

Editorial Reviews

Amanda Fortini

Maria Fish

The Washington Post

Publishers Weekly

Library Journal

School Library Journal

Washington Post Book World

Product Details

Meet the Author

Cokie Roberts

Table of Contents

First Chapter

Chapter One

Before 1775: The Road to Revolution

Reading Group Guide

Customer Reviews

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I read this book for a class assignment, and used the book to a

“Founding Mothers” was written by ABC News political

Great Idea, So-so Execution

Enjoyable story of the women who helped found our nation.

Written for a 12 year old girl

Well-researched and engrossing book

A different approach to the beginnings of our country

Great subject, disappointing book

A Reviewer, Reader of History Novels

Lovely Introduction To Neglected History

MRS. ROBERTS TELLS THE STORY OF WHO WAS REALLY RUNNING THE GREAT EXPERIMENT

A Good Read

Finally, a history that makes sense!

Before 1775:
The Road to Revolution