All About Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins

Black and white photo of a woman with dark hair and a black hat hearing a dark dress with a white collar buttoned around the neck

Biography of Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins (1859-1930) Courtesy of Ira Dworkin, Department of English, Texas A&M University Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins, who was born in Portland, Maine, in 1859, is best known for four novels and numerous short stories which she published between 1900 and 1903. Her best-known work, the novel Contending Forces: A Romance Illustrative of Negro…

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October 17: Beyond Her Time: The Visionary Works of Pauline Hopkins

Banner for Pauline Hopkins Event

About the event Thursday, October 17Cambridge Public Library Main Branch, 449 Broadway A discussion between Dr. Susan Tomlinson, Associate Professor of English at UMass Boston and Dr. Max L. Chapnick, adjunct professor at Northeastern University; moderated by Virginia Pye, Cambridge-based author. This event was in partnership with the Cambridge Public Library and the Cambridge Black…

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Oct 30: Virtual book group discussion of Contending Forces

Details Wed, Oct 30 at 7pmFreeOn Zoom A pioneering figure of her time, Pauline Hopkins was a novelist, journalist, playwright, and activist who fearlessly tackled issues of race, gender, and social justice.  Join us for a virtual discussion of her 1900 novel Contending Forces (available through the Cambridge Public Library). To learn more about Hopkins,…

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The Mystery Plaque 

Section of a red brick wall. A rectangular brass plaque reads, "Quentin Compson III June 2, 1910 Drowned in the Fading of Honeysuckle"

By Edward Tabor, 2024 My parents were visiting me at Harvard College on October 16, 1965, a day when I was scheduled to row in a major boat race. It was the first occurrence of Boston’s now-famous “Head of the Charles” race. They stood on Anderson Bridge to watch my boat leave Newell Boathouse and…

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Cambridge Through the Pages

Cambridge Historical Society: Cambridge Through the Pages tour map

By Lucy Caplan, 2013 Did you know that Cambridge has been home to a mad scientist who can revive the dead, a teenager who met with George Washington, and a man who can see into his own future? Across the centuries, Cambridge has inspired writers of fiction and poetry as an ideal setting for their…

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