Woods, Katharine Pearson (1853-1923)
 | Katharine Pearson Woods was born in 1853 in Wheeling, Virginia (as the state was then known), the daughter of Alexander Quarrier Woods, a tobacco merchant, and Josephine Augusta McCab) Woods. Her parents promoted literature and education, which both proved significant influences on Woods's works. In 1874, she joined the religious order All Saints Sisters of the Poor. Though she had to withdraw due to illness, this experience also influenced her writing. Woods published her first novel, Metzerott, Shoemaker, in 1889, based on the principles of Christian Socialism, which advocated economic reforms to benefit the working class. Anonymously published, this novel generated widespread curiosity about the author's identity—which was soon revealed—providing Woods entrance to a successful career as a writer. Her other works include: Web of Gold (1890), From Dusk to Dawn (1892), John: A Tale of King Messiah (1896), The Son of Ingar (1897), and The True Story of Captain John Smith (1901). |
Metzerott, Shoemaker (NY: T.Y. Crowell, 1889); novel. full-text
A Web of Gold (NY: T. Y. Crowell, 1890); fiction.
"Queens of the Shop, the Workroom, and the Tenement" (Cosmopolitan Magazine, 1890); essay. full-text
The Mark of the Beast: A Romance (1890); novel. full-text
From Dusk to Dawn (NY: D. Appleton, 1892).
The Crowning of Candace (NY: Dodd, Mead, 1896); novel. full-text
John, A Tale of King Messiah (NY: Dodd, Mead, 1896); novel. full-text
The Son of Ingar (NY: Dodd, Mead, 1897); novel. full-text
The True Story of Captain John (NY: Doubleday, Page, 1901); history. full-text
"From One Poet to Another" (Harper's Monthly, Dec. 1901); poetry.
"Captain John Smith and the American Nation" (Harper's Monthly, Feb. 1902); history.
"From King Leopold's Window" (Harper's Monthly, June 1902); fiction.
"A Song of Love and Summer" (Harper's Monthly, June 1902); poetry.
"A Song of Sunset" (Harper's Monthly, Apr. 1904); poetry.