Mrs. John C. Wrenshall was born in Georgia, married to John C Wrenshall, and was elected president of the “Woman’s Literary Club” of Baltimore in May, 1898. She was re-elected each year as she was the center of activity in this literary sphere of the club and was gifted with knowing how to organize, administrate, produce, and guide/support her fellow peers. She has been a key force in the forming of other clubs such as Maryland Folk Lore Society, the Aubudon Society, and the Quardriga Club in which she held the office of vice-president in all. She was also the organizer of the “Edgar Allan Poe Memorial Association in 1907 and has been it’s only president. She was a member of the “Royal Asiatic Society of London” and has been a contributor to its journal.
She wrote a series of essays in the Baltimore Sun Paper from April 1908 to July 1908 navigating her travel abroad to Italy :
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Traveling in the Radiant Old Mediterranean
This was not interesting and rather boring. As like the other essay’s she was very descriptive. She painted a picture so that the reader would have a visual of the time, place and people in the essay. As she traveled throughout the city, she described the city in its entirety. From the church’s white tower, to the Portuguese lady who spoke many languages with a full description of her attire and how the town on the water edge was like a rock on the mound of the Mediterranean.
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A Drive Out from Beautiful Naples to Dead Cities and Lakes of Fire
“A Drive Out from Beautiful Naples to Dead Cities and Lakes of Fire”, by Letitia Yonge Wrenshall is a descriptive essay of a trip aboard. The essay makes the reader feel as if he/she is accompanying her on the trip. Her words described the fragrance in the air while she outlined the shape and depths of the mountains. At one point, I felt like I opened the car door and sat in the back seat as she describe the silence as the volcano grumbled like an empty stomach.
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Along the Two Gulfs of Naples and Salerno: II–The Drive Down to Amalfi
This essay was the last letter of Mrs. Wrenshall’s trip aboard. This series read like poetry. She describes her trip from morning as the crimson sun rise to the scent of the flowers along the path. She closed the series with, “Each place has individual features of natural beauty and the daily incidents give us insight.” Mrs. Wrenshall created a vivid description of her trip. I enjoyed being there with her.
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She also took part in the writing of A Sketch of the Life of Edgar Allan Poe from the Testimony of His Friends in Edgar Allan Poe: A Centenary Tribute. This is a book where several of Poe’s dearest friends and family wrote a book on the public and private relations of Poe’s life, which causes me to believe her and Poe must have had close ties with each other for her to know such information.