Literary Society of Washington
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President Lincoln's closest assistants were his two secretaries John Nicolay (left) and John Hay. Nicolay was one of founders of the Literary Society in 1874 and a member for 25 years. Hay was a member later while he was Secretary of State in the McKinley and Roosevelt Administrations.
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| Formation | January 6, 1874 |
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| Founded at | 723 Twenty-first Street |
| Type | Literary society |
| Purpose | Literary and artistic improvement and entertainment |
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Membership
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40 |
The Literary Society of Washington was formed in 1874 by a group of friends and associates who wished to meet regularly for "literary and artistic improvement and entertainment.". For more than 140 years, this literary society has convened monthly for discourse and the reading of essays written by members. The Society consists of approximately 40 Members, plus Honorary Associates and Emeritus Members. Unlike many similar social organizations, the Literary Society has included women members since its founding. The Society has no formal building or address, but meets in member homes or other locations.
"Only in Washington could such a grouping have come to pass," wrote anthropologist Alice Fletcher in 1908. "Not only were its members drawn from different sections of the country, but they represented the varied life of the capital city. Within the charm of the drawing-room, officials of the Government, legislators, writers, artists, scientists and private men and women met together, dropping, for the time being, all titles of distinction and becoming simply companions under the Egis of Learning."
According to a printed history of the Society, members have included three Presidents of the United States, justices of the Supreme Court, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Attorney General, the Secretary of State, two Secretaries of the Smithsonian Institution, four Librarians of Congress, two Archivists of the United States, and over a dozen college and university presidents.
The Society remains active. Current members are drawn from public service, publishing, academia, and the arts. Most are published authors.
In 1873, Olive Risley Seward discussed forming a group to hold regular social and literary gatherings meetings with two of her friends, Esmeralda Boyle and Sara Carr Upton. Miss Seward was the adopted daughter of William H. Seward, Lincoln's Secretary of State, and editor of the book, William H. Seward's Travels Around the World.
On January 6, 1874, the three friends and 27 other founding members met to sign the Constitution of the Literary Society of Washington. The meeting was held "at my mother's house, 723 Twenty-first Street, in our back parlor," wrote Esmeralda Boyle afterwards. Sixteen of the 30 original members were women. Founding members included Brig. Gen. Benjamin Alvord, musician Signor Antonio Barili, Col. I. Edwards Clarke, Elliott Coues, Col. Edward H. Cummins, Chief Justice of the Court of Claims Charles Daniel Drake, novelist and Madeleine Dahlgren, Theodore Gill, Abraham Lincoln's secretary and biographer John George Nicolay, and Prof. Samuel Tyler.
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