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Jane McDowell Foster Wiley
Born
Jane Denny McDowell

(1829-12-10)December 10, 1829
DiedJanuary 17, 1903(1903-01-17) (aged 73)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Resting place Allegheny Cemetery, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, U.S. (Plot: Section 12 Lot 14 Grave 1)
OccupationTelegraph operator
Known forSpouse of Stephen Collins Foster and M.D. Wiley [1]
Spouse(s) Stephen Foster (1826 - 1864), Matthew D Wiley (1840 - 1919)
Children Marion Welch (1851-1935)
Jane is credited with being the inspiration for Stephen Foster's song "Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair", published in 1854

Jane Denny Foster Wiley ( née McDowell; December 10, 1829 - January 17, 1903) [1] was the wife of Stephen Foster and the inspiration for his song " Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair". Her archives are located in the University of Pittsburgh.

Early life

Jane's father, Andrew Nathan McDowell, was a well-known physician in Pittsburgh. He encouraged the first black medical student from Western Pennsylvania to apply to and attend Harvard Medical School. Dr. McDowell wrote a letter of recommendation for the student and even helped to pay for part of his tuition. [2]

By the summer of 1850, Stephen Foster had begun to sell his music and had become increasingly well known. Jane has not been identified as having musical interests, talents or abilities. She was called pretty, had light brown hair and according to the custom of the time it was long and "luxuriant". [3]

Jane McDowell was married Monday, July 22, 1850, by a minister from the Trinity Episcopal Church in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, to Foster. Her wedding gown was noted to be beautiful and well-fitting. The wedding ceremony was described by Jane's sister to be quite strained, attributed to the couple's nervousness. Immediately after the wedding, the couple took an extended honeymoon to New York and Baltimore. They stopped in Paradise, Pennsylvania, Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, and Chambersburg. Jane's mother-in-law had relatives in Chambersburg and the couple visited them while they were there. Biographers speculate that the honeymoon was really a business trip to establish business arrangements with music publishers in New York and Baltimore. [3]

Family life

By September 8, 1850, the Fosters had returned to Allegheny City (now part of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) and moved in with Stephen's older brother, William Barclay Foster Jr. Jane's mother-in-law, father-in-law and brother-in-law, were also living in the home. Jane became pregnant and gave birth to their only child, Marion, born April 18, 1851. After the birth of Marion, they moved in with Jane's family for some months and then returned to the Foster home. This time in Jane's life has been identified as being quite difficult for her since she was used to having servants, a larger home and privacy. [3]

Marriage problems soon developed and the Foster family initially blamed Jane for not making Stephen happy. They later changed their view of Jane and praised her for keeping the family together despite the decline in Stephen's income and his lack of responsibility. [3] Even though marital life was difficult, some of Stephen Foster's best songs were reflective of their first years of marriage. [4]

Jane obtained a job as a telegraph operator in Greensburg sometime after her separation from Stephen. [5]

Later years

A page from Jane Foster's diary, 1871; She records that she got a new dress on Monday

Jane and Stephen were married for fourteen years until he died on January 13, 1864, in New York City. They were not living together at the time and had been separated for four years—an unusual arrangement in the mid-19th century. [3] [6] Morrison Foster, an older brother of Stephen aided Jane and Marion after the composer's death in the arrangement of royalty payments to her from various music publishers. [7] She married M.D. Wiley after Foster's death. [1] Jane took her granddaughter Jessie Rose Welch into her care and raised her to adulthood. Jane created very little biographical information.

Jane is remembered during the Allegheny Cemetery's "Doo-Dah Days" when visitors are given a tour past her grave. [8]

Biographies

Morris Foster destroyed correspondence that would reflect poorly on the Foster family. This included almost all references to Jane. No letters or other documents that Jane wrote to Stephen or Stephen wrote to Jane survived. [2] [9]

Archives

Archival materials and Primary source material including family letters and Jane's diary are housed in the University of Pittsburgh Library System Archives Service Center. These have been digitized and are accessible remotely. [10]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Newspaper Notice of Jane Denny Foster's death, January 17, 1903" (PDF). Foster Hall Collection, CAM.FHC.2011.01, Center for American Music, University of Pittsburgh Archive Center, University of Pittsburgh Library System. unknown. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  2. ^ a b Root, Deane L. (March 12, 1990). "The "Mythtory" of Stephen C. Foster or Why His True Story Remains Untold" (Lecture transcript at the American Music Center Research Conference). American Music Research Center Journal: 20–36. Retrieved 4 October 2015: Access provided by the University of Pittsburgh Library System{{ cite journal}}: CS1 maint: postscript ( link)
  3. ^ a b c d e O'Conell, Joanne H. (2007). Understanding Stephen Collins Foster His World and Music (PDF) (Thesis). University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
  4. ^ Tirindelli, Margherita. "Stephen Foster Parents, Settle Lawrenceville, Pa". Stephen Collins Foster – America's Famous Folksong Writer. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  5. ^ "Correspondence to From Evelyn Foster Morneweck from unknown writer, May 31, 1933" (PDF). Foster Hall Collection Collection Number: CAM.FHC.2011.01 Creator: University of Pittsburgh. Center for American Music. Center for American Music, University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  6. ^ "The American Experience, Stephen Foster". PBS. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  7. ^ "From S.G. Pratt to Morrison Foster, October 8, 1887" (PDF). Center for American Music, University of Pittsburgh. University of Pittsburgh Foster Hall Collection. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  8. ^ "Doo Day Days - Stephen Foster". Doo Dah Days - Stephen Foster Music and Heritage Festival. Allegheny Cemetery Historical Association. Archived from the original on 13 October 2016. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  9. ^ "Foster Hall Collection". Guides to Archives and Manuscript Collections at the University of Pittsburgh Library System. University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  10. ^ "Jane Foster's Diary, 1871" (PDF). Foster Hall Collection Collection Number: CAM.FHC.2011.01 Creator: University of Pittsburgh. Center for American Music. Center for American Music, University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
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