Margaret Fuller Has Her Own Facebook Page

Feminist firebrand Margaret Fuller, who drowned in a shipwreck off Fire Island, New York, in 1850, has her own Facebook fan page.

John Matteson, who visits the Institute 3/22, has been featured prominently on the page in recent weeks with the publication of his new biography, The Lives of Margaret Fuller.

Also featured are quotes from Fuller's correspondence and her newspaper columns in the New York Daily Tribune, such as this 1845 assessment of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (known locally for his evocation of the Normanskill valley in his poem, "Hiawatha"):

"We must confess a coolness toward Mr. Longfellow, in consequence of the exaggerated praises that have been bestowed upon him. When we see a person of moderate powers receive honors which should be reserved for the highest, we feel somewhat like assailing him and taking from him the crown which should be reserved for grander brows..."