The American Woman’s Home

Catharine Esther Beecher (September 6, 1800 Ð May 12, 1878), the daughter of Lyman Beecher and sister to Harriet Beecher Stowe, was a very active supporter for the cause of women’s education. In 1824 she opened the Hartford Female Seminary, a private school for girls (including Harriet). She taught classes there and started to lobby for woman’s education. She left the school in 1831. She was engaged to be married to Professor Alexander Fisher of Yale College in 1841, but he died before the wedding. Beecher published A Treatise on Domestic Economy for the Use of Young Ladies at Home and at School, which emphasized the importance of women’s work and role in society. She founded the American Woman’s Educational Association in 1852. In addition, Beecher was instrumental in the founding of women’s colleges at Burlington, Iowa, Quincy, Illinois, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.