Child, Lydia Maria

The daughter of a baker known for his Medford Crackers, Lydia Maria Francis (1802–1880) was born near Boston in 1802 and grew up to become part of that city’s intellectual scene. She eventually married David Child, a dedicated reformer. Mrs. Child also became an ardent reformer and was known especially for writing the antislavery book An Appeal in Favor of That Class of Americans Called Africans (1833). To support herself and her impractical husband, Child lived by her pen, and in 1829 she published one of the most popular and successful domestic books of the nineteenth century, The Frugal Housewife. Retitled The American Frugal Housewife when it was sold in England and Germany, the book does not give an accurate image of its author, who projected herself as a middle-aged housewife with a brood of children. In fact, Child was only twenty-six when the book was published, remained childless throughout her marriage, and lived a public life at a time when women were expected to confine themselves to domestic pursuits.