Botta, Anne C.L. (1815–1891)
Botta, Anne C.L. (1815–1891)
American poet and essayist. Name variations: Anne Lynch Botta. Born Anne Charlotte Lynch in Bennington, Vermont, on November 11, 1815; died in New York City on March 23, 1891; graduated with honors from the Albany Female Academy; married Vincenzo Botta (a New York University professor), in 1855.
Anne C.L. Botta was four when her father died at sea. She grew up in Connecticut before taking a teaching position in Providence, Rhode Island, where she had relocated with her mother. A sculptor of merit, she began her literary career in Providence and moved to New York in 1842. From the time of her marriage at age 40 to Professor Vincenzo Botta to her death, Botta's New York residence was a center for literary and artistic friends and is known as the first important salon in the history of American letters. Among Botta's friends were Edgar Allan Poe, Andrew Greeley, and Margaret Fuller .
Her publications include a collection of poems (1848, with a new edition in 1884), many essays, reviews and criticisms, and a Handbook of Universal Literature (1845), which was widely used as a textbook. Botta was influential in promoting the establishment of Barnard College and founded the prize which was awarded every half decade for many years by the French Academy for the best essay on "The Condition of Women."
suggested reading:
Memoirs of Anne C.L. Botta. Compiled by "Her Friends." 1894.