Zoe Anderson Norris

Zoe Anderson Norris
Born(1860-02-29)February 29, 1860
Harrodsburg, Kentucky, United States
DiedFebruary 13, 1914(1914-02-13) (aged 53)
New York City, United States
Occupations
  • Journalist
  • novelist
  • magazine publisher
  • artist
Notable workThe Color of His Soul, The Quest of Polly Locke, The Way of the Wind, The East Side

Zoe Anderson Norris (February 29, 1860 – February 13, 1914) was a Kentucky-born journalist, novelist, short story writer and publisher, known for her bimonthly magazine, The East Side (1909–1914), which focused on impoverished immigrants in New York. She also contributed to publications including The New York Times,[1] New York Sun, Frank Leslie's Monthly, Harper's Weekly and Argosy.[2] She investigated journalistic topics including corrupt charity executives[3] and child abuse cases.[4] Her fiction plots often centered around starving artists, women deceived by hypocritical suitors and farmers battling the elements.[5] She founded the Ragged Edge Klub, a group of writers, filmmakers, politicians and performers who met for weekly dinners. She was considered "one of the most popular writers of newspaper sketches in the country"[6] and known as a Queen of Bohemia.[7] An exhibition, To Fight for the Poor With My Pen: Zoe Anderson Norris, Queen of Bohemia, ran March 1-May 13, 2023, at the Grolier Club museum in New York.[8]

  1. ^ Norris, Zoe Anderson. "On the Rim of Manhattan". The New York Times.
  2. ^ Townsend, John Wilson (1913). Kentucky in American Letters. Cedar Rapids, Iowa: Torch Press. pp. 135–139.
  3. ^ "Has Own Magazine". The Wichita Eagle. June 14, 1911.
  4. ^ Hart, Tanya (2015). Health in the City: Race, Poverty, and the Negotiation of Women's Health in New York City, 1915-1930. New York University Press. pp. 56–62, 257–258. ISBN 9781479867998.
  5. ^ "Wichita Woman's New Book". The Wichita Eagle. October 11, 1911.
  6. ^ "The Color of His Soul". Buffalo Sunday Morning News. February 2, 1902.
  7. ^ Cooley, Winnifred Harper. "Feminism Has Struck New York". Star Tribune (Minneapolis). February 22, 1914.
  8. ^ "Forgotten Gilded Age Author Zoe Anderson Norris to be Celebrated". Fine Books & Collections. December 14, 2022.