The Family Claim on Jane Addams

I. The Loss of Her Father

A. The Guiteau Crisis--in June 1881, Freeport native Charles Guiteau shot President James Garfield; Garfield lingered for 11 weeks (and probably would have made a full recovery, except for the medical care he received), and died  in September of that year.

1. Luther Guiteau--was employed by John Addams at his bank in Freeport. The senior Guiteau was seen as something as an eccentric in town, particularly since he was a follower of John Humphrey Noyes and  his "free love" community in of "perfectionists" Oneida, New York.

2. Charles Guiteau--delusional, and today would be recognized as insane probably; expected to be rewarded for shooting Garfield.

3. John Addams--led a drive by leading citizens to write a letter to Secretary of State James G. Blaine disavowing any local  connection to Charles Guiteau's  actions--but also demonstrated sympathy toward the Guiteau family left in Freeport.

4. Jane Addams--was  childhood friends with Charles Guiteau's half-sister, Flora; the chief lesson she seemed to take from this episode, however, was to avoid political extremism.

B. Death of John Addams

1. Loss of her champion--John Addams respected his daughter's intelligence, and did much to foster its growth and development. Despite his rather conservative politics, he did not hesitate to provide Jane with the means to grow intellectually; his death meant that she no longer had his assurance that she could accomplish what she desired.

II. The Family Claim

A. Anne Hardeman Addams--as the widow of John Addams, Anne now placed an emotional claim on Jane  to provided care and companionship for her.

1. Demanding personality--Anne's demanding and emotional personality (she was not on speaking terms with her eldest son at the time of the death of her husband because she was disappointed with his drinking habits) was in direct contrast to the personality of Jane's father.

2. Jane Addams Family Mediator--Jane returned to her former role in the family as the mediator of conflicts. It was she who prevailed upon her siblings and step-siblings to remain in contact with  "Ma."

3. Jane Addams Dutiful Daughter--Jane felt--had--an obligation as the unmarried daughter to care for her stepmother. This obligation was re-iterated by her stepmother on a number of occasions. In order  to accomplish this task, the unmarried daughter would be expected to sacrifice whatever plans she had for her own life in order to care for her aged parent.

B. Jane Addams Physical Debility--Jane suffered from Pott's Disease (like Theodore Roosevelt's older sister Anne), which left her with a slight curvature of the spine, and the life-long affliction of sciatica.

1. Marquette vacation--The reason the Addams family was in Marqette, Michigan, where John Addams was afflicted with appendicitis, was to allow Jane Addams time to regain her health.

2. Women's Medical College--enrollment was occasioned by the move in the fall of 1881to Philadelphia by her stepmother, rather than a burning desire on Jane's  part to become a doctor. In fact, the seven months in medical school proved to Jane that she had no interest in becoming a doctor.

3. George Hardeman's Romantic Interest--Jane largely avoided contact with George, her stepbrother, to avoid any intimation of romance,  despite what family legend on this matter might imply (which was largely that George pursued Jane, but that interest was not reciprocated).

4. Stay With Harry and Alice Hardeman--Jane's sciatica remained quite painful, and she was persuaded to go live in Iowa with her sister and step-brother,  where Harry would provide her with treatment. The treatment necessitated months of recover, where Jane was obligated to remain flat on her back.

5. Weber Addams'  Mental Illness--Jane's older brother suffered from mental illness, and in the spring of 1883 had  a manic episode so severe that he was institutionalized. With the assistance of a lawyer, Jane helped Weber's wife put the family's financial situation back in order.


C. Deepening Friendship with Ellen Starr

1. Faith--the continuing crises Jane experienced prompted her to change her mind on the issue of Jesus Christ; Ellen Starr's own belief in his divinity meant that Jane felt she could turn to an intellectual equal in this matter, and could therefore feel more at ease about "returning to the flock" of Christianity.


D. Rockford Seminary Address (1883)


1. End of the Sill Era--Anna Peck Sill prevailed upon Jane Addams in the spring of 1883 to attend an upcoming  board meeting, and to give a commencement address. The board was pressuring Sill to retire, and she wanted Jane to speak to them on  her behalf.


2. "To the Uncomfortableness of Tranisition"--speaking to the graduates and board members,  Jane focused her remarks on the transition of the school from its previous status to this new  collegiate status--but these remarks  also reflected her own trials and and frustrations as she attempted to find her way to a productive adulthood.


E. Jane Addams' Grand Tour--began in the fall of 1883.