81. The Woman Who Influenced a Nation with Melanie Kirkpatrick

The same woman who wrote “Mary Had a Little Lamb” also influenced popular American traditions like having a Christmas tree in your home and women wearing a white wedding gown for their marriage ceremony. She also is considered the godmother of our Thanksgiving because of her relentless petitions to Presidents and lawmakers to create the National holiday, which finally happened under President Lincoln. But do you even know her name?! In this week's episode, we talk with Melanie Kirkpatrick, author of the book "Lady Editor: Sarah Josepha Hale and the Making of the Modern American Woman." Melanie shares Hale's story of being a writer, an activist for education for women, and an editor of “Godey's Lady's Book”, the most popular women's magazine in the early years of our country. This story will fascinate and inspire you as we learn about the life and times of this remarkable woman.    Melanie Kirkpatrick Show Notes:  The Hudson Institute: https://www.hudson.org/  Lady Editor by Melanie Kirkpatrick: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lady-editor-melanie-kirkpatrick/1137284560?ean=9781641771788  Thanksgiving by Melanie Kirkpatrick: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/thanksgiving-melanie-kirkpatrick/1123362923?ean=9781641772129  Escape from North Korea by Melanie Kirkpatrick: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/escape-from-north-korea-melanie-kirkpatrick/1110913342?ean=9781594036460  Books by Sarah Josepha Hale: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Sarah%20Josepha%20Hale%22?Ntk=P_key_Contributor_List&Ns=P_Sales_Rank&Ntx=mode+matchall  Little Women by Louisa May Alcott: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/little-women-and-other-novels-louisa-may-alcott/1025050486?ean=9781435167179  Godey's Lady's Book: https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/serial?id=godeylady  Books by Edgar Allan Poe: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/edgar%20allan%20poe  Books by Nathaniel Hawthorne: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/nathaniel%20hawthorne  Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/uncle-toms-cabin-harriet-beecher-stowe/1116705392?ean=9781593081218  Everlasting Song by Ha Jin: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-song-everlasting-ha-jin/1137975039?ean=9781524748791  Join Strong Women on Social Media: https://linktr.ee/strongwomencc  Erin and her husband, Brett, run Maven which “exists to help the next generation know truth, pursue goodness, and create beauty, all for the cause of Christ.” Check out more about Maven here: https://maventruth.com/   The Strong Women Podcast is a product of the Colson Center which equips Christians to live out their faith with clarity, confidence, and courage in this cultural moment. Through commentaries, podcasts, videos, and more, we help Christians better understand what’s happening in the world, and champion what is true and good wherever God has called them.  Learn more about the Colson Center here: https://www.colsoncenter.org/   Visit our website and sign up for our email list so that you can stay up to date on what we are doing here and also receive our monthly book list: https://www.colsoncenter.org/strong-women