| On January 25, 1890, Nellie Bly arrived back home in New York City after a trip around the world that was accomplished in an astounding (at the time) 72 days. The boisterous crowds attested that Nellie had become an American icon. Born Elizabeth Jane Cochran in Pennsylvania in1864, her father Michael had escaped poverty and became owner of a profitable mill. Michael had ten children with his first wife and five more with his second. Elizabeth was Michael’s thirteenth daughter. The family struggled financially after Michael’s death and Elizabeth was forced to drop out of college. Soon after, she read a column in the Pittsburgh Dispatch which argued that a woman’s place was in the home. Elizabeth wrote an impassioned response under the pseudonym “Lonely Orphan Girl”. The Dispatch’s editor was so impressed that he publicly asked the writer to identify herself. Elizabeth responded and was hired to write a regular column. Nellie Using her penname “Nellie”, she wrote investigative articles on the travails of female factory workers. When factory owners complained to her editors, Nellie was reassigned to cover fashion and society. Determined “to do something no girl has done before”, Nellie traveled to Mexico and wrote about the plight of Mexico’s poor. Authorities were outraged and threatened to arrest her. Nellie returned to Pittsburgh and was once again covering fashion for The Dispatch. She decided to seek her fortune in NYC. New York newspapers had little use for female reporters. After four months of rejection, Nellie landed an undercover assignment with the New York World. She agreed to feign insanity to investigate reports of brutality at the Women’s Lunatic Asylum. Nellie checked into a boarding house called “Temporary Homes for Females”. She avoided sleep to give herself a crazy, wide-eyed look. She terrified fellow boarders until police came and took her to the asylum. After ten days, the asylum released Bly at The World’s request. Her reports detailing the abuse of inmates prompted the asylum to implement significant reforms, Now famous, Nellie proposed that Joseph Pulitzer, editor of The World finance her trip around the world. Her goal was to emulate the odyssey of Phileas Fogg as depicted in Jules Vernes’ novel “Around the World in 80 Days”. Pulitzer told Nellie “No one but a man can do this”. She replied, “Start the man, and I’ll start the same day for some other newspaper and beat him.” Pulitzer acceded. Rival news executive Brisben Walker heard about Bly’s plans and decided that his new publication Cosmopolitan should jump on the bandwagon. Walker called in 28-year-old editor Elizabeth Bisland. After an hour-long discussion, Bisland accepted the assignment. She headed west from NYC just hours after Bly’s east-bound departure. After a brutal trans-Atlantic crossing Nellie headed to Amiens, France where she met with a welcoming Jules Verne. She traversed the world by train, steamship, rickshaw, horse and donkey. Reporters eagerly wrote about the race between the two intrepid women. Bly traversed Europe and the Mideast, completely unaware that she had a challenger. When she reached Hong Kong Bly learned that she not only had a competitor, but that Bisland had left Hong Kong three days earlier. After sailing from Asia to San Francisco, Nellie boarded a train chartered by Pulitzer. Jubilant throngs greeted Nellie as her train whizzed through the countryside. Meanwhile, Bisland endured a difficult crossing from England back to America. She arrived in NYC four days after Bly. Post-Voyage Five years later, 31-year-old- Nellie married 73-year-old millionaire Robert Seaman. She left journalism to attend to her husband’s failing health. Upon Robert’s death, Nellie succeeded him as head of Iron Clad Manufacturing, a producer of steel containers. Embracing her role as a prominent female industrialist, Bly provided employees with generous benefits including healthcare. Unfortunately, the company went bankrupt because of her poor management and embezzlement committed by a key employee. Returning to journalism, Nellie covered the women’s suffrage movement and World War I. Bly was the first woman to visit certain war zones and was briefly arrested as a suspected British spy. Nellie left the world too soon when she died of pneumonia at age 57. A century later, she still inspires. Have a great weekend. |
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