Louise Clappe
Louise Clappe | |
|---|---|
(undated) | |
| Born | Louise Amelia Knapp Smith July 28, 1819 Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | February 9, 1906 (aged 86) |
| Pen name | Dame Shirley |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Letter writer |
| Notable works | "Shirley Letters" |
| Spouse | Fayette Clapp (or Dr. Fayette Clappe) |
Louise Clappe (née Smith; pseudonym, Dame Shirley; July 28, 1819 – February 9, 1906) was an American writer, best known for her "Shirley Letters." Clappe was born in New Jersey, spent most of her youth and young adult life in Massachusetts, and later moved out West to Quincy, California, in Plumas County with her husband Fayette Clapp. It was out West where she took on the pen name of Dame Shirley and wrote her widely known "Shirley Letters". Louise and Fayette eventually separated, but she remained out West teaching for some time. Louise eventually returned to New Jersey, where she lived out the remainder of her life, dying in 1906. The Quincy town plaza is named after her.