For this weeks blog post, I’m going to spotlight one of the most defining investigative reporters of the 19th century: Nellie Bly.
Nellie Bly [born Elizabeth Cochrane/Cochran] was born on May 5, 1864 in Cochran’s Mills, Pennsylvania. One of fifteen children, her father was a merchant, postmaster, and associate justice at Cochran’s Mills (which was named after him). Unfortunately her father passed away in 1871, when Bly was only 6 years old. Growing up she had a fairly normal life, moving between cities. Later, in 1879, she enrolled at Indiana Normal School [now Indiana University of Pennsylvania], but was forced to drop out after one term due to lack of funds.
Despite, her lack of formal education, Bly had an appreciation for sophistication and literature. Thus, in 1880, when her family moved to what was then known as Allegheny City [later part of Pittsburgh], she found herself incredibly intrigued by a local newspaper column called “What Girls Are Good For.” The column was printed in the Pittsburgh Dispatch, and argued that girls existed primarily to birth children and keep house. The article enraged her and she responded to it, under the pseudonym “Lonely Orphan Girl.” Her response was so well written and passionate that the editor of the Pittsburgh Dispatch, George Madden, published an advertisement in which he asked the author to identify his or herself. Eventually, Bly took responsibility for the article and introduced herself to the editor, who offered her the opportunity to write another pieced under the same pseudonym. In this article, titled “The Girl Puzzle,” Bly talked about divorce and the adverse effects that it had on women. Her work was so impressive that Madden decided to other her a full-time job. At that time women who wrote for newspapers were expected to use pen names. She chose the name “Nellie Bly,” as tribute to the African-American title character in Stephen Foster’s popular song “Nelly Bly.”
As her career began, she wrote numerous articles on slum life, a major characteristic of the 19th century, and the conditions amongst working girls in the city of Pittsburgh. Her articles were groundbreaking not only because of the material she covered, but because at that time women’s writings were often kept in a specific section of the newspaper, often referred to as the “women’s pages.” Bly broke this stereotype. Her works would encompass all types of issues and be placed amongst those of men in the paper. In fact, in the years of 1886 and 1887 she spent several months in Mexico, during which she researched the corruption of officials and the conditions of the impoverished. Her articles, collectively referred to as Six Months in Mexico (1888), deeply criticized the Mexican government, and even resulted in her expulsion from the country.
In late 1887, Bly moved to from Pittsburgh New York City, where she would work for Joseph Pulitzer’s New York World. One of the first things she did while working for this paper was to feign insanity in order to get committed to an insane asylum on Blackwell’s [Roosevelt] Island. While in the asylum she observed the conditions and upon release she would write arguably her most infamous exposé of all time: Ten Days in a Mad House (1887). In this exposé she was able to really exemplify how truly horrendous conditions were for patients in these asylums. In fact it was largely her work that led to a grand-jury investigation of the asylum that helped bring about much needed improvements–especially in regard to the treatment of patients. Over the course of her career she would continue to write similar exposés about the conditions in sweatshops, jails, and the lobbyist system (where she exposed bribery). Moreover, thanks to her exposés and dedication to the truth, she was the most famous and well-known female journalist of the 19th century.
Bly’s career, however, did not end there. In fact some would argue that the high point of her career began on November 14, 1889 when she embarked on a journey to beat the record of Phineas Fogg [the hero from Jules Verne’s novel Around the World in Eight Days]. The World ran daily articles about her journey and it was quite the topic of discussion. In the end it took her exactly 72 days 6 hours 11 minutes and 14 seconds to sail “around the world.” A book, Nellie Bly’s Book: Around the World in Seventy-two Days (1890), was later published in honor of the event.
Eventually, in 1895, she married [a millionaire] Robert Seaman. She was 31 and he was 73, and due to his health concerns she briefly left journalism to succeed him as head of the Iron Clad Manufacturing Company. Seaman died in 1904, and Bly continued to manage the company for a while. even earning a US Patent for a novel milk can that she created at one point. However, eventually, due to her negligence and embezzlement by a factor manager the company went bankrupt. As a result, she returned to her first love–reporting. She wrote a lot about World War 1, and ended up being the first women to visit the war zone between Serbia and Austria. She was even arrested, being mistaken for A British spy. She would also cover the Woman Suffrage Procession of 1913 for the New York Evening Journal. She wrote a number of articles about suffrage, one being titled “Suffragists Are Men’s Superiors.” Unfortunately she died of pneumonia in New York City at the age of 57. Following her death she would continue to be honored by journalists and people alike.
Overall, Nellie Bly paved a path for female journalist and it’s important to appreciate her accomplishments. Not only was she a staunch feminist and suffragist, but she also fought for the rights of so many marginalized groups. Her work is incredibly moving and powerful, which is why she is someone that we need to continue to remember.
