Maria Trumbull

American published letter writer (1785–1805)

Maria Trumbull (1785-1805) was a published letter writer. She became Maria Trumbull Hudson with her marriage to Henry Hudson. Her father was Governor Jonathan Trumbull Jr.

## Early life[edit]

Maria Trumbull was born February 14, 1785,[1] and baptized in Lebanon, Connecticut on February 20, 1785.[2] She was the daughter of Governor Jonathan Trumbull Jr. (1740–1809) and Eunice Backus,[1][3] who made a pious and wealthy family.[3] Her father, the son of fellow Governor Jonathan Trumbull (1710–1785), was a merchant and a politician.[3] Her family, although wealthy, lived a simple, magnanimous life in Lebanon, Connecticut.[3]

Portrait of Harriett Trumbull from a crayon sketch by her uncle John Trumbull, Yale University Art Gallery

She had two sisters, Faith and Harriet (later wife of Benjamin Silliman), and two brothers who died when infants.[1] Trumbull and her sister Harriet spent the winter of 1800 and spring of 1801 in New York City where they came out to New York society.[4] The teenage girls stayed at the home of Lady Kitty Duer. Friends of their parents planned for lessons and social activities for the girls.[5] They had music, dancing, and drawing lessons. Their letters to their parents provided insight into their lives of lessons, parties, plays, and more. The letters were published in the book A season in New York, 1801.[4] The book provides insight into the inner thoughts of 19th-century girls as they experienced life in a big city.[5]

## Marriage and death[edit]

In 1804, Trumbull married Henry Hudson of Hartford, Connecticut,[1][6] son of Hannah Bunce Watson (newspaper publisher) and Barzillai Hudson (newspaper editor),[7] They had a son, Jonathan Trumbull Hudson.[8] She died of complications of childbirth[6] at on November 23, 1805[1][3] and was buried at the Center Church Burial Ground in Hartford, Connecticut.[9] A poet wrote of her:

> Light as the gossamer, with fairy feet,

> Maria moves, with graciousness replete,
>  Artfulness as truth it seems – and oath bestows,

> The modest smile that softens as she goes.[9]

Henry Hudson was the mayor of Hartford, Connecticut from 1836 to 1840.[7][10]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e Robinson, Edward (1859). Memoir of the Rev. William Robinson: Formerly Pastor of the Congregational Church in Southington, Connecticut; with Some Account of His Ancestors in this Country. J.F. Trow, printer. p. 48\. ISBN 978-1-4047-8794-0.
2. ^ "Maria Trumbell, Baptized February 20, 1785", Connecticut. Church Records Index. Connecticut State Library, Hartford, Connecticut
3. ^ a b c d e Weisblat, Tinky Dakota (1999). "Trumbull, Maria (1785?–23 November 1805), letter writer". American National Biography. doi:10.1093/anb/9780198606697.article.1602382. ISBN 978-0-19-860669-7. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
4. ^ a b A season in New York, 1801; letters of Harriet and Maria Trumbull. 1969. OCLC 4434. Retrieved March 7, 2021 - via WorldCat.
5. ^ a b Schlesinger, Elizabeth Bancroft (1970). "Review of A Season in New York, 1801: Letters of Harriet and". The New England Quarterly. 43 (4): 652–654. doi:10.2307/363142. ISSN 0028-4866. JSTOR 363142 - via Jstor.
6. ^ a b Brown, Chandos Michael (2014-07-14). Benjamin Silliman: A Life in the Young Republic. Princeton University Press. p. 346\. ISBN 978-1-4008-6022-7.
7. ^ a b "Hannah B. Watson: A Pioneering Patriot". Hartford Courant. October 19, 2014. pp. M10. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
8. ^ Dexter, Franklin Bowditch (1913). Biographical Notices of Graduates of Yale College: Including Those Graduated in Classes Later Than 1815, who are Not Commemorated in the Annual Obituary Records. Yale College. p. 128.
9. ^ a b The Connecticut Quarterly. Connecticut Quarterly Company. 1895. p. 45.
10. ^ "Hartford Mayors". HartfordHistory. Retrieved March 7, 2020.

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