Saturday, September 5, 2009

Kate Chase - Recap of Her Life

The New York Times for August 27, 1899 published a long recap of the life of Kate Chase titled: Mrs. Kate Chase Sprague: She Was One of the Most Romantic Characters at the Capital.

I am captivated by the life of Kate Chase. She rose to great heights of influence in Washington only to fall into disgrace and poverty. I have tried reading two books about her, but both disappointed, both full of speculation about what Kate might have been thinking or how certain events might have affected her. I continue in my search for information about her.

Part of my interest in Kate stems from the fact that she and Betty Herndon Maury were contemporaries. There is no mention of Kate in Betty's diary and, as far as I know at this time, there is no extant letter from Betty commenting on Kate.