Lucy Audubon: A Biography

by Carolyn E. Delatte, Christoph Irmscher (Foreword)

Wife of the great naturalist John James Audubon, Lucy Bakewell Audubon (1788–1874) was a powerful and extraordinary woman who coped resourcefully with the demands of a difficult situation and worked tirelessly to aid her husband in his landmark work. In Lucy A Biography , Carolyn E. DeLatte focuses on the early life of Lucy her birth in England and youth in eastern Pennsylvania, her courtship and marriage to the eccentric young Audubon, their wanderings along the western fringe of the country, the birth of their children, and the preparation and publication of The Birds of America . Throughout, DeLatte emphasizes Lucy Audubon’s own experiences, concerns, and point of view. She tells of Lucy’s often stormy relationship with her brilliant but unreliable husband, her place at the head of their small family, and her crucial role in the creation and publication of her husband’s magnum opus. Intelligent, adaptable, and strong-willed, Lucy was, DeLatte shows, the partner Audubon needed for his life and for his work. As noted Audubon expert Christoph Irmscher says in his foreword, “When [DeLatte] slips into her character’s skin, she does so unobtrusively and to great effect―thus, we are right there with Lucy.”

Genres: Biography

280 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1982

Reviews

[Isabel Rivera · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very accessible biography of JJ Audubon’s wife Lucy, who is an interesting figure that I feel does not get as much attention as she should. The author has a strong narrative voice which kept the text moving. I was able to get through it fairly quickly but still felt that I got a good sense of Lucy’s story and her marriage.

At times the narration takes too many liberties in describing Lucy’s feelings or what she “may have thought” or believed. I know that this is a technique some historians prefer to use, but it isn’t really for me.

I also wish the author had taken more time to talk about the Audubon’s ownership of enslaved individuals. The times in which they are mentioned, it is glossed over in favor of describing Lucy’s own feelings about her status in life, and how she had fallen from the comfort that her family enjoyed. While there is some consciousness about class as it relates to the Audubon’s frequent times of poverty and struggle, there is little to no examination of these same topics surrounding race. I think the book does a good job of exploring their lives from a gendered lens, but it is a missed opportunity to not mention the ways in which the Audubon’s lives were still greatly impacted by the institution of slavery in Audubon’s past (as his father owned a plantation in Haiti) and their own lives in the American frontier.

Overall I feel this is an important read for anyone interested in John James Audubon and his artwork.

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good book on Lucy's life while married to James John, does a good job of explaining what she was doing to support her and her children while James John was off sketching birds. I wish it would have gone into greater detail about her live after he died, how she became the grandmother of the modern environmental conservation movement. I know the author says there is not much about her later life, but I feel like we can do better in regards to women's history other than telling the story of the Lucy as it related to her husband. Surely there are enough tidbits between people like Roosevelt and Grinell to paint a picture of her later in life, after all she lived for 20 to 25 more years after James John.

[Jess Kimmet · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice biography of a fascinating life. Although I understand why the historical record made this a necessity, it was disappointing that this account abruptly ended at the death of John James.

[Laura Willyard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read on the wife of John James Audubon.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saw this when we visited Oakley Plantation. Really enjoyed it. She was always in the shadows of his life. As it turned out she was a strong, well educated woman from a wealthy English family. Also I learned that Audubon spent more time in LA than I thouht.

[BookSweetie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lucy Bakewell Audubon’s story is well worth telling. Her husband was none other than John James Audubon. The two fell in love and married when still young in spite of resistance from both of their families. Lucy ( 1787-1874) was a strong, educated woman who had been raised in a well- off English family who moved to the US during her adolescence. Audubon was a charismatic, French speaking immigrant to America with a tempestuous streak.

The two happily moved west together to America’s heartland when it was still an often rowdy, rough frontier. Audubon was not skilled at business endeavors, lost money, went bankrupt, and for years was unable to provide for his family financially. Lucy humbled herself and found ways to earn survival wages, mostly teaching, even when Audubon himself was away hunting, and searching for birds to draw and paint. She believed in her husband’s artistic talent and endured the many years of financial insecurity and poverty before JJ was able to make money from his bird art.

She outlived both her husband and two sons. She ended up being the breadwinner for the family for years and endured many long, painful separations while John James Audubon was pursuing his artistic dreams.