Mary McNeil Fenollosa
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Brief Biography
Mary McNeil Fenollosa was born and raised in Mobile, Alabama. After Fenollosa lost her husband at the age of 20, she began writing for publication. In 1894, Fenollosa began working as an assistant to Oriental art expert Ernest Fenollosa at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. She married Ernest Fenollosa in 1895, and they moved to Japan a couple years later. While in Japan, Fenollosa published a collection of poetry and a novel set in Mobile. After Fenollosa and her husband moved back to the United States, she wrote multiple novels set in Japan. Following her husband's passing, Fenollosa dedicated herself to editing his work and faced financial struggles, ultimately selling his art collection and her own property. Despite writing additional novels, her creative output dwindled, and she spent her later years with her children until returning to Alabama shortly before her death in 1954. Notably, several of her novels were adapted into silent films.
Publications
Out of the Nest; a Flight of Verses. Boston; Little, Brown, 1899.
Hirosige; the Artist of Mist, Snow and Rain. San Francisco; Vickery, Atkins & Torrey, 1901.
The Breath of the Gods. Boston; Little, Brown, 1905.
The Dragon Painter. Boston; Little, Brown, 1906.
Truth Dexter. Boston; Little, Brown, 1906.
Red Horse Hill. Boston; Little, Brown, 1909.
The Strange Woman. New York; Dodd, 1914.
Ariadne of Allan Water. Boston; Little, Brown, 1914.
Blossoms From a Japanese Garden. New York; Stokes, 1915.
The Stirrup Latch. Boston; Little, Brown, 1915.
Sunshine Beggars. Boston; Little, Brown, 1918.
Christopher Laird. New York; Dodd, Mead, 1919.
Hirosige; the Artist of Mist, Snow and Rain. San Francisco; Vickery, Atkins & Torrey, 1901.
The Breath of the Gods. Boston; Little, Brown, 1905.
The Dragon Painter. Boston; Little, Brown, 1906.
Truth Dexter. Boston; Little, Brown, 1906.
Red Horse Hill. Boston; Little, Brown, 1909.
The Strange Woman. New York; Dodd, 1914.
Ariadne of Allan Water. Boston; Little, Brown, 1914.
Blossoms From a Japanese Garden. New York; Stokes, 1915.
The Stirrup Latch. Boston; Little, Brown, 1915.
Sunshine Beggars. Boston; Little, Brown, 1918.
Christopher Laird. New York; Dodd, Mead, 1919.
Themes
Mary McNeil Fenollosa was a poet and novelist who frequently wrote under the pseudonym Sidney McCall. Her works were often influenced by her experiences living in the South and Japan. She was known for creating believable and complicated characters in her novels.
Publisher
Alabama Authors of the 19th and 20th Centuries, edited by Beverley Park Rilett, http://AlabamaAuthors.org
Collection
Citation
Fenollosa, Mary McNeil, “Mary McNeil Fenollosa,” Alabama Authors of the 19th & 20th Centuries, accessed September 19, 2024, https://alabamaauthors.org/items/show/574.