Grace MacGowan Cooke

Grace MacGowan Cooke (September 11, 1863 – June 24, 1944) was an American novelist, poet, and short-story writer. She embarked on her writing career by crafting short stories and novels, often collaborating with her sister, Alice MacGowan. She wrote 23 novels, 75 short stories, and more than 30 poems.

Early years
Born in Grand Rapids, Ohio to John E. MacGowan and Malvina Johnson MacGowan, her sister, Alice MacGowan, also pursued a career as a writer. In 1865, the family relocated to Chattanooga, Tennessee, where the two girls received a combination of public school education and homeschooling. Their father, a Union Army colonel during the American Civil War, was an editor for the Chattanooga Times newspaper from 1872 to 1903.

She married William Benjamin Cooke on February 16, 1887, in Hamilton, Tennessee. They had two children, Helen (1867-1945) and Katharine "Kit" (1900-1971). Both pursued acting in local theater, and Helen married writer Harry Leon Wilson. Grace and William went their separate ways in 1905, and William filed for divorce in 1908.

Career
Both Cooke and her sister were school teachers, having started teaching in their teenage years. Following her marriage to Cooke, she assumed the role of bookkeeper for the printing shop, MacGowan & Cooke, which was co-owned by her father, brother, and husband.

Cooke began her writing career as a journalist in Tennessee. In 1897, she became the first president of the Tennessee Woman's Press Club. Her debut novel, "Mistress Joy, A Tale of Natchez in 1798" was published in 1901 and followed by a series of volumes. She collaborated with her sister on several of these.



In 1906, Cooke, her sister and her two daughters, moved to Helicon Home Colony, an experimental community formed by author Upton Sinclair in Englewood, New Jersey. Cooke contributed to The Nautilus, a magazine associated with the New Thought movement. The publication focused on self-help, wellness, and popular health trends. She authored an article titled The Spiritual Meaning of Fletcherism in 1907, delving into the concept of "Fletcherism" and its spiritual implications. She penned the children's book Son Riley Rabbit and Little Girl in 1907, with her daughter Kit posed for the book's illustrations. A satirical commentator from the Los Angeles Times placed the sisters in the "social faction" known as the "Eminently Respectables".



In December 1908, the family moved to the art colony at Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. They moved into a large, Tudor-style two-story house at 13th Avenue, one of the first homes constructed in southwest Carmel in 1905, by architect Eugenia Maybury, one of Carmel's first female architects. The house was located on a bluff a block away from Carmel Beach. That particular section of the beach became known as Cooke's Cove. The home is included in the Carmel Inventory of Historic Resources, and has been registered with the California Register of Historical Places for its historical connection to the MacGowan sisters and to architect Eugenia Maybury.

In 1919, Cooke traveled with her daughters to the Desert Southwest, conducting research on the lifestyle and traditions of the Hopi Native Americans. The insights from this trip were incorporated into her novel, "The Joy Bringer: A Tale of the Painted Desert" (1913). In 1910, she also wrote "The Power and the Glory," a novel exploring feminist themes and exposing the challenging working conditions prevalent in the cotton mills of the Appalachian region.

In May 1914, the Los Angeles Times and the Oakland Tribune reported that Alice had been intentionally poisoned at her home to steal her diamonds and cash. The perpetrator was never discovered. The collaboration between Alice and Grace continued with books "The Straight Road" (1917) and "The Trail of the Little Wagon" (1928).

In 1928, the Carmel Pine Cone wrote this about Cooke: She helped make Carmel history and kept young doing it by turning out a string of children's books. Besides writing to make children happy she is the author of novels and mystery tales, some in collaboration with her sister, Alice MacGowan. Her verse has also been published. One of Carmel's most prolific writers. One of the few who came here to write and DID--we should add: and DOES! Mrs. Cooke came to Carmel in 1908, was first President of the Tennessee Woman's Press Club in 1897 and 1898. She has also given us Kit Cooke for which we are grateful!

Death
In 1938, Grace relocated to Los Gatos, California. Cooke died in Los Gatos on June 24, 1944. Funeral services were held from the Place Funeral Home.

Selected works
• Mistress Joy, A Tale of Natchez in 1798 (1901)

• The House That Jack And Jill Built (1902)

• What Happened Then? (1902)

• A Gourd Fiddle (1904)

• Aunt Huldah, Proprietor of the Wagon-Tire House And Genial Philosopher of The Cattle County (1904)

• The Grapple: A Story of the Illinois Coal Region (1905)

• Return: A Story of the Sea Islands in 1739 (1905)

• Their First Formal Call (1906)

• Son Riley Rabbit and Little Girl (1907)

• The Spirtiual Meaning of Fletcherism (1907)

• Grace MacGowan Cooke journal, 1909-1915 (1909)

• The Side Door (1910)

•  The Doings of the Dollivers  (1910)

• The Power and the Glory (1910)

• The Girls of Silver Spur Ranch (1913)

• The Joy Bringer, A Tale of the Painted Desert (1913)

• William and Bill (1914)

•  Sonny Bunny Rabbit and His Friends  (1915)

• The Straight Road (1917)

• Wild Apples, a California Story (1918)

• The Man Behind the Mask (1927)

• The Trail of the Little Wagon (1928)

• The Fortunes of John Hawk, A Boy of Old New York 1781 (1928)