Author: Livermore, Harriet
Biography:
Livermore, Harriet (1788-1868: WBIS)
A celebrated evangelist and preacher, she was born in Concord NH, the daughter of Mehitable (Harris) and Edward St Loe Livermore. She was only eight when her mother died; thereafter she attended boarding schools. In 1811, while she was at the Atkinson Academy, she became engaged but the family of her fiancé caused the engagement to be called off. She resolved to dedicate her life to her religious faith. After some years of study, she joined the Baptists in 1821 but later renounced religious denominations and worked as an independent spiritual leader, calling herself "the Pilgrim Stranger." Most of her writings are tracts on religious subjects but there was also a novel (A Wreath from Jessamine Lawn, 1831) and one volume including poetry (The Harp of Israel, 1835) which was the product of an abortive attempt to evangelize among native tribes in the western "wilds of America." A millenialist, she travelled four times to the Holy Land in order to be present at the Second Coming. She died penniless in a Philadelphia poorhouse. She had had significant connections with the Dunker fraternity (today's Church of the Brethren): attended their love feast in Philadelphia in 1826, preached for them occasionally, and converted Sarah Righter (later Major) who also became a celebrated preacher. She is buried in the cemetery of the Germantown Brethren congregation. (ANBO 18 Nov. 2019; The Brethren Encyclopedia [1983-2005])