Zona Gale
Zona Gale (August 26, 1874 – December 27, 1938), also known by her married name, Zona Gale Breese, was an American novelist, short story writer, and playwright. She became the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1921. The close relationship she had with her parents set the tone for her writing and her personal life. Her books based upon her home town were found to be charming and had an intimate sense of realism, in which she captures the underlying feelings and motivations of her characters. All of her works were written under her maiden name, Zona Gale.
Zona Gale
August 26, 1874
Portage, Wisconsin, U.S.
December 27, 1938 (aged 64)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Writer
Fiction primarily
Pulitzer Prize for Drama (1921)
2
She became a single parent when she adopted a girl. Her parents died in 1923 and 1929. After her parents died, she became interested in mysticism, which changed her writing style, to the chagrin of the critics who had enjoyed her previous work. She was unmarried until she was in her fifties, when she married a childhood friend who was a widower. She supported political and social causes, like women's rights, pacifism, and education.
Early life and education[edit]
Gale was born on August 26, 1874, in Portage, Wisconsin to Charles Franklin and Eliza Beers Gale.[1][2] She was very close to her parents, who were the inspiration for the "charming elderly couple" in her book The Loves of Pelleas and Etare.[1] She began writing and illustrating stories at the age of 7.[2] Her first story was printed in pencil, because she did not know how to write yet, and the manila pages were bound into a book that was held together by a ribbon.[3]
Gale submitted a short story, "Bob", to the Milwaukee Evening Wisconsin when she was sixteen, and was paid $3 for the story.[3][a] She attended Wayland Academy in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin[4] before she entered the University of Wisconsin, where she received a Bachelor of Literature[4] or Library Science degree in 1895. She received a master's degree in Library Science in 1899 and another master's degree in 1901.[5] While a student, her poems were published in university publications.[5] She received an honorary degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1929.[5]
Death and legacy[edit]
Gale came to Chicago in mid-December 1938 for treatment of an ailment and contracted pneumonia about December 20. She died of pneumonia in Passavant Hospital in Chicago on December 27.[2][8] Dr. Glenn Frank, former president of the University of Wisconsin, presided over her funeral.[2] She was buried at Silver Lake Cemetery in Portage.[5] Most of her estate of $60,000 (equivalent to $1,031,800 in 2023) went to Leslyn, age 12, and Juliette. Leslyn was to receive Gale's personal effects and the Zona Gale house upon her marriage. Juliette was bequeathed another house.[15] Some money was set aside for the Zona Gale scholarships.[17] William Breese died on October 1, 1954, at the age of 90.[17] By the time of Breese's death, Leslyn married Robert Keie of Saginaw, Michigan.[18][17][e]
In her memory, William Breese established the Zona Gale Breese Library in Portage.[17] He donated two houses,[5] one of which was the Zona Gale house that went to the Women's Civic League.[17] The performing arts center in Portage was named after her.[5] A historic marker at Commerce Plaza Park in Portage memorializes her life.[19]
