Mary Flannery O’Connor (1925 - 1964)

Born 25 Mar 1925 in Savannah, Chatham, Georgia, United States

Ancestors

Died 3 Aug 1964 at age 39 in Milledgeville, Baldwin County, Georgia, United States

Biography

Flannery O’Connor is Notable.

Flannery O'Connor was an author of two novels, Wise Blood and The Violent Bear It Away. She wrote many short stories, some of which were published in two collections, A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Everything That Rises Must Converge. A collection called The Complete Stories was published after her death. She wrote in what is called Southern Gothic style, She also wrote numerous essays and book reviews. Her writings were influenced by her strong Catholic faith and her southern rural heritage.

Mary Flannery O’Connor was born on 25 March 1925 in Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia, United States. She was the daughter of Edward Francis O’Connor (~1900–1941) and Regina Cline (~1905–~1960), who both were of Irish descent.

When she was 5 years old she was enumerated on the 1930 United States Census in the household of her father, Edward F. O'Connor Jr. The family was living in Savannah, Chatham County, Alabama.^[1]

The 1940 United States Census was taken when she was 15 years old. She and her family were living in Fulton County, Georgia, having moved there some time after 1935.^[2]

Her father had been diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus in 1937. In 1940, she and her family moved to Milledgeville, Baldwin County, Georgia and at first lived with her mother's family in what was called the "Cline Mansion." After father died in 1941, she and her mother continued to live in Milledgeville for a while, but eventually moved to "Andalusa Farm'" in 1951. This location, as well as her childhood home in Savannah, have been established as museums dedicated to her and her writing.

After graduating from Peabody High School, she attended Georgia State College for Women from which she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in sociology and English literature in 1945. She sold her first short story that same year. She was accepted into the Iowa Writers' Workshop at the University of Iowa and was awarded a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Iowa in 1947.

When the 1950 United States Census was taken, she was 25 years old and living in the household of Robert S. Fitzgerald in West Redding, Redding, Fairfield County, Connecticut. Mr. Fitzgerald was a translator of classical literature.^[3]

In 1952, she was diagnosed with the same disease her father had--systemic lupus erythematosus. After her diagnosis, she returned to live permanently with her mother at "Andalusia Farm" but was able to continue to write and to travel for speaking engagements despite her illness and the eventual necessity to use crutches for mobility.

In 1957 she won the O. Henry award for her short story, Greenleaf.

In 1959 she received a Ford Foundation grant enabling her to focus on her creative work.

She was a devout Catholic, attending Mass every day. She also was intensely fond of birds, raising all kinds of fowl on "Andalusia Farm" and incorporating bird imagery into her writing.

She had surgery after which she suffered a severe attack of lupus which claimed her life on 3 August 1964 in the hospital in Milledgeville, Baldwin County, Georgia. She was only 39 year old.^[4] She was buried in Memory Hill Cemetery, Milledgeville, Baldwin County, Georgia.^[5]

She received many posthumous awards including the 1972 U.S. National Book Award for Fiction. In 2015 the United States Post Office issued a postage stamp in her honor.

Sources

1. ↑ "United States Census, 1930"
   citing Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Affiliate Publication Number: T626; Line: 56; Digital film/folder number: 004950256; FHL microfilm: 2340079; Image number: 747; Sheet number: 12; Sheet letter: B; Packet letter: A; Indexing batch: N03739-3
   FamilySearch Record: 3SGG-MW2 (accessed 23 October 2023)
   FamilySearch Image: 33S7-9R45-S7H
   Mary Flannery O Connor (5), single daughter, in household of Edward F O Connor, Jr, Jr (34) in Savannah, Chatham, Georgia, United States. Born in Georgia.
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1940"
   citing Affiliate Publication Number: T627; Line: 56; Digital film/folder number: 005461000; Image number: 134; Sheet number: 26; Sheet letter: B
   FamilySearch Record: K7GM-NPT (accessed 23 October 2023)
   FamilySearch Image: 3QS7-L9M1-4N5B
   Mary F O'Conner (15), single daughter, in household of Edward O'Conner (44) in District 722, Fulton, Georgia, United States. Born in Georgia.
3. ↑ "United States 1950 Census"
   citing Page: 29; Line: 10; Digital film/folder number: 108938897; Image number: 30
   FamilySearch Record: 6FM8-T6SN (accessed 23 October 2023)
   FamilySearch Image: 3QHN-GQHW-J99P-5
   Flannery O'Connor (25), single lodger, Creative Writing, in household of Robert S Fitzgerald (38 years) in West Redding, Redding, Fairfield, Connecticut, United States. Born in Georgia.
4. ↑ "Georgia Death Index, 1933-1998"
   citing Baldwin, Georgia, certificate number 022392, Georgia Health Department, Office of Vital Records, Atlanta
   FamilySearch Record: V49H-RHY (accessed 23 October 2023)
   Mary F Oconnor death 3 Aug 1964 (age 39) in Baldwin, Georgia.
5. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/767/flannery-o'connor: accessed 23 October 2023), memorial page for Flannery O'Connor (25 Mar 1925–3 Aug 1964), Find A Grave: Memorial #767, citing Memory Hill Cemetery, Milledgeville, Baldwin County, Georgia, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave.

• The Macon News, August 3, 1964, Page 1. via Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-macon-news-obituary-for-flannery-oc/133968308/ : accessed October 23, 2023), clip page for Obituary for Flannery O'Connor by user NSpires7704
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flannery_O%27Connor