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Mary Dana Shindler
1810–1883
A 19th-century American poet, editor, and hymn writer, she was widely read in popular magazines and remembered for songs and devotional verse shaped by deep personal loss. Her work moved between Southern literary culture, religious writing, and reform-minded interests.
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About the author
Born in Beaufort, South Carolina, in 1810, Mary Dana Shindler wrote under several forms of her name, including Mary S. B. Dana. She became known as an American poet, writer, and editor whose work appeared often in popular periodicals, and she was especially successful as a hymn writer in the middle of the 19th century.
Her life was marked by repeated family tragedies, and that experience strongly influenced the emotional tone of her poetry and sacred songs. She published books including The Southern Harp, and later in life she moved to Texas, where she continued to write.
Shindler is still of interest today both as a literary figure and as a hymn writer. She stands out as a Southern author whose career crossed poetry, devotional writing, and editorial work, leaving behind a body of work that was once widely familiar to American readers and singers.