author

Mary H. (Mary Harriette) Debenham

1864–1947

A prolific English writer of the late Victorian and Edwardian years, she wrote stories for children and young adults as well as religious fiction, drama, and biography. Her books carry a gentle moral tone, but they also show a steady, wide-ranging career that lasted well into the twentieth century.

1 Audiobook

Two maiden aunts

Two maiden aunts

by Mary H. (Mary Harriette) Debenham

About the author

Mary Harriette Debenham was born in London in 1864 and later lived in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire. According to Victorian Research, she was the daughter of Frank Gissing Debenham and Sarah Anne Bridgewater, and she remained closely tied to her family life throughout her years as a writer.

She began publishing in the 1880s, with early work including St. Helen's Well (1888). Over the following decades she produced a large number of books, especially fiction for younger readers, along with drama and later a biography, Patteson of the Isles (1921). Titles linked to her include Two Maiden Aunts, The Whispering Winds and the Tales that They Told, Mistress Phil, and One Red Rose.

She never married and continued writing into the twentieth century. Debenham died on December 7, 1947. A readily available modern trace of her work is Two Maiden Aunts, which is listed by Project Gutenberg.