author
O. Augusta (Olive Augusta) Cheney
1833–1916
A versatile 19th-century writer and editor, she created works for young readers and speakers while also building a public life as a reformer. Her books sit alongside a larger story of activism, local history, and long service to the causes she believed in.
1 Audiobook
Seeking his fortune, and other dialogues
by Jr. Horatio Alger, O. Augusta (Olive Augusta) Cheney
About the author
Born Olive Augusta Alger in 1833, she became known in print as O. Augusta Cheney. Sources about her life describe her as an author, editor, temperance leader, and advocate for women's rights, with deep ties to South Natick, Massachusetts.
Her published work included The Sunday-School Speaker, a collection she arranged for Sunday-school concerts and festivals, and Seeking His Fortune, and Other Dialogues, a volume associated with both her name and that of her brother, Horatio Alger Jr. Project Gutenberg lists her as an author, and local historical sources note that she also wrote articles, researched local history, and contributed to public causes beyond her books.
Cheney is remembered not only for her writing but for her civic life. The Natick Historical Society highlights her long involvement in temperance and women's suffrage, portraying her as a well-known local figure whose literary work was only one part of a remarkably active life. She died in 1916.