Beginning Journalism
After returning home, Ms. Tarbell’s passions headed for journalism. Her first opportunity to experiment with journalism was when she was asked to join The Chautauquan, a magazine based in Meadville and closely knitted with the Chautauqua movement, an adult education system [2]. Tarbell became an important part of the Chautauqua movement; she first developed her writing skills through The Chautauquan and later even took to the road with the Chautauqua circuit, going to places like New York CIty, Chicago, Cedar Rapids, and Forrest City to lecture [3]. She was noted to be an excellent contributor to The Chautauquan by Theodore L. Flood – editor of the magazine – but unfortunately poor health deemed it necessary for Ida Tarbell to resign from her job there [4].
Theodore L. Flood, the editor of The Chautauquan writes this of Ms. Tarbell: "She is a Christian lady of excellent character, fine reputation and high social position who is honored by all who are acquainted with her." In regards to her leaving The Chautauquan, he writes: "It is a source of regret to me that the precarious condition of her health makes it necessary to give up office work on "The Chautauquan." " [4] |
Working at the The Chautauquan had profound effects on Ms. Tarbell: firstly, it showed her that, even as a well-educated person, there was much she didn’t know and secondly, it spurred her to become a better journalist. She gained much from the movement and the magazine and would support it the years to come. In 1934, as the Chautauqua movement was dying out, Ms. Tarbell wrote an editorial to the New York Times praising the movement and asking for continued support [5]. Ms. Tarbell said she saw the Chautauqua movement change from a mostly religion-focused institution into an education institution with a “strong and passion... for knowledge.” She had joined the Chautauqua movement as a teenager. In its simplest form, the Chautauqua movement was basically a reading group. Groups in different states would work on studying books, and at the end of the four-year program, graduates would be presented with a certificate and a ceremony commending their achievement. How did The Chautauquan tie into the actual Chautauqua movement? It was the organ of the movement. It provided study materials for the groups: translating foreign phrases, writing biographical information, explaining scientific, philosophical, and literary allusions – all to help thousands of people who were “struggling for more knowledge, for a broader outlook.”
During her stint at The Chautauquan, Ida Tarbell also was exposed to French journalism. The French revolution piqued her interest and when she bought French books to aid in her investigations, Ms. Tarbell was surprised by how meticulous and accurate the reporting was in French biographic and historic writing [2]. She decided that she would go study in Paris, and after saving up money for the trip, she moved to Paris in 1890 to complete graduate work and to freelance. It was in France that she began to associate with Samuel Sidney McClure of McClure’s Magazine, a magazine based in New York that was building a name for itself as an investigative journal.
Works Cited
1. Redpath Chautauqua Special. 1910. Photograph. The University of Iowa Libraries, n.p.
2. Lee, Elizabeth. "Ida M. Tarbell." The Macon Telegraph [Macon, GA] 12 June 1904: n. pag. NewsBank/Readex. Web. 7 June 2012.
3. Affiliated Lyceum Bureaus. "Mutual Lyceum and Chautauqua System Lectures (Midwest) for Ida M. Tarbell." 1918. MS. Allegheny College, Meadville, PA. Allegheny College. Web. 4 June 2012.
4. Flood, Theodore L. Letter to Ida M. Tarbell. 25 Mar. 1891. Letter: Theodore L. Flood to Ida M. Tarbell, March 25, 1891. Allegheny College, n.d. Web. 5 June 2012.
5. Tarbell, Ida M. "To the Editor of The New York Times." Letter to Editor, New York Times. 20 Apr. 1934. Letter: Ida M. Tarbell to Editor, New York Times, April 20, 1934. Allegheny College, n.d. Web. 5 June 2012.
(Click to go to link.)
2. Lee, Elizabeth. "Ida M. Tarbell." The Macon Telegraph [Macon, GA] 12 June 1904: n. pag. NewsBank/Readex. Web. 7 June 2012.
3. Affiliated Lyceum Bureaus. "Mutual Lyceum and Chautauqua System Lectures (Midwest) for Ida M. Tarbell." 1918. MS. Allegheny College, Meadville, PA. Allegheny College. Web. 4 June 2012.
4. Flood, Theodore L. Letter to Ida M. Tarbell. 25 Mar. 1891. Letter: Theodore L. Flood to Ida M. Tarbell, March 25, 1891. Allegheny College, n.d. Web. 5 June 2012.
5. Tarbell, Ida M. "To the Editor of The New York Times." Letter to Editor, New York Times. 20 Apr. 1934. Letter: Ida M. Tarbell to Editor, New York Times, April 20, 1934. Allegheny College, n.d. Web. 5 June 2012.
(Click to go to link.)