Elizabeth Waties (Allston) Pringle (abt. 1845 - abt. 1921)

Born about 29 May 1845 in Pawleys Island, Georgetown, South Carolina, United States [uncertain]

Ancestors

Died about 5 Dec 1921 at about age 76 in Georgetown, South Carolina, United States [uncertain]

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Biography

Elizabeth was born in 1845. She was the daughter of Robert Francis Withers Allston and Adele Petigru. She passed away in 1921.

In 1870, she married John Pringle, son of Julius Izard Pringle (1808-1864). Late that year, they had a son. Her husband died in 1876, leaving her to manage their rice plantation. She was successful as a farmer and ended up writing a novel on her experiences under the pen name Patience Pennington. That novel was called “A Women Rice Planter” was published in 1913. She wrote a second novel called “Chronicles of Chicora Wood” in 1922.^[1] The Encyclopedia.com source below has a lengthy but well written bio that gives you a great idea of her hardships and her success in overcoming these for her extraordinary achievements. Below is a portion of that bio.

“Elizabeth married John Julius Pringle, owner of the White House, a plantation less than ten miles from Chicora Wood. In a November 7, 1875, entry from her diary, she wrote: "We are settled married people without children—five years of married life have passed so rapidly that I feel but little older than the day I took those cares upon me." In 1876, the year after Pringle wrote this diary entry, her husband John died suddenly. His death followed that of their only child, a son, who had died in infancy. Shattered by her loss, Pringle returned to Chicora Wood, where she helped to care for her older brother's motherless children.

In 1880, Pringle was bequeathed some money that allowed her to acquire White House, her late husband's plantation, from his heirs. In 1885, despite advice to the contrary, she decided to take on its management. Her success at this was made all the more remarkable because she continued to live at Chicora Wood, an hour and a half from White House, so as to be with her mother. Not above sharing in the field work on the plantation, she proved herself more than capable of handling almost any task. She showed an interest in finding new ways to run the plantation more efficiently, which included implementing the use of an incubator. Along with the rice, she maintained livestock and poultry and grew a number of fruits, including peaches, grapes, and strawberries. Up until 1900, she would customarily turn a profit.”

Sources

1. ↑ https://www.gutenberg.org/files/56736/56736-h/56736-h.htm
   • Chronicles of Chicora Wood