History of Medicine
- The Author's Life
- The Woman Question
- A Terrifying Tale
- Reading "The Yellow Wall-Paper"
- The Author’s Legacy
Charlotte and her second husband,
George Houghton Gilman, 1909
In the years after the publication of
the story, Charlotte enjoyed great professional success and personal happiness. In 1900 she wed her cousin, George Houghton Gilman, and she was able to rebuild her relationship with her
daughter. Charlotte became a well-known writer and was regularly invited to speak on the subject of women's rights and economic independence.
Charlotte and her second husband
playacting for the camera, ca. 1920
In 1932 Charlotte was diagnosed with inoperable
breast cancer, and the following year her beloved
husband George died suddenly from a brain hemorrhage.
She moved to California to be near her daughter and
grandchildren, and to work on her autobiography.
When the disease progressed beyond relief, Charlotte
chose to take her own life. On August 17, 1935, at
the age of seventy-five, she committed suicide
by inhaling chloroform.
Charlotte on a trip to campaign for
women's right to vote, ca. 1900
Charlotte left a vast legacy of influential
writings, including several books about
women and society, essays, poetry, a novel,
and The Forerunner, a monthly magazine
of her work published from November 1909
to December 1916. While some nineteenth-
century readers did appreciate the message
hidden in “The Yellow Wall-Paper,” the
story also resonated with many in the
women's movement of the 1970s. Since their
rediscovery of the tale, the text has been
republished many times, continuing to enthrall
audiences more than a century after it
Courtesy Library of Congress