Lilian Leland

October 16, 2012

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On this date in 1857, Lilian Leland was born in the United States. The daughter of freethinkers, she traveled 60,000 miles alone around the world at the age of 25 for nearly two years, starting with a voyage around Cape Horn. Her mother, Mary A. Leland, was one of the first women to study medicine in the United States and lectured on anatomy as early as 1852. Her father, Theron C. Leland, was a popular lecturer in the Liberal League. Lilian was brought up to play chess and read widely, conceiving her plan to travel after reading "Merchant of Venice." She wrote a book about her travels, A Woman's Journey Around the World (1890), and married the son of Stephen Pearl Andrews, abolitionist and freethinker.

Compiled by Annie Laurie Gaylor - www.ffrf.org