LILLIAN ANDRIST was born into humble beginnings in Biddeford, Maine. Her mother was a seamstress, and her father was a foreman. Her mother died in 1860, but her father built his own textile company and became wealthy in his own right. Unfortunately, the family’s wealth disappeared overnight in the Chicago Fire. Lillian spent the next few years moving from place to place. She married a Boston merchant, Owen Pickens, but the marriage was not a happy one; they soon parted but never divorced. Lillian became active in the temperance movement, and she allied herself with labor leaders like Eugene Debs. She also developed a love for Shakespeare, and she worked to bring the arts to the poor. Her results were mixed, but she developed a reputation as a tireless crusader. She spent the last few years of her life in New York, where she died in 1913.