Elizabeth Baker Bohan (born as Baker; August 18, 1849 – August 27, 1930) was a British-born American who worked as an author, journalist, artist, and social reformer. She focused on improving the prison system. She wrote two novels: Un Americano, a story about California's mission days (1895), and The Drag-Net, a story about modern prisons (1909, illustrated by Langdon Smith).

Early life and education

Elizabeth Claire Baker was born on August 18, 1849, in Birmingham, England. Her parents were Joseph and Martha (Boddington) Baker. The family moved to the United States in 1854 and spent most of their time living in Wisconsin.

She attended public schools in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she received her education. From a very young age, she wrote stories and essays. At school, she not only wrote her own essays but also helped her classmates by writing essays for them.

Career

For a time, Bohan worked as a teacher and lived in West Bend, Wisconsin.

On September 2, 1872, in Milwaukee, she married Michael Bohan (born 1832 in Templemore, County Tipperary, Ireland). At that time, he was the editor of the Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, Journal and had previously worked as the editor of the West Bend Democrat. The couple lived in Milwaukee with their four children: Arthur Baker, Edmonde (or Edmund) Russell, Martha Boddington, and Florence Claire. In 1894, Bohan moved to Los Angeles. Using pencils, brushes, watercolor, and oils, she created flower still life paintings, landscape paintings, portrait paintings, and black and white illustrations. She also taught several painters and musicians in Wisconsin.

As she grew older, Bohan enjoyed writing more. She wrote many poems and even more prose sketches, but did not share any of them for publication until the late 1880s. After that, many of her poems and sketches were published in newspapers and magazines across the United States. She worked as a staff writer for West Coast Magazine for at least five years and also wrote for the Chicago Tribune, Simons' Magazine, Munsey's Magazine, Milwaukee Sentinel, The Youth's Companion, National New Thought Monthly, The Club Woman, and others. Some of her serial stories were titled "The Burro Girl" and "The Strength of the Weak."

Bohan gave talks to women’s clubs about civic reforms, with a particular focus on improving the penal system. She supported the creation of municipal farms for people who had committed minor crimes.

Personal life and death

Bohan was a member of the Southern California Press and the California Badger clubs. She supported woman suffrage and was a Progressive. Bohan died at her home in Los Angeles, California, on August 27, 1930.

Selected works

• "Sunny thoughts" (1885, a poem)
• Un Americano, a story about the mission days in California (1895)
• The Drag-Net, a prison story set in the present day (1909, illustrated by Langdon Smith)
• "The Burro Girl"
• "The Strength of the Weak"