14 Facts About Dorothy Dix

Elizabeth Meriwether Gilmer, widely known by the pen name Dorothy Dix, was an American journalist and columnist.

Dorothy Dix attended Clarksville Female Academy and later completed one semester at the Hollins Institute.

Shortly after her marriage to George, his mental health began to deteriorate, forcing Dorothy Dix to provide financial support for both of them.

At the beginning of her career, before writing advice columns, Dorothy Dix wrote obituaries, recipes and theater reviews.

The column's widespread popularity began in 1923 when Dorothy Dix signed with the Philadelphia-based Public Ledger Syndicate.

At its peak in 1940, Dorothy Dix was receiving 100,000 letters a year and her estimated reading audience was about 60 million in countries including United States, UK, Australia, New Zealand, South America, China, and Canada.

Dorothy Dix earned her national reputation under the term of sob sister during the 15 years she worked for William Randolph Hearst's New York Evening Journal as its leading crime reporter, concentrating mostly on murders and trials.

Dorothy Dix was shot three times and her throat slit.

Dorothy Dix wrote columns and other material that brought attention to women, and she appeared at suffrage events.

Dorothy Dix encouraged women to work outside of the home in her writings and speeches.

Dorothy Dix's address, titled "The Woman With the Broom," filled four columns in the Woman's Journal.

Years later, Dorothy Dix again spoke to attendees at the National American Suffrage Convention held April 14,1910, in Washington, DC She delivered her address, "The Real Reason Why Women Cannot Vote," by imitating the dialect of the African-American character featured in her "Mirandy" novels.

Dorothy Dix wrote a circular for the National American Woman Suffrage Association outlining the social, political and economic reasons why women should be granted the right to vote.

Dorothy Dix served as an editor for the July 1904 edition of Progress, a publication of the NAWSA.