11 Facts About Harriet Low

Harriett Low Hillard was an American woman of letters and diarist.

Harriet Low's journal is part of the Low-Mills collection in the Library of Congress.

Harriet Low was born Harriet Low, the second of twelve children of Seth and Mary Porter Low, in Salem, Massachusetts.

Harriet Low's father was a well-to-do merchant and owner of a successful shipping business among the ports of Salem, New York, London, and Canton.

Harriet Low soon became acquainted with many of the well-known residents of Macau, including the painter George Chinnery, who painted her portrait; the Hong Merchant Howqua; and the surgeon Thomas Richardson Colledge.

Harriet Low had a strong desire to visit Canton, the only foreign trading enclave permitted in China at the time.

In 1833, Harriet Low posed for a portrait by George Chinnery.

Harriet Low wore a low-cut dress in the latest fashion from Calcutta, with the sleeves stuffed with down pillows.

In 1833, Harriet Low departed China with the aunt and uncle to return to Salem.

Harriet Low described the multicultural experiences of life in the city under Portuguese administration and the social life of its Anglo-American residents in a journal in the form of letters to her older sister, Mary Ann.

Harriet Low described the many opportunities for socializing at dinners, parties, and balls, and entertainment in the form of musical evenings, card games, amateur theatre, and operas.