A typographical error may have changed history. Originally the poem by James Whitcomb Riley was titled 'Little Orphant Allie' but the typesetter read it as Annie, despite the author's complaints, he was told the poem had gone to press and that is how Allie became Annie.
LITTLE ORPHANT ANNIE
by: James Whitcomb Riley (1849-1916)
- INSCRIBED WITH ALL FAITH AND AFFECTION
- To all the little children: -- The happy ones; and sad ones;
The sober and the silent ones; the boisterous and glad ones;
The good ones -- Yes, the good ones, too; and all the lovely bad ones. ITTLE Orphant Annie's come to our house to stay,
- An' wash the cups an' saucers up, an' brush the crumbs away,
- An' shoo the chickens off the porch, an' dust the hearth, an' sweep,
- An' make the fire, an' bake the bread, an' earn her board-an'-keep;
- An' all us other childern, when the supper-things is done,
- We set around the kitchen fire an' has the mostest fun
- A-list'nin' to the witch-tales 'at Annie tells about,
- An' the Gobble-uns 'at gits you
- Ef you
- Don't
- Watch
- Out!
- Wunst they wuz a little boy wouldn't say his prayers,--
- An' when he went to bed at night, away up-stairs,
- His Mammy heerd him holler, an' his Daddy heerd him bawl,
- An' when they turn't the kivvers down, he wuzn't there at all!
- An' they seeked him in the rafter-room, an' cubby-hole, an' press,
- An' seeked him up the chimbly-flue, an' ever'-wheres, I guess;
- But all they ever found wuz thist his pants an' roundabout:--
- An' the Gobble-uns 'll git you
- Ef you
- Don't
- Watch
- Out!
- An' one time a little girl 'ud allus laugh an' grin,
- An' make fun of ever' one, an' all her blood-an'-kin;
- An' wunst, when they was "company," an' ole folks wuz there,
- She mocked 'em an' shocked 'em, an' said she didn't care!
- An' thist as she kicked her heels, an' turn't to run an' hide,
- They wuz two great big Black Things a-standin' by her side,
- An' they snatched her through the ceilin' 'fore she knowed what she's about!
- An' the Gobble-uns 'll git you
- Ef you
- Don't
- Watch
- Out!
- An' little Orphant Annie says, when the blaze is blue,
- An' the lamp-wick sputters, an' the wind goes woo-oo!
- An' you hear the crickets quit, an' the moon is gray,
- An' the lightnin'-bugs in dew is all squenched away,--
- You better mind yer parunts, an' yer teachurs fond an' dear,
- An' churish them 'at loves you, an' dry the orphant's tear,
- An' he'p the pore an' needy ones 'at clusters all about,
- Er the Gobble-uns 'll git you
- Ef you
- Don't
- Watch
- Out!
To be honest until this very night I never knew of this little poem and that it was the basis for the beloved little story of an orphan girl, her dog and a very rich Uncle. For a long time I thought it was a story about me. The story about why James Whitcomb Riley wrote this poem is interesting in and of itself.
"First you need to know that the poem was originally entitled, "The Elf Child" when it was written by Riley in 1885. Also, the poem originally read - "Little Orphan ALLIE has come to our house to stay." A typesetter misread Riley's handwriting and the "Allie" was changed to "Annie." When Riley found out he wanted it changed back; however, he was told that the edition was selling well - so the typo was left.
The Little Orphan Allie that Riley was writing about was a real person. Her name was Mary Alice (Allie for short) Smith. She came to live in the Riley home in approximately November 1861. Her mother had died, and she was sent to live with her father's mother in who lived in Hancock County, Indiana. Her father eventually remarried, but it seems that there was very little interaction between the two. Eventually, her grandmother became too ill to care for her, and Mary Alice was sent to live with an Uncle John Rittenhouse (who I believe is her mother's brother). The Rittenhouses had a large family and were very poor. John Rittenhouse was preparing to enter into the Civil War, and Reuben Riley, the poet's father, had just returned from a three month stint, but was planning on re-enlisting (which he did). John Rittenhouse wanted to find a place for Mary Alice to live because he could not afford another mouth to feed; Reuben Riley wanted to find some help for his wife who had small children in addition to the two older boys - James who was 12 and John who was about 15.
A bargain was made. Mary Alice would come to live at the Riley home where the family who provide her a place to live and food to eat. In exchange, Mary Alice would do chores around the house to help out Elizabeth Riley. Mary Alice was 11 years old - but the Riley family was told that she was 14.
According to most accounts, Mary Alice stayed less than a year with the Riley family. However, since she was close in age to James, and she had the habit of telling fantastic stories, which James liked - - she was forever embedded in his mind.
At the time that Riley wrote the poem, he was working as the "poet in residence" for the Indianapolis Journal - a newspaper. This poem became one of his most famous of all time - - and is usually the one that most people know or remember of Riley's work - even today.
Riley and Mary Alice never say each other again - - but they did reconnect when they were both older. Riley started to look for Mary Alice - not knowing what had happened to her after she left their home. Mary Alice married a local farmer, John Wesley Gray, and lived the rest of her life in western Hancock County - just a few miles down the National Road from Greenfield (where Riley grew up). Riley put ads in newspapers, looking for Mary Alice and finally a friend recognized the story of Mary Alice and let her know that Riley was looking for her. She wrote a letter to Riley identifying herself and her location, and Riley's nephew was sent out to meet her. This was in 1915. Riley had suffered one stroke and was unable to make the trip. Sadly, he passed away in July 1916 - so Mary Alice and Riley never did meet face to face again.
If you would like to see the full account of Mary Alice's arrival at the Riley home - - read Riley's prose poem, "Where is Mary Alice Smith?"
You can visit the James Whitcomb Riley Boyhood home in Greenfield today. You can see the cubby hole and press that "Annie" talks about in the poem. It is worth a visit."
Source: http://wiki.answers.com
What an interesting story. And the poem is great fun. Who knew there was an "Origins of Annie" story? It's got that 84 Charing Cross Rd. ending, too. They never met. Good post, Annie.
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