Her father Leonard served as not only a clergyman but also a teacher at the divinity school of Yale University, and during the Civil War he took the initiative in supporting the campaign against slavery, therefore he was highly respected in the local.
父・レオナルドは牧師のほかイェール大学神学校の教師も勤め、南北戦争の時、いち早く奴隷制に反対する論陣を張るなど、人望が厚く地元の名士であった。