Farnham attempted to take 130 marriageable women to gold rush California, captivating editors on both coasts. Following her controversial administration at Sing Sing Prison, Mrs. The impression left predominant was that the entire lecture was all of thought…the production of an earnest, philosophical, enlightened mind…imbued with clear perceptions and pure aspirations.” There was not one word but deserved attention not a weak, worthless paragraph in the whole of it. Her public lectures on phrenology, spiritualism, prison reform, and the superiority of women attracted audiences and admiration: “The entire people present seemed determined not to lose a sentence. Eliza Farnham's name first appeared in newspapers in 1840. That few today know of Eliza Farnham-once famed as a prison matron, phrenologist, author, lecturer, spiritualist, and philanthropist-provides the proof to that pudding. But many remarkable lives escape telling, remain unknown, unsung. If she were important, the public reasons, surely we would have heard. The following is a special biographical introduction to Eliza Farnham written by JoAnn Levy, author of Unsettling the West: Eliza Farnham and Georgiana Bruce Kirby in Frontier California (Heyday Books, 2004) – Used by permission of the author and the Sierra Nevada Virtual Museum.Įliza Farnham is a stranger's name. From California, In-doors and Out or, How We Farm, Mine, and Live Generally in the Golden State Eliza W.