Young Lena Rivers, who was born out of wedlock, goes to live with a rich uncle. Unfortunately, her uncle's wife and daughter make no secret of their dislike of Lena and that they don't want her in their family. Mary Jane Hawes was born in Brookfield, Massachusetts in 1825, the fifth of Fanny (Olds) and Preston Hawes' nine children. The household was economically modest, but the parents encouraged intellectual endeavor. She may also have been influenced by her uncle, Rev. Joel Hawes (1789-1867), for many years minister at the First Congregational Church in Hartford, Connecticut, and known for...