Bailey, Abigail Abbot, 1746-1815

Abigail Abbot Bailey (1746–1815) was an early American memoirist who documented her experiences with domestic abuse and incest. She lived in Landaff, New Hampshire, and had 17 children with an abusive husband. Upon learning that her daughter was being sexually abused by her husband in 1788, she insisted that he leave their home and eventually secured a divorce in 1792. Her memoirs, published posthumously as Memoirs of Mrs. Abigail Bailey, Who Had Been the Wife of Major Asa Bailey, Formerly of Landaff, (N.H.) Written by Herself, were written as a conversion narrative for her Congregationalist church. The document details her husband's abuse during their 25-year marriage, including his incidences of adultery and his rape of their daughter.