Louisa May Alcott, (A. N. Barnard, Flora Fairfield) (1832 -1888) Second of four daughters, born in Germantown, Pennsylvania, and raised in Boston and Concord, Massachusetts. Deeply influenced by her father's transcendentalist thoughts, experimental educational philosophies. Amos Bronson Alcott founded several schools, but all of them failed, forcing Abigail and her daughters to undertake the financial support of the family. Later, Alcott often remarked that her entire career was inspired by her desire to compensate for her family's early discomfort. Alcott taught school, took in sewing, and worked briefly as a domestic servant. At age sixteen she began writing, convinced that she could earn enough money to overcome the family's poverty. In 1851, her first poem was published in Peterson's Magazine under her pseudonym Flora Fairfield. The turning point of her career was Little Women. An autobiographical account of 19th century family life. From 1875 onward, her health deteriorated. Louisa May Alcott never married. She died on March 6, 1888.