Eudora Welty

Eudora Welty
Eudora Welty in 1962
Born	Eudora Alice Welty (1909-04-13)April 13, 1909 Jackson, Mississippi, United States
Died	July 23, 2001(2001-07-23) (aged 92) Jackson, Mississippi, United States
Occupation	Author, photographer
Notable awards	Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 1973 The Optimist's Daughter

Eudora Alice Welty (April 13, 1909 – July 23, 2001) was an award-winning American author who wrote short stories and novels about the American South. Her book, The Optimist's Daughter, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1973 and Welty was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, among numerous awards. She was the first living author to have her works published by the Library of America. Her house in Jackson, Mississippi, is a National Historic Landmark and open to the public as a museum.

Life

Welty worked as a publicity agent for the work progress administration. She had to travel around Mississippi for her job. In her own time, she took memorable photographs. These mostly show how different people from all economic and social classes coped with the Great Depression. Collections of her photograph were published as One time, One place (1971) and Photograph (1989). Very often, a photograph was the basis of one of her short stories, including Why I live at the P.O., which was inspired by a woman she photographed ironing in the back of a small post office.