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Written by
Michael McDonough
Fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Nellie Bly, the renowned investigative journalist, was a force to be reckoned with. Born Elizabeth Cochran in 1864, she adopted the pen name Nellie Bly and went to extraordinary lengths to write impactful stories exposing poverty, corruption, and injustice. Here are 8 of the most sensational experiences from her storied career.
Six Months in Mexico
Bly had been with the Pittsburgh Dispatch for a few months before she became frustrated with her assignments and decided to travel to Mexico as a foreign correspondent. Between 1886 and 1887 she sent back reports of her time in that country, providing detailed descriptions of poverty and government corruption. Bly also reported on the government’s censorship and maltreatment of Mexican journalists, angering government officials and causing her to be expelled from Mexico. Bly published a compilation of her reports in the book Six Months in Mexico.
10 Days in a Madhouse
After leaving the Pittsburgh Dispatch, Bly joined Joseph Pulitzer’s New York World, where she was tasked with reporting on the conditions of one of New York City’s infamous asylums. She took the challenge in stride, going to a boarding house and feigning insanity. Before long she was taken by the police to a courtroom where she was deemed insane and committed to an asylum. Bly was sent to the Women’s Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell’s Island and spent 10 days documenting the maltreatment of patients and their horrific living conditions. The New York World sent an attorney to get her released, and she published her report in the book 10 Days in a Madhouse in 1887. The story was a national success, prompting a grand jury investigation of the asylum as well as the implementation of reforms concerning patient care.
“The King of the Lobby”
In 1888 Bly went undercover as a lobbyist to reveal corruption in the New York state legislature by exposing Ed Phelps, the self-proclaimed “King of the Lobby.” She traveled to Albany and posed as a client who wanted to stop a bill that would potentially ruin her husband’s business. In her meeting with Phelps, he promised he could bribe certain legislators to strike down the bill for $1,000. Her exposé prompted an investigation of the council members named in the story and caused Phelps to leave Albany.
“Nellie Bly a Prisoner”
Bly decided to investigate the treatment of women—particularly innocent women—at the hands of police in jail by employing a fellow journalist to accuse her of stealing money. She was arrested and spent a night in jail, documenting her experience, which included unruly inmates and someone spying on her as she undressed for a search. Upon her release, she published an article detailing the necessity of reforms, including the need for the separation of male and female prisoners as well as the employment of police matrons to search women.
“Nellie Bly Buys a Baby”
In one of her more shocking stories, Bly investigated New York’s baby black market. She posed as a potential buyer and met with multiple women to inquire about buying a baby from them. In a dramatic exposé, Bly wrote about how dealers acted as intermediaries between buyers and mothers who would sell the babies with no questions asked. She even ended up buying a baby from one of the women for $10, receiving a paper along with it saying the buyer “may dispose of the said child in any manner.”
“Nellie Bly on the Stage”
Not all of her stories focused on going undercover to expose illegal activities. One of Bly’s stories involved her becoming a dancer! After reading an advertisement in her own paper calling for 100 girls for a show, she decided to answer the ad and go undercover to report on the lives of showgirls. Bly participated in rehearsals to further immerse herself in the experience and even ended up donning a costume to perform as an Amazon in a show.
Nellie Bly’s Book: Around the World in Seventy-two Days
In one of her most famous feats at the New York World, Bly embarked on a journey around the world to beat the fictional record set by Phileas Fogg in Jules Verne’s Around the World in Eighty Days. She departed from Hoboken, New Jersey, on November 14, 1889, and traveled on ships, boats, and horses during her journey. Upon her return she was greeted in New York by thousands of people to celebrate her final time of 72 days, 6 hours, 11 minutes, and 14 seconds. Bly wrote about her experience in Nellie Bly’s Book: Around the World in Seventy-two Days, a book that cemented her status as a household name.
“Nellie Bly Describes War Horrors”
Although Bly left journalism and married Robert Seaman in 1895, she eventually returned to reporting and wrote about hard-hitting issues, including the fight for women’s suffrage and the events of World War I. She was one of the first female reporters to travel to Europe and report on the Eastern Front, sending vivid depictions of the war back to the United States. Bly was even arrested under suspicion of being a British spy before being let go after being recognized as the famous reporter she was.
