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Willa Cather's Gilded Age

You may know author Willa Cather from O Pioneers!, set on the Nebraska prairie, but you may not know the surprising twists of her biography.

An episode of the The Gilded Gentleman podcast, hosted by Peter Cipkowski, Carl Raymond, titled "Willa Cather's Gilded Age" was published on November 11, 2025 and runs 60 minutes.

November 11, 2025 ·60m · The Gilded Gentleman

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You may know author Willa Cather from O Pioneers!, set on the Nebraska prairie, but you may not know the surprising twists of her biography.

Willa Cather, the beloved American novelist who lived during the height of America's Gilded Age, is perhaps best known for her insightful passionate writing about life on the Nebraska Plains where she spent her childhood. 

But Cather's writing and life included much more than that. She spent a significant part of her adult life in Pittsburgh before coming to New York and establishing her life with her partner Edith Lewis in bohemian Greenwich Village. Her work is set in an astonishing array of locations from New York to London to the American Southwest. Cather's characters span the broad range of humanity and are deeply universal in their passions as well as their struggles. 

Historian and educator Peter Cipkowski joins The Gilded Gentleman to share his insight on the work and life of the extraordinary and fearless American writer of the early 20th century.  

For more information, please visit the National WIlla Cather Center.

This episode was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon


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