THE LIFE OF HYMN-WRITER ANNE STEELE:Anne and her brother lost their mother when she only three. Her father was a Baptist preacher and she was a member of his church her whole life. She wrote many hymns, but was very modest about them, so used the name 'Theodosia' when she had a poem book published in 1760. She was the earliest woman hymn-writer, who was truly a gift from God to His church.
Anne faced much suffering in her life, reflecting in her hymns. Her fiance, a Baptist preacher, drowned on the day before their marriage. In his proposal to Anne, he describes her as 'the sweetness into my heart unfelt before' that the sight of Anne brought to him. She remained single the rest of her life, despite other suitors.
Anne constantly was ill. She was confined to her room much of her life. Living near a river and marshy ground in Broughton, Hampshire, did not help. She had constant fevers, probably a form of malaria. She had weakness in her back due to a fall off of a horse, which debilitated her in ways.
Her role model was Isaac Watts. She learned to sing his songs, and then wrote her own, using his style of writing.
She was one of the most gifted women hymn-writers.
Her final years were very hard, leaving her an invalid. She died at age 61 at her brother's home.
Her final words were " I KNOW THAT MY REDEEMER LIVES!"
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