Articles by Marguerite Thompson (Zorach), 1909-1915

Marguerite Thompson was not only an accomplished visual artist but also a prolific writer who documented her travels through Europe, the Middle East, and Asia in a series of richly descriptive articles. Published in the Fresno Morning Republican, her work captured not just landscapes and architecture but also cultural nuances and personal reflections on the people and places she encountered. 

The Fresno Morning Republican commented on her missives in the following terms:

The In all her school life, she was an earnest, enthusiastic student–one of those girls who does everything well, whether it be in the fine arts or the lowlier ones of home-keeping. Evidently, the making of pictures is not her only gift, for she writes originally and cleverly. She sees the best in everything that comes beneath her notice and tells it in a straightforward, almost boyishly frank fashion that is delightful (March 21, 1909, 13).

Her collection of travelogues, listed below, includes at least 116 articles, all published under her maiden name.  A selection of thirty can also be found in Efram L. Burk, Clever Fresno Girl: The Travel Writings of Marguerite Thompson Zorach (1908-1915), pubished by the University of Delaware Press (2008).

  1. Fresno Girl in Paris Describes Louvre, World's Greatest Gallery (January 17, 1909, p. 8)
  2. La Concierge, Queen of Paris, Whose Scepter is Often a Broom (January 24, 1909, p. 10)
  3. French Shops Advertise American Hits (February 7, 1909, p. 17)
  4. The Grand Opera as Seen in Paris (February 28, 1909, p. 12)
  5. The Modern Artists of France: The Luxembourg Gallery (March 21, 1909, p. 17)
  6. The Impressionist School of Art (April 4, 1909, p. 12)
  7. The Markets in Paris Present Interesting Sight to Visitor (April 18, 1909, p. 17)
  8. Trip from Paris into Italy with a Peep at Switzerland (June 6, 1909, p. 8)
  9. The Journey Through Northern Italy (June 20, 1909, p. 14)
  10. Marguerite Writes of Travels in Sunny Italy (June 27, 1909, p. 6)
  11. Florence Most Charming City in All Italy, Says Fresno Girl (July 11, 1909, p. 6)
  12. The Churches of Florence (July 25, 1909, p. 6)
  13. Old Palaces of Florence Contain Art Galleries of Priceless Value (August 22, 1909, p. 7)
  14. American Girl's Observances in Romantic City of Florence (September 5, 1909, p. 9)
  15. Venice, Enchanted City, Seems to Rise Out of Old Ocean (September 19, 1909, p. 24)
  16. Beggars in Venice a Pest to the American Traveler (October 3, 1909, p. 7)
  17. Venice, Enchanted City of Venerable Age, Sinks Slowly Back into the Sea Whence It Rose (October 17, 1909, p. 17)
  18. Venice Made for Honeymooning or for the Rest Cure, That's All (October 31, 1909, p. 9)
  19. Making Expedition Among Shops of City of Gondolas and Canals (November 28, 1909, p. 17)
  20. Picturesque Chioggia, an Island Farthestmost in Venetian Lagoons (December 26, 1909, p. 9)
  21. Many Odors Vie with Picturesque Scenes of the Canals of Chioggia (January 16, 1910, p. 17)
  22. Vivid Picture of Venetian Life in Incidents and Observations (January 23, 1910, p. 6)
  23. Sees Rome, Her Childhood's Dream, Not Modern, But Ancient City (February 20, 1910, p. 1)
  24. "Venice Comes to Us," Laughed Gay Parisians When Waters of Seine Flowed Through Streets (March 13, 1910, p. 17)
  25. Crumbling Ruins of Roman Forum Are Beautiful in Flowers of Italian Spring (March 27, 1910, p. 20)
  26. Rome's Wonderful Treasures of Sculptures Surpass Collections of Any Other City (April 10, 1910, p. 18)
  27. Out of Every Ten Men Encountered in Rome: Five Priests, Three Soldiers, Two Citizens (May 8, 1910, p. 19)
  28. Modern Architecture Shows Triumph Over Old in St. Paul's Church Outside Gates of Rome (May 8, 1910, p. 19)
  29. Vatican Is Immense Yet Small, Age Dims Splendor of Palace (June 5, 1910, p. 9)
  30. Prefers Descendants of Mighty Caesars in Pages of History Rather Than in Flesh (July 31, 1910, p. 17)
  31. French Fishing Village Picturesque and Dirty (August 14, 1910, p. 15)
  32. Etaples, Quaint Little French Village, Becomes Art Conscious and Artificial (September 11, 1910, p. 10)
  33. Passion Play Is Greatly Over Advertised, Commercialism Robs Performance of Charm, Village Actors Are Far from Peasant Types (October 2, 1910, p. 17)
  34. Marguerite Thompson Writes of Flying Glimpse Gained of London on Brief Visit (October 9, 1910, p. 17)
  35. Bruges with Its Artist Life, a Delightful Old World City (November 6, 1910, p. 17)
  36. Strassbourg [sic] Lost to France, Thoroughly German in Character (December 4, 1910, p. 12)
  37. Strassbourg [sic] Cathedral, Gothic Pile, Wonder of Present, Inspiration of Past, Noted Clock Parades Apostles (December 18, 1910, p. 34)
  38. Marguerite Thompson on Trip to Spain (January 1, 1911, p. 9)
  39. Takes Trip from France Down Into Spain, Bordeaux Henceforth Famous for Roosters, Spanish Frontier Suggestive of the West (January 22, 1911, p. 14)
  40. Trains in Spain, Toy Affairs, Never Hurry, Senors More Gorgeous than Famed Senoritas, Glimpse of Burgos from Balcony by Night (February 5, 1911, p. 11)
  41. Impressions of Spain (February 19, 1911, p. 10)
  42. Cathedral of Burgos (February 26, 1911, p. 7)
  43. Traveling in Castille (March 19, 1911, p. 19)
  44. Old Madrid Too New (April 2, 1911, p. 20)
  45. Madrid Impressions (April 16, 1911, p. 18)
  46. The Prado Museum (April 30, 1911, p. 24)
  47. Romance in Monastery at Avignon, First View of Provence Dreary (May 21, 1911, p. 9)
  48. Avignon Seems Paradise of Light and Color, Palace of Rival Medieval Popes Towers the City (June 4, 1911, p. 14)
  49. Avignon, City of Cafés and the Well-Dressed, Villeneuve Home of Cardinals, Sleepy Place (June 18, 1911, p. 13)
  50. Towns of Provence (July 2, 1911, p. 18)
  51. Arles in Provence, Sophisticated and Dirty; Ought to Be Romantic, Is Only Dirty (July 16, 1911, p. 9)
  52. Les Baux, Perched on High on Hills, Stands as Crumbling Shell of Medieval Romance (July 30, 1911, p. 8)
  53. Life Seen in Les Baux (August 13, 1911, p. 10)
  54. A Journey to Nîmes (September 10, 1911, p. 21)
  55. Seeing War-Times in Aigues-Mortes (September 17, 1911, p. 19)
  56. Visit to Martigues, the Venice of Provence, Quaint Little Town Is Haunt of Artists (October 1, 1911, p. 14)
  57. Wonderful Marseilles (October 22, 1911, p. 21)
  58. Through Adriatic Sea and Isles of Greece to Egypt (December 3, 1911, p. 10)
  59. Seeing Cairo and the Pyramids (January 28, 1912, p. 21)
  60. Scenery and People of Modern Egypt (February 18, 1912, p. 24)
  61. From Jaffa to Jerusalem, Desert Beauty of Palestine (March 10, 1912, p. 26)
  62. The Colonies at Jerusalem (April 7, 1912, p. 17)
  63. Illusions of the Holy Land (April 14, 1912, p. 16)
  64. The City of Jerusalem (June 9, 1912, p. 20)
  65. Life in Jerusalem (June 23, 1912, p. 21)
  66. Bombay (October 6, 1912, p. 21)
  67. Bombay (January 26, 1913, p. 20)
  68. Oriental Mysticism Has Saved Bombay (February 2, 1913, p. 25)
  69. Ahmenedabad (February 16, 1913, p. 1)
  70. Indian Hills and Mt. Abu (March 2, 1913, p. 24)
  71. The Dilwara Temples (March 16, 1913, p. 15)
  72. Trip to Jaipur (March 23, 1913, p. 15)
  73. Jaipur (March 30, 1913, p. 20)
  74. When the Queen Comes to Jaipur (April 13, 1913, p. 23)
  75. Life in Jaipur (April 20, 1913, p. 14)
  76. Sketching in Jaipur (May 4, 1913, p. 20)
  77. Life in Jaipur (May 18, 1913, p. 11)
  78. Amber and Gatore (May 25, 1913, p. 28)
  79. The Garden of Gulta (June 8, 1913, p. 22)
  80. From an Indian House-Top (June 15, 1913, p. 25)
  81. Delhi, Capital of India (June 29, 1913, p. 14)
  82. Agra and the Taj Mahal (September 7, 1913, p. 14)
  83. From Agra to Benares (September 14, 1913, p. 17)
  84. Benares (September 28, 1913, p. 24)
  85. The City of Benares (October 5, 1913, p. 21)
  86. The City of Calcutta (October 19, 1913, p. 20)
  87. Darjeeling (October 26, 1913, p. 11)
  88. Hills of Hindustan (November 2, 1913, p. 21)
  89. The People of the Hills (November 9, 1913, p. 20)
  90. On the Bay of Bengal (November 16, 1913, p. 26)
  91. Unhappy, Happy Burma (December 7, 1913, p. 44)
  92. Rangoon (December 14, 1913, p. 23)
  93. The People of Burma (December 21, 1913, p. 10)
  94. From Rangoon to Mandalay (January 11, 1914, p. 22)
  95. Old Mandalay (January 18, 1914, p. 9)
  96. Mandalay (February 1, 1914, p. 17)
  97. On the Irrawadi (February 8, 1914, p. 11)
  98. Life on the Irrawadi (February 22, 1914, p. 24)
  99. Oil Fields of Burma (March 1, 1914, p. 1)
  100. The Shwe Dagon Pagoda (March 15, 1914, p. 14)
  101. Penang (March 29, 1914, p. 15)
  102. The Pagan Revel (April 19, 1914, p. 21)
  103. Rickshaw Rides in Penang (June 14, 1914, p. 19)
  104. On the China Sea (July 12, 1914, p. 20)
  105. Getting Settled in Hong Kong (July 26, 1914, p. 19)
  106. New Pension and Chinese Play (October 11, 1914, p. 11)
  107. The Man from Siberia (October 25, 1914, p. 22)
  108. Canton, Its Temples and Gods (November 8, 1914, p. 24)
  109. Canton and the Trip on the Hoang Ho (December 6, 1914, p. 10)
  110. Shanghai (December 27, 1914, p. 21)
  111. Shanghai (January 10, 1915, p. 13)
  112. China (January 24, 1915, p. 16)
  113. Tsingtau (February 7, 1915, p. 16)
  114. First Impressions of Japan (February 21, 1915, p. 12)
  115. An Old Palace at Kyoto (March 28, 1915, p. 25)
  116. Yokohama (April 11, 1915, p. 21)