Shirley Jean Abbott was an author and magazine editor, and served for 15 years as an editor of HORIZON Magazine, published by American Heritage Publishing, where she was for several years the magazine's editor-in-chief.
Ms. Abbott wrote articles for American Heritage, Smithsonian, Lear’s, Gourmet, Harper’s, Southern Living, McCall’s, Glamour, and Boston Review.
She was also the author of six books including Love's Apprentice: The Education of a Modern Woman, Historic Charleston, and The National Museum of American History (Harry N. Abrams, Inc.)
Ms. Abbott had a B.A. in English and French from Texas Woman’s University, and was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Grenoble.