Rose Lindsay Harvey Finkenstaedt died on August 30, 2014, in Paris in her 88th year. Mrs. Finkenstaedt, [also known as Posey] who was born in Baltimore, MD, was educated at Miss Hall’s School in Pittsfield, MA, Vassar College for two years, then transferred to Columbia University where she received her BA, MA and PhD.
She married James Clements Finkenstaedt in 1947 and spent the next year in Paris where she studied at the Sorbonne and began her love of the French cuisine. While in New York, she was a Civil Rights activist and wrote and served on the editorial board of The Liberator, a black revolutionary magazine. From 1965-1967, she taught Comparative Literature at Hofstra University. Following this, she moved to Paris with her family, where she continued her writing career which included an extensive number of books best categorized as Histoires des Idees with a focus on American history, literature, economics, race, and the black struggle. She also wrote two novels and occasionally translated cookbooks. She continued her love of the French cuisine and befriended some of France’s most noted chefs. She rode her bicycle throughout France, enjoyed swimming, and was an avid supporter of tennis.
She is survived by her daughter Isabel Finkenstaedt Schelameur; her grandchildren, Catherine, Rose Lindsay, James III, Thomas Finkenstaedt, Pierre, William Luke and Rose Schelameur; her sisters Mrs. Ellen H. Kelly and Dr. Jean H. Baker; her brothers Robert H. Harvey and Alexander Harvey all of Baltimore, MD.
Published in The New York Times on September 9, 2014
A Memorial Service will be held at St. John’s Church on Fishers Island, NY on Saturday, July 18 at 11:00.
