The Dinsmores
Elsie Dinsmore
The lead heroine.
- Extreme Doormat: She tended to just put up with whatever crap her family threw at her, but to be fair, she knew no one except the slaves and her aunts Adelaide and Lora would have stood up for her. Even when her father punished her unfairly, she didn't stand up for herself, believing it to be the quickest way to earn his love. She matures out of this somewhat as an adult, while still believing in Turn the Other Cheek.
- Happily Married: She marries Edward Travilla when she grows up.
- Meaningful Name: The name Elsie means "pledged to God." One hundered percent true with her.
- Nice Girl: One of the nicest characters in the series, to a fault.
- The Pollyanna: She tends to believe the best in everyone, even people who mistreat her.
- Token Religious Teammate: Elsie was this to her family at first, as nobody else could comprehend why she's so obsessed with her Bible.
- Southern Belle: A charming, beautiful, kind lady from the South who is nice to all that come her way. Definitely a Bonne Belle.
Horace Dinsmore Jr.
Elsie's father.
- Adaptational Nice Guy: The "Life of Faith" reprints tone down his harsh treatment of Elsie signifigantly.
- Hair-Trigger Temper: Lots of things set him off, from Elsie not obeying his every command, to being told how to raise her. He even gets mad at Elsie for the most asinine things, such as crying (for justifiable reasons at that) and freeing a hummingbird that he himself trapped in a glass jar and attempted to kill for his own amusement. He calms down significantly after his Heel–Faith Turn.
- My Greatest Failure: He considers willingly going along with being separated from his first wife and leaving Elsie in the care of her relatives to be his greatest mistake.
- Parents as People: He's kind of a temperamental jerk, but does care for Elsie and his two children with Rose Allison. His temper is toned down a good deal in the reprints.
Enna Dinsmore
Youngest aunt of Elsie.
- Bratty Half-Pint: The story begins when she's six years old, and she starts out as an insufferable little brat who takes Elsie's things for herself and throws tantrums when she doesn't get her way.
- Heel–Faith Turn: After a carriage accident that left her with the mental capacity of a six year old, she converts with her daughter Molly's help.
- Pet the Dog: Say what you want about her personally, she does her damdest to be a good mother (and stepmother in the reprints)
- Spoiled Brat: Hoo boy, is she a real brat. In the beginning, she deliberately takes Elsie's things and claims them as her own even when she's not entitled to it, and when she doesn't get her way, she throws a tantrum. Her parents actually condone her behavior rather than punish or discipline her for it, which is why she grows up to be a Womanchild in later books.
- Womanchild: She never really emotionally matured because her parents spoiled her, even when she became a mother herself.
Arthur Dinsmore
Elsie's uncle.
- Character Death: He and his brother Walter die in the Civil War
- Creepy Uncle: Downplayed since he is only two years older than her, but freely admits to having a one-sided crush on Elsie when they're more-or-less adults.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: When they were younger, he often attacked Elsie when he doesn't get his way with her, but still cared for her. He may be something a ne'er-do-well, but does have moments of kindness, rare they may be.
- Spoiled Brat: When they were younger, he often attacked Elsie when he doesn't get his way with her. One such example is the incident with the watch, where he breaks it but tries to place the blame on Elsie, or in the reprints, an innocent slave boy.
Mr. and Mrs. Dinsmore
Elsie's grandfather and step-grandmother.
- Old Money: The Dinsmore's have had their plantation, Roselands, for generations.
- Parental Neglect: Mr. Dinsmore allowed Elsie to be abused by his wife and children. He doesn't fully admit that he treated her poorly until long after she's an adult, but Elsie has since let it go.
- Rich Bitch: Mrs. Dinsmore. She's rich and wealthy, but hates Elsie and her stepson Horace, and is pretty much the reason why their relationship is so strained at first.
- Wicked Stepmother: Mrs. Dinsmore is both a wicked stepmother and step-grandmother. She resented Horace since he's a child of Mr. Dinsmore's first marriage. She also sent letters about Elsie to her stepson slandering Elsie, and when Horace was sick, she kept Elsie out of his room, but told him Elsie intentionally didn't see him. Even when both Elsie and her own daughter Enna are adults, she can't help but sneer at Elsie. Also, as seen in one of Mildred Keith's books (which chronologically take place before Elsie's books), she also turned her family against Elsie, whom nearly everyone did treat at least cordially when she first came to Roselands.
Adelaide Dinsmore
Mr. and Mrs. Dinsmore's oldest daughter.
- Cool Aunt: She's basically the only Dinsmore child who doesn't treat Elsie like crap and genuinely cares for her like a sister. The only time she ever lost her temper with Elsie was after the death of her fiance, but is quick to apologize at her outburst. At one point in the reprints, she tells Horace that he's being too harsh with Elsie with his authoritarian ways and stands up for her on numerous occasions, though he, along with most of the adults, brushes her off. She is also the only one of her family who volunteers to care for Elsie when she becomes ill.
- Old Maid: She is 26 when she marries and felt uneasy about her age.
- Southern Belle: She's the Bonne variant like her niece.
- Turn to Religion: After her first fiance dies, Elsie helps her convert to Christianity.
Lora, Louise and Walter Dinsmore
Mr. and Mrs. Dinsmore's other children; Elsie's other aunts and uncle.
- Bystander Syndrome: Walter wasn't so much a bully to his niece Elsie, but he still didn't defend her when his siblings would bully and abuse her.
- Character Death: Walter dies in the Civil War after both parents shame him for his initial refusal to sign up for the military.
- Shrinking Violet: Walter is described as shy and bookish, and whenever Arthur, Louise and Enna didn't bully Elsie, they would bully him.
- Spirited Young Lady: Lora. She has a strong sense of justice, and tries to stand up for her niece Elsie after she's given an unfair punishment from their governess.
- Spoiled Brat: Louise, while not nearly as bratty as Enna, does grow up into a gossipy Rich Bitch.
Other Characters
Aunt Chloe
Elsie's devoted nursemaid
- Happiness in Slavery: She doesn't seem to mind being a slave, but admits she does miss her family. Eventually, Elsie buys Chloe her husband and granddaughter.
- Outliving One's Offspring: She had four children who are long dead by the start of the first book; two died of illness, one drowned, while a daughter lived to adulthood and had her own daughter, Dinah.
- Parental Substitute: Raised Elsie like she was her own child.
Edward Travilla
Horace's childhood friend
Rose Allison
Elsie's aunt Adelaide's friend from the north.
Mrs. Mary Murray
The former housekeeper of Viameade
- Apron Matron
- Cool Old Lady: She is in her late-50s/early 60s when introduced, and while as intense in her faith as Elsie, is nothing but kind and pleasant to everyone, and is a source of wisdom for both Horace and Elsie.
- Oireland: She is from Galway.
- Parental Substitute: Raise Elsie along with Aunt Chloe. She also raised her grand-nieces after their parents die from illness.
Wealthy Stanhope
Elsie's great-aunt
Tom Jackson
One of Arthur's ne'er-do-well friends.
- Dirty Coward: For all his talk about killing Elsie or her friends, most of the time he finds one reason or another to put it off, or goes in when they're asleep or otherwise vulnerable.
- Gold Digger: He and Arthur plot for Tom (under an assumed name) to marry Elsie for her fortune.
- Yandere: For someone who never loved Elsie, he sure doesn't take Elsie's rejection of him when she finds out his true colors very well, up to and including trying to kill her, and her husband Edward on their honeymoon.
Mildred "Millie" Keith
Elsie's second cousin. Featured primarily in her own stories, but occasionally referenced in the main
Elsie books.
- Adaptation Dye-Job: In the original books, she has brown hair and brown eyes. in the "Life of Faith" reprints, she has blond hair and violet eyes.
- Determined Homesteader She's a bit nervous to move out west at first, but quickly adjusts to life in Pleasant Plains, Indiana.
- Massive Numbered Siblings: The oldest of nine children (though one is dead before the events of the first book)
- Only Known by Their Nickname: In the reprints, she is almost exclusively called "Millie", but even in the original books, her youngest siblings will call her "Milly"
- Schoolmarm: Mildred was the tutor to her siblings when they moved to Pleasant Plains, and until she married she worked as one for the community.
Violet Travilla
Daughter of Elsie and Edward Travilla. Becomes the main focus of later books.
- Daddy's Girl: She and her father were quite close, and takes his death very hard.
- Good Samaritan: In the reprints, she opens a mission building.
- Shrinking Violet: Befitting her name. She matures out of this as she grows up.
