Hapgood became a major translator of French and Russian literature, as well as a key figure in the dialogue between
Western Christianity and
Eastern Orthodoxy. She helped
Harvard professor
Francis James Child with his
Book of Ballads which began publication in 1882. In 1885, Hapgood published her own
Epic Songs of Russia, for which Child supplied a preface, and which received several good reviews. The next year Hapgood published translations of
Leo Tolstoy’s
Childhood, Boyhood, Youth and
Nikolai Gogol’s
Taras Bulba and
Dead Souls. In 1887, her translations of the major works of
Victor Hugo began publication, introducing that major French author to American audiences. Hapgood dreamed of traveling to
Russia, and so engaged a Russian lady to help her attain fluency in the spoken language. Between 1887 and 1889, she and her widowed mother traveled through Russia. While there, Hapgood met several significant Russian literary and clerical figures. After that trip, Hapgood began traveling about annually to Russia. On that long first trip, Hapgood spent several weeks with the famous Russian novelist
Leo Tolstoy on his country estate, and continued publishing translations of his works. In 1891,
The Atlantic magazine published a lengthy article by Hapgood detailing her observations of Tolstoy as a man trying to live his ideal life. For 22 years, Hapgood wrote for the
New York Evening Post and
The Nation, as a journalist, foreign correspondent and editorial writer. In 1893, Hapgood reviewed a book by
Kate Marsden which described her journey across Russia to find a cure for leprosy. She picked the book to pieces and cast Marsden as "an adventuress" who was only trying to help "her lepers". The
Royal Geographical Society lauded Marsden, but Hapgood discounted her efforts. Hapgood wrote to everyone from Queen Victoria down warning them about Kate Marsden. One scholar later speculated that Hapgood was jealous of Marsden writing about "her" country or because of homophobic rumours about Marsden. Many of the writers Hapgood translated were people of strong religious convictions. Hapgood herself was a lifelong and devout Episcopalian. Particularly impressed by the
Russian Orthodox liturgy and choral singing, Hapgood wanted to translate them for American audiences.
Tikhon, then Archbishop of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, supported her efforts and became her friend. Hapgood helped organize the choir for his consecration of St. Nicholas Cathedral in New York City in 1903. Tikhon's successor after his return to Russia and promotion, Archbishop Nicholas, gave Hapgood a complete set of Church Slavonic texts. The first edition of her translation appeared in 1906. In 1916–1917, Hapgood was visiting Tikhon, who had become
Patriarch of Moscow, and editing a second edition of the work during her trip to
Moscow when the
Russian Revolution broke out. She became one of the first to report on the execution of the Romanov family. Hapgood escaped with the assistance of the American Consul and returned to the United States. Because Patriarch Tikhon was under house arrest, the second edition was not published until 1922 (by the
Young Men's Christian Association), but it did contain Tikhon's endorsement dated November 3, 1921. The book received favorable reviews by Orthodox and Anglican reviewers; several editions were also published by other Orthodox denominations, including the Antiochian Orthodox, after her death. Hapgood continued to admire Eastern Orthodox church music and helped Eastern Orthodox choirs in the United States, including performances at the
Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City and before President
Woodrow Wilson at the White House. She also compiled a history of Russian Orthodox music, but the manuscript was never published and was lost. Despite Count Tolstoy's admonition that she should marry, Hapgood never married (nor did either of her brothers), and had no children. ==Death and legacy==