Anne Bradstreet (circa 1612–1672) had the advantage of an education unusual for women of her time and began writing poetry as a child. She married Simon Bradstreet, a graduate of Cambridge University and an associate of her father, when she was only sixteen. A year after marriage to Anne, Simon was appointed to assist in the preparations of the Massachusetts Bay Company, and the Bradstreets sailed to the New World. Life in the new world was hard, especially for Anne, who had been weakened by a childhood illness. When her husband became governor of the Bay Colony, Anne's duties increased as well. Despite her many obligations, Bradstreet found time to continue writing poetry, as she had when she was a young girl. Unknown to Anne, her brother-in-law had a collection of her poetry printed in London in 1650—the first published volume of poems by a New World resident.