Woman's Own — Robyn Carr

Nineteenth century Philadelphia, a growing, bustling city, is the setting for this story of three generations of strong, indomitable women. As a girl, Emily Armstrong quarreled bitterly with her mother, Amanda, over her choice of husband; she forsook her mother's affection and her family wealth for him, only to have him abandon her to a life of grueling poverty.

Now running a modest boardinghouse, Emily is learning the anguish her mother went through, as she tries to raise her own spirited, sometimes willful daughters, Patricia and Lilly. When a shocking calamity threatens to destroy Emily's hard-won respectability, help comes from an unexpected quarter: the mother once lost to her, Amanda. The Armstrong women were born survivors; beyond that, though, they were part of a family, and they are destined to survive together.

This is the original U.S. title and cover. The U.K. publication by Piatkus is called THE ARMSTRONG WOMEN.

NB: The time period given on this page is incorrect. The prologue begins the story in 1859 and then continues from 1876 to 1884/85 and includes the Philadelphia World's Exhibition. I guess the "Turn-of-the-Century" designation is taken fairly loosely in the promo.