EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ALICE BELLE GARRIGUS P/28

                                                                                    Read Part One HERE

In this story I will focus on a woman named Alice Belle Garrigus. She lived from 1858 - 1949. Born into an Episcopalian family in Rockville, Connecticut, Alice spent the first half of her life in various locations in New England.

At 15 she began teaching in rural schools. Desiring further schooling, she returned to Normal School and then spent the years 1878 - 1881 at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary (now Mount Holyoke College). Leaving the seminary a year before graduation, she resumed teaching. Through the influence of a colleague, Getrude Wheeler, Alice accepted Christ as her Saviour in 1888. Both women left on a 10-months excursion to Europe.

Returning to the US, Alice again taught school, but she was spiritually restless. She wanted a deeper walk with God and began reading Hannah Whitall Smith's "The Christian 's Secret of a Happy Life." "This I read," Alice wrote, "often on my knees - praying fervently: "Oh God, if there be such an experience, won't You bring me into it?"

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ANNA JULIA HAYWOOD P/27

                                         Read Part One Here

In this post I will continue to share the story of a woman named Anna Julia Haywood. She lived from 1858 - 1963. After St Augustine's, Anna's desire for knowledge led her to Oberlin College in Ohio. Oberlin was known for its progressive stances, being one of the first higher education institutions in the US to admit Black students and women. Anna completed her Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics in 1884. She then continued at Oberlin for a Master's Degree in Mathematics, graduating in 1888.

Upon completing her education in Oberlin, Anna moved to Washington, D.C., where she began a long and distinguished career in education. She accepted a teaching position at the M. Street High School, later renamed Dunbar High School. And over the years she rose through the ranks, becoming the school's principal in 1901. Under her leadership, the school gained a reputation for its high academic standards.

Anna's academic journey was not restricted to her professional career in teaching In her 60s, displaying an admirable spirit of lifelong learning, she travelled to France to attend the University of Paris- Sorbonne. She overcame prejudices and earned her PHD in History in 1924.

Along with teaching and learning, Anna was also a staunch advocate for civil and women's rights, writing and giving speeches throughout her life.

Anna lived to be 105, witnessing significant social changes over the course of her life, from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement. Today her legacy is celebrated in various ways, including a postamp in her honour in 2009.

Read Part Twenty-Eight HERE

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ANNA JULIA HAYWOOD P/26

    

 

Read Part One HERE                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    In this story I will focus on a woman named Anna Julia Haywood.She lived from 1858 - 1963. She was born into enslavement in North Carolina. Her mother was enslaved and her father was the man Anna's mother was enslaved by, or his brother. While Anna loved her mother dearly, the same could not be said of her father.                            

In her early years, Anna showed exceptional intelligence and a deep passion for education.In 1868, post-emancipation, she got an opportunity to begin her education formally. She enrolled at the newly established St. Augustine's Normal School and Collegiate Institute in Raleigh. Originally intended to train teachers to educate the freed Black population, St. Augustine's expanded its offering to include college preparatory courses.

Anna's pursuit of knowledge was challenging. Societal norms of the time prioritized classical education for men, with women often relegated to domestic roles. However, she defied these conventions. Not only did she enroll in courses typically reserved for male students, but she also consistently outperformed her peers.

Anna blossomed academically and socially during her time at St. Augustine's. And it was here that she met her future husband, George A.C. Cooper. They would marry in 1877, but he would pass away just two years later.

The St. Augustine's years laid the foundation for Anna's favourite endeavours. The institution's blend of classical education and commitment to serving the Black community profoundly influenced her. Anna graduated in 1881, her mind set on furthering her education and advancing the cause of Black women and their place in the larger narrative of American history. 

Read Part Twenty-Seven Here

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; MARIA BALDWIN P/25

                                                                                   Read Part One HERE

In this post I continue to focus on a woman named Maria Baldwin. She lived from 1856 - 1922. At the end of the 1800s, Maria became more involved in primarily Black and interracial organisations. In 1896, the Woman's Era Club of Boston stepped under the umbrella of the National Association of Coloured Women's Clubs (NACWC). The Club continued to use its national reach among Black clubwomen over the next few years.

Maria later became a member of the National Negro Committee (the precursor to the National Association to the Advancement of Coloured People) in 1909.

In 1918, Maria retired from her Agassiz position.  The US had been involved in the Great War for over a year. Her retirement gave her more time for the pressing projects the war brought to her community. She served as the first president of the League of Women for Community Service (LWCS) established in 1918, as the Soldiers' Comfort Unit. The Comfort Unit assisted returning soldiers and bereaved wives durning the First World War before shifting to providing general educational and social services to the community.

Although Maria remained active in her final years, her health eventually failed her. She died in 1922 from a heart attack.

Read Part Twenty-Six HERE

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; MARIA BALDWIN P/24

                                                                                    Please read Part One HERE

In this post I will continue to focus on a woman named Maria Baldwin. She lived from 1856 - 1922. Maria also became a member and later secretary of the Banneker Society, a local African American debate club. In meetings, Maria read many of her literature and history papers. 

In 1880, she opened her home to Boston's Black intellectuals and social activists. Maria offered weekly readings and discussions to Black students studying nearby Harvard University. Not welcome in Harvard's study spaces, these Black students found a safe intellectual haven in Maria's home.

In the 1890s, Maria co-founded the nationally influential and innovative Woman' Era Club. She worked alongside the club's other founding mothers: Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, Eliza Gardner, Arianna Sparrow. She and the other women focused on what they considered their generation's obligation to work for all African American causes: the anti-lynching movement, voting rights for women, and education and employment opportunities. Maria supported the club's purpose, using her great skill in public speaking and writing to deliver presentations and publish articles. 

Read Part Twenty-Five HERE

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; MARIA BALDWIN P/23

                                                                                    Read Part One HERE

In this story I will focus on a woman named Maria Baldwin. She lived from 1856 - 1922. Maria grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the immediate years after the Massachusetts legislature desegrated public schools throughout the state. She graduatd from Cambridge High School in 1874, and from the Cambridge Training School for Teachers in 1881.

Despite Maria's experience and training, it took local Black leaders to urge the Cambridge school board to hire her. In 1887, at the age of 31, she became a teacher at the Agassiz Grammer School, rising to the role of principal just two years later. Once she started teaching progressive White Cantabrigians recognised her talents. A 1908 report stated that this "coloured woman, Miss Maria Baldwin was the principal of the Agassiz school of Cambridge, attended by 600 white children. The author heard her spoken of in the highest terms by white people." In the eyes of the city's White progressives, Maria stood as "almost one of the institutions in Boston." As she never married, she retained her position thoughout her life.

In the late 1870s and early 1880s. parallel to this skyrocketing careeer, Maria joined African American civil rights groups. As a member of these groups, she spoke publicly on civil rights and women's rights issues, describing the power of women's suffrage and arguing that improved youth education would support that cause.

Please read Part Twenty-Four HERE

 

     

 

                       

 

            

 

            WISHING YOU A VERY MERRY                                      CHRISTMAS AND                                            GOD'S BLESSINGS FOR 2025