EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1900; MARIELEINE HOFFETT P/7

 

In this brief post I will focus on a woman named Marieleine Hoffett. She lived from 1905 - 1996. Marieleine was a pastor's daughter who studied theology in Strassburg, Geneva and Edinburgh. She was a vicar with the Reformed Church of Alsace Lorraine and got married in 1931. She took an active part in the resistance movement and in 1945 accepted a position no one wished to take, namely chaplain in former collaborators' internment camps.She then turned to women's bible teaching. She fought against the rule forbidding married women to become pastors, which was suspended in 1968.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1900; GLADYS AYLWARD P/6

                                                                                                                                                                           

In this post I will continue to focus on a woman named Gladys Aylward. She lived from 1902 - 1970. Gladys became a national of the Republic of China in 1936 and was a revered figure among the people, taking in orphans and adopting several herself, intervening in a volatile prison riot and advocating prison reform, risking her life many times to help those in need. 

In 1938, the region was invaded by the Japanese forces and Gladys led more than 100 orphans to safety over the mountains, despite being wounded and sick, personally caring for them (and converting many to Christianity).

Gladys did not return to England until 1949, when her life in China was thought to be in great danger from the Communists - the army was actively seeking out missionaries. 

After her mother died, Gladys sought a return to China. After rejection by the Communist Government and a stay in Hong Kong, she finally settled in Taiwan in 1958. There she founded the Gladys Aylward Orphanage, where she worked until her death in 1970. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1900; GLADYS AYLWARD P/5

                                                                                                                                                                         

In this story I will continue to focus on a woman named Gladys Aylward. She lived from 1902 - 1970. Upon arriving in Yangcheng County, Gladys worked with an older missionary, Jeannie Lawson, to help manage the Inn of the Eight Happinesses, a name based on the eight virtues of Love, Virtue, Gentleness, Tolerance, Loyalty, Truth, Beauty and Devotion.

There, Gladys and Mrs Lawson not only provided hospitality for travellers but would also share stories about Jesus, in hopes of spreading the gospel. 

For a time she served as an assistant to the Government of the Republic of China as a"foot inspector" by touring the countryside to enforce the new law against foot binding of young Chinese girls. Gladys met with much success in a field that had produced much resistance and even violence at times against the inspectors. 

Gladys became a national of the Republic of China in 1936 and was a revered figure among the people, taking in orphans and adopting several herself, intervening in  a volatile prison riot and advocating prison reform, risking her life many times to help those in need. 

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1900; GLADYS AYLWARD P/4

 

In this story I will focus on woman named Gladys Aylward. She lived from 1902 - 1970. Her parents were Thomas John Aylward and Rosina Florence Aylward. They lived in Edmonton, North London, England. 

From her early teens, Gladys worked as a housemaid. Following a calling to go overseas as a Christian missionary, she was accepted by the China Inland Mission to study in a preparatory three-months course for aspiring missionaries. Because of her lack of progress in learning the Chinese language, she was not offered further training.

On 15 October 1930, having worked for Sir Francis Younghusband, Gladys spent her life savings on a train passage to Yangcheng, Shanxi Province, China. The dangerous trip took her across Siberia on the Trans-Siberian Railway at a time when the Soviet Union and China were in an undeclared war. She was detained by the Russians, but managed to evade them with local help and a lift from a Japanese ship. She then travelled across Japan with the help of the British Consul, and took another ship to China. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN WHO LIVED IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1900; LILLIAN RUTH LEVESCONTE DICKSONP/3

  

In this post I will continue to focus on a woman named Lillian Ruth LeVesconte Dickson. She lived from 1901 - 1983. During her time in Taiwan, Lillian developed a Boy's Home for young boys who were caught in committing petty crimes.She also helped parents who had children out of wedlock which was marked on their certificates of identification. Due to the social stigma against these kind of families, children were considered illegitimate and denied access to school and the parents had difficulty finding work.Lillian helped the parents find work and the children gain access to school

Lillian also founded the interdenominational Mustard See International and the Mustard See Mission to support her missionary work. She helped establish kindergartens, elementary, middle and high schools. Furthermore, her work has led to Bible College and Seminary training for pastors, lay leaders and church planting teams.

Lillian died in 1983. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1900; LILLIAN RUTH LEVESCONTE DICKSON P/2

 

In this post I will continue to share the story of a woman named Lillian Ruth Levesconte Dickson. She lived from 1901 - 1983. Upon Lillian's return to Taiwan, her intent was to evangelise the Taiwanese children. However, it was her medical missions that attracted her American donors. That work started with her focus on the leper patients and their children in leper hospitals.

When the children remained with their parents who were affected by leprosy, it was evident that the children were at high risk of contracting the disease. Lillian, consequently, established an An-Lok Babies Home to house the newborn babies with parents who had leprosy.

From then, Lilian went to create expansive leper colonies. In 1955, the leprosarium Lillian served had over 800 patients alone. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1900; LILIAN RUTH LEVESCONTE DICKSON 1901 -1983 P/1

 

In  this story I will focus on a woman named Lillian Ruth LeVesconte Dickson. She lived from 1901 - 1983. Her parents were John and Lillie Belle LeVesconte. In 1924, Lillian received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Macalester College in St Paul, Minnesota. She met her husband, James Ira Dickson during her time at the College They married in 1927. Both were members of the Canadian Presbyterian Church.

In 1925, Lilly attended a Biblical Seminary in New York City for two years to prepare for missionary work. She and her husband arrived in Taiwan in 1927 as missionaries under the Canadian Presbyterian Church. Her husband served as deputy principal of Tamsui Middle School and then president of Taipei Theological school while Lilly served as a missionary wife hosting guests in their home. They left Taiwan during World War II but returned at the end of the war. 

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800: CORRIE TEN BOOM P/102

In this post I will continue to share the story of a woman named Corrie Ten Boom. She lived from1892 - 1983. At the Ravensbruck concentration camp, Corrie and her sister held worship services after the hard days at work by using a Bible that they had managed to smuggle in. Through the two sisters' teachings and examples of unfailing charity, many of the prisoners there converted to Christianity. 

While Corrie and her sister were at the camp, they began to discuss plans for founding a place of healing after the war. Sadly Betsy died on 16 December 1944. Twelve days later, Corrie was released. Afterwards she was told that her release was because of a clerical error and a week later all the women in her age group were sent to the gas chambers.

After the war. Corrie returned to the Netherlands to set up a rehabilitation centre in Bloemendaal, the Netherlands.She returned to Germany in 1946 and met with and forgave two Germans who had been employed at Ravensbruck. Corrie then went on to travel to world as a public speaker, appearing in more than 60 countries. She wrote many books during that period. Her best selling book is "The Hiding Place."

Corrie migrated to Placentia, California, in 1977. She died in 1983. 

P.S. This is my last post in the series on Evangelical women who were born in the second half of 1800. In my next post I will begin sharing stories on Evangelical women who were born in the first half of 1900.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800, CORRIE TEN BOOM P/101

In this post I will continue to share the story of a woman named Corrie ten Boom. She lived from 1892 - 1983. On 28 February, 1944, a Dutch informant, told the Nazis about the Ten Booms' work and, consequently, they were all arrested. They were sent to Scheveningen Prison when Resistance material and extra ration cards were found at their home. 

Thankfully, the group of six people hidden by the Ten Booms, made up of both Jews and resistance workers, remained undiscovered. They managed to escape at at a later date. However, the Gestapo arrested over 30 people who were in the family home that day. Most of them were released soon afterwards. But Corrie, her sister Betsie and their father were held in prison. Her father died ten days later. 

Corrie was initially held in solitary confinement for a three months period. She and her sister Betsie were then sent to Herzogenbusch, also named Kamp Vught, and finally to Ravensbruck concentration camp, a woman's labour camp in Germany.

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; CORRIE TEN BOOM P/100

In this story I will continue to focus on a woman named Corrie ten Boom. She lived from 1892 - 1983. In May 1940, the Germans invaded the Netherlands. One of their restrictions was the banning of the youth club. 

In May 1942, a well-dressed woman came to the the home of the ten Booms with a suitcase in hand and told them that she was a Jewess. Her husband had been arrested several months earlier, her son had gone into hiding and Occupation authorities had recently visited her so she was afraid to go back home. She had heard that the ten Booms had previously helped their Jewish neighbours and asked if they could help her too. Corrie's dad readily agreed that she could stay with them. 

The family then opened their home to Jewish refugees and members of the resistance movement, and as a result, they were sought after by the Gestapo and its Dutch counterpart. They had a secret room built that would hold up to six people. It is estimated that around 800 Jews were saved by the efforts of Corrie and her family 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; CORRIE TEN BOOM P/99

 

In this story I will focus on a woman named Corrie ten Boom. She lived from 1892 - 1983. Her parents were Casper ten Boom and Cornelia Johanna Arnolda Luiting. The family lived in Haarlem, the Netherlands, where they had a watch shop. Corrie became the first woman to be licensed as a watchmaker in the Netherlands.

Corrie and her family were members of the Dutch Reformed Church and their faith inspired them to serve their society, which they did by offering shelter, food and money to those who were in need. Some important tenets of their faith included the fact that Jews were precious to God, and that all people are created equal - powerful motivation for the selfless rescue work she would later become involved in.

She, moreover, established a youth club for teenage girls, which provided religious instruction and classes in the performing arts, sewing and handicrafts.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; TSAI SU JUAN (CHRISTIANA) P/98

 

In this post I will continue to share the story of Tsai Su Juan or Christina Tsai. She lived from 1890 - 1984. Great suffering awaited Christina, while the Japanese occupied China during WWII, imprisoning many missionaries, including the principal of her school. In weakness, she crawled about on the floor, surviving on meager portions of bread and fermented, salted vegetables. However, she continued to share the gospel and together with Miss Leaman their preaching led many to believe in the Lord.

 After the war, Mary Leaman returned to the United States in 1949, and took Christiana to live with her in Pennsylvania. From there she wrote her autobiography, "Queen of the Dark Chamber," which was later translated into 50 languages.

Christiana also wrote devotionals on the power of prayer, with her writings challenging and inspiring many to live for Christ and to serve Him with deep devotion.

She wrote: "My bed is not a prison, but a training school; the Holy Spirit is my Mentor, and my visitors are my homework." 

Christina died in 1984. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; TSAI SU JUAN (CHRISTIANA TSAI) P/96

 

In this story I will focus on a woman named Tsai Su Juan or Christiana Tsai. She lived from 1890 - 1984. Christiana was the daughter of a vice-governor in Jiangxu, China. She was a well cared for child, growing up in luxury and wealth. However, she was still an unhappy girl, and considered becoming a Buddhist nun, to practice a life of self-denial.

Christiana's fascination with the English language helped her become enrolled in a missionary school, but she was determined only to study and learn, and to close her heart and mind off to the gospel. When a visiting preacher came and spoke on "Christ, the Light of the world," she was deeply touched and came to faith in Christ.

Her family was enraged by her conversion, and greatly pressured her to turn from the faith of "the foreign devils," (a term used to designate white skin colour, associated with ghosts) but the inner peace of God flooded her life with inexpressible joy. Her family resorted to removing her from the school, and mocked her faith,  but she grew in reading God's Word, and prayer, knowing the love of Christ in a deep way. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF Of 1800; AIMEE SEMPLE MCPHERSPON P/95

 

   

In this post I will continue to share the story of a woman named Aimee Semple McPherson, She lived from 1890 - 1944.

Aimee also wrote and published her own works, including weekly and monthly periodicals.

As early as July 1922, she had begun calling her message The Foursquare Gospel, and in 1927 she incorporated her ministry, calling it The International Church of the Foursquare Gospel.

In 1925, in response to the overwhelming demand to travel to all parts of the world to minister, Aimee opened the Angelus Training Institute to train others. The institute, located next to the Temple soon became known as L.I.F.E. Bible college.It was a successful centre of home missions and world outreach, training both men and women.

Aimee continued to minister until her untimely death in 1944. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; AIMEE SEMPLE MCPHERSON P/94

 In this story I will continue to share the story of a woman named Aimee Semple McPherson. She lived from 1890 - 1944.

In 1922, Aimee established her permanent ministry centre, Angelus Temple, in Los Angelos. It grew quickly into a significant operation. On 1 January 1923, she dedicated the 5300-seat auditorium. She preached every night and 3 times on Sundays to capacity crowds.

In 1927 Aimee opened the Angelus Temple Commissary which was replenished each Sunday as the people brought food or clothing for distribution to the needy.

Aimee opened as well a prayer tower where volunteers spend 2 hours prayer shifts, 24 hours a day, and where telephone counsellors offered round-the-clock spiritual and practical help.

Aimee, furthermore, mobilised soul-winning endeavours, instituted a free employment bureau and parole committee, and conducted summer camps in Bible conferences.  

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; AIMEE SEMPLE MCPHERSON P/93

 

In this story I will focus on a woman named Aimee Semple PcPherson. She lived from 1890 - 1944. Her parents were James Morgan and Mildred One Kennedy and she was born in Salford, Ontario, Canada, 

Aimee had early exposure to religion through her mother who worked with the poor in Salvation Army soup kitchens. 

While attending a revival meeting in 1907, Aimee met Robert James Semple, a Pentecostal missionary from Ireland. She dedicated her life to Jesus and converted to Pentocostalism. They were married in 1908.

After embarking on an evangelistic tour to China, both contracted malaria. He soon died thereafter. She then returned to the United States where she began to hold revival meetings between 1918 - 1923. The 1921 -1922 meetings in Denver attracted more than 12,000 people every night and received the support of prominent leaders, including the Mayor and the Governor.

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; FLORENCE LUSCOMB P/92

 

In this post I will continue to focus on a woman named Florence Luscomb. She lived from 1887 - 1985.  She was among the first ten women to earn a degree in architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Women still experienced significant challenges during her tenure there. For example. Florence had to inquire at twelve firms before one of them would hire her for an internship after her second year.

She later continued her education in architecture at the newly opened Cambridge School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture in 1916.

Florence accepted a position as executive secretary for the Boston Equal Suffrage Association for Good Government. She went on to work for a number of organisations in the Boston area, including the Boston Chapters of the League of Women Voters, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, and organisations dedicated to prison reform and factory safety. 

At a later stage, Florence advised some of the founders of the American feminist movement, encouraging them to include the poor and women of colour. 

In 1980, Florence moved into an elder-care facility in Watertown, Massachusetts, where she died in 1985, at age 98.  

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; FLORENCE LUSCOMB P/91

 

Today I will continue my series on Evangelical women who lived in the second half of 1800 and felt called to ministry despite the opposition of men, this time sharing the story of a woman named Florence Luscomb. She lived from 1887 - 1985. 

Florence was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA. She was the daughter of Otis Luscomb and Hanna Skinner. Her father was an unsuccessful artist. Her mother was a dedicated suffragist and women's rights activist.  

When Florence was one and a half years old, her parents separated and she moved with her mother to Boston where she was able to attend a private secondary school, Chauncy Hall. 

As a child, Florence went with her mother to suffrage events, at one point seeing Susan B. Anthony speak. She became an ardent suffragist, initially by selling a pro-suffrage newspaper on the street. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; HELEN KELLER P/90

In this story I will continue to focus on a woman named Helen Keller.She lived from 1880 - 1968. Even before Helen graduated, she published two books, The Story of My Life (1902) and Optimism (1903), which very much launched her career as a writer and a lecturer. She authored a dozen books and articles in major magazines, advocating for prevention of blindness in children and for other causes.

Helen began to support the suffrage movement and advocated for the blind. After Anne's death in 1936, Helen continued to lecture internationally with the support of other aides, and became one of the world's most admired women. During World War II, she toured military hospitals to bring comfort to soldiers.

In 1964, she was honoured with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She also received honorary doctorates from Glasgow, Harvard and the Temple Universities.

Helen died in 1968 at the age of 87. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; HELEN KELLER P/89

 

In this post I will continue to share the story of Helen Keller. She lived from 1880 - 1968. Anne Sullivan, who had become Helen's teacher and mentor, used touch to teach Helen the alphabet and to make words by spelling them with her finger on Helen's palm. Within a few weeks Helen caught on. 

A year later, Anne brought Helen to the Perkins School for the Blind in Boston, where she learned to read Braille and write with a specially made typewriter. Newspapers chronicled her progress. 

At fourteen, Helen went to New York for two years where she improved her speaking ability, and then returned to Massachusetts to attend the Cambridge School for Young Ladies. Helen was next admitted to Radcliffe College, graduating cum laude in 1904. Anne went with her, helping Helen with her studies.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; HELEN KELLER P/88

Today I will continue my series on Evangelical women who lived in the second half of 1800 and felt called to ministry despite the opposition of men, this time sharing the story of a woman named Helen Keller. She lived from 1880 - 1968. Her parents were Arthur H. Keller, a farmer and a newspaper editor, and Katherine Adams Keller. They lived in Tuscombia, Alabama.

Several months before Helen's second birthday, a serious illness left her deaf and blind. She had no formal education, and since she could not speak, she developed a system for communicating with her family by feeling their facial expressions.

Recognising her daughter's intelligence, Helen's mother sought help from experts including inventor Alexander Graham Bell, who had become involved with deaf children. Ultimately she was referred to Anne Sullivan, a graduate of the Perkins School for the Blind, who became Helen's lifelong teacher and mentor. Although Helen initially resisted her, Anne persevered.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; AMELIA GIBSON P/87

 

In this story I will continue to focus on Evangelical women who lived in the second half of 1800 and felt called to ministry despite the opposition of men, this time sharing the story of a woman named Amelia Gibson. She lived from 1879 -1955. Amelia and her husband the Rev. Reuben A. Gibson were ordained in the Pentecostal denomination and pastored the Zion Gospel Temple.

Amelia and her husband founded as well the Zion Bible Institute in East Providence, R.I., which began as a single house, but grew to contain 19 buildings, a faculty of 12, and a student body of 200.

The students graduated as evangelists, pastors and missionaries. They came from all parts of the world. Today the school is in Massachusetts and is known as North Point Bible College.

Amelia died in 1955. 

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; AMY CARMICHAEL P/86

                                                                                                                                                                             

In this post I will continue to share the story of a woman named Amy Carmichael. She lived from  1867 - 1951. Initially Amy travelled to Japan, staying for fifteen months, but returned home for health reasons. After a brief period of service in Sr Lanka, she went to Bangalore, India, for her health, where she chose to stay to continue her work as a missionary.

Amy founded the Dohnavur Fellowship in 1901, to continue her work. Dohnavur is situated in Tamil Nadu, thirty miles from India's southern tip.This place became a sanctuary for over one thousand children. Her work started with a girl named Preena. Having served as a temple servant (serving as a temple prostitute) against her wishes, Preena managed to escape. Amy provided her shelter, thus beginning her new ministry. In 1918, Dohnavur added a home for young boys, many born to the former temple prostitutes.

The Dohnavur Fellowship continues the ministry, now supporting appr. 500 people on 400 acres with 16 nurseries and a hospital. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; AMY CARMICHAEL P/85

                                                                                                                                                                             

In this post I will focus on a woman named Amy Carmichael. She lived from 1867 - 1951. Amy's father was David Carmichael and her mother was Catherine Carmichael. Both were committed Christians.They lived in the small village of Millisle, County Down, Ireland. In her youth Amy attended Harrogate Ladies College for four years.

Amy's father moved the family to Belfast when she was sixteen years old, but he died two years later. In Belfast the family founded the Welcome Evangelical Church. 

In the mid-1880s, Amy started a Sunday -morning class for the "Shawlies" (mill girls who wore shawls instead of hats) in the church hall of Rosemary Street Presbyterian. This mission grew quickly to include several hundred attendees. 

Amy continued at the Welcome Evangelical Church until she received a call to work among the mill girls of Manchester in 1889, from which she moved on to overseas missionary work. 

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ELLEN ARNOLD /84

 

In this post I will continue to share the story of a woman named Ellen Arnold. She lived from 1858 - 1931. Ellen purchased land in Comilla and began building a mission house in 1889, before moving there in 1890. She spent her life preaching, establishing schools and dispensing medicine. She became fluent in Bangali and helped establish the East Bengal Baptist Union. 

Ellen later moved to Pubna where there were tensions with other missionaries, particularly as the men, who had arrived later, controlled the finances and movements of the women. In 1912 she was instructed by the Australian society to "stop interfering in the Pubna men's department or come home."

From 1913, Ellen lived in a thatched, mud-floored village hut among the local people rather than in the typical British Raj style properties of her colleagues.

Ellen returned to Australia in 1930, with the East Bengal Baptist Union taking over her work,but returned to India as a voluntary worker and died in Ataikola on 9 July 1931 after refusing surgery for a malignant growth.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ELLEN ARNOLD P/83

 

Today I will continue my series on Evangelical women who lived in the second half of 1800 and felt called to ministry despite the opposition of men, this time sharing the story of a woman named Ellen Arnold. She lived from 1858 - 1931. Ellen was born in Aston, Warwickshire, England. Her parents were Alfred Arnold and Ellen Jane Seager. The family migrated to Adelaide, Australia in 1879 where they became members of Flinders Street Baptist Church. She became a teacher after being in the first intake of the Adelaide Teacher's College.

Ellen was influenced by her pastor, Silas Mead, who had founded the Autralian Baptist Missionary Society in 1864. After some medical training, she and Marie Gilbert went to Furreedpore in October 1882, the first missionaries sent by the newly formed society, undertaking "zenana work."

Ellen returned to Australia in 1884 suffering illness and undertook a tour of the colonies and New Zealand which became known as "the crusade of Ellen Arnold." This led to the establishment of  the Queensland and New Zealand Baptist Missionary Societies. Four other young women decided to join her (becoming known as the "Five Barley Loaves") in East Bengal, which then became the primary mission field for Australian Baptists.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ANN SULLIVAN P/82

                                                                                                                                                                           

In this story will continue to focus on a woman named Ann Sullivan. She lived from 1866 - 1936.With the help of the school's director, Helen Keller became a public symbol for the Perkins school, helping it to increase its funding and donations and making it the most famous and sought-after school for the blind in the country. 

Ann remained a close companion to Helen and continued to assist her in her education, which ultimately included a degree from Radcliffe College (now part of Harvard University). 

In 1916, Ann and Helen went on a lecture tour under the auspices of the Y.W.C.A. In 1932, Ann and Helen were each awarded honorary fellowships from the Educational Institute of Scotland. They were also awarded honorary degrees from Temple University. 

Ann had been seriously visually impaired for almost all of her life, but in 1935, she became completely blind. On October 15, 1936, she had a coronary thrombosis, fell into a coma, and died five days later.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ANN SULLIVAN P/81

                                                                                                                                                                               

In this post I will continue to focus on a woman named Ann Sullivan. She lived from 1866 - 1936. The summer after Ann graduated, Arthur Keller contacted Perkins School for the Blind to ask if they could recommend someone to teach his and blind and deaf daughter. 

Ann was recommended for the position and she moved into the home of Helen Keller as her teacher. Over time Ann evolved from teacher to governess and finally to companion and friend. Their relationship lasted 49 years.

Anne began teaching Helen by spelling out each word into her palm. Within six months this method proved to be working since Helen had learned 575 words, some multiplication tables and the Braille system.

Ann strongly encouraged Helen's parents to send her to the Perkins School, where she could have an appropriate education. Once they had agreed, Ann took Helen to Boston in 1888 and stayed with her there. Ann continued to teach her protege. who soon became famous for her remarkable progress. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ANNE SULLIVAN P/80

 

In this post I will continue my story of Anne Sullivan. She lived from 1866 - 1936. In 1877, Anne was sent to the Soeurs de la Charite hospital in Lowell, Massachusettes, where she had another unsuccessful operation. While there, she helped the nuns in the wards and went on errands in the community until July of that year, when she went to the city infirmary, where she had one more unsuccessful operation. She was then transferred back to Tewksbury under duress.

In 1880, Anne asked to be admitted to the Perkins School for the Blind, in Watertown, Massachusetts. Within months her plea was granted. In October of that year, Anne began her studies at the Perkins School. 

While there, Anne befriended Laura Bridgman, who taught Anne the manual alphabet. During her time there, she had a series of eye operations that significantly improved her vision. In June, 1886, at age 20, she graduated as the valedictorian of her class.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; ANNE SULLIVAN P/79

                                                                                                                                                                         

In this story I will focus on a woman named Anne Sullivan. She lived from 1866 - 1936. Anne was born in Feeding Hills, Massachusetts, USA. Her father was Thomas Sullivan and her mother was Alice Cloesy Sullivan.

When Alice was five years old, she contracted the bacterial eye disease trachoma, which caused many painful infections and over time made her nearly blind.

When Anne was eight years old, her mother died from tuberculosis and her father abandened her and her siblings two years later for fear that he could not raise them on his own. She was sent to the run-down and overcrowded almshouse Tewksbury.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; LOUISA WOOSLEY P/78

 

In this story I will continue to focus on a woman named Louise Woosley. She lived from 1862 - 1952. In 1891, Louisa published her own book, "Shall women preach?" which explained and justified her position.

Louisa, with the aid of various Kentucky presbyteries sympathetic to her cause, outlasted the synodic objection to her ordination. In 1906, the partial reunion of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church with the Presbyterian Church USA removed some of the most vocal opposition to the ordination of women. Although the official position of the denomination remained unchanged, clergy women were able to participate in all levels of policy without a great deal of opposition.

In 1920, the Cumberland Presbyterian denomination ruled that the word "man" as used in its constitution was to be considered as a gender neutral reference to a human being. More recently gender inclusive language came into broader use in the denomination.

Louisa was eventually recognised as a legitimate member of the Cumberland Presbyterian clergy and served in a variety of church offices for over fifty years. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; LOUISA WOOSLEY P/77

 

In this story I will focus on a woman named Louise Woosley. She lived from 1862 - 1952. Louise was a Cumberland Presbyterian from Kentucky. 

Louise was ordained by Nolin Presbytery (Kentucky Synod) in that denomination on Tuesday, 5 November, 1889. Although the constitution of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church did not exclude women from ordination, neither did it include them. A great controversy developed in various church judicatories over the legality of her ordination.

Eventually, Kentucky Synod of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church instructed Nolin Presbytery to remove Louise Woosley from her roll. This the presbytery did by granting her the status of minister in transition ("lettering her out" in presbyteriam terms) to another presbytery. Clearly, although Nolin Presbytery complied with the instructions of the superior judicatory, they had denied their intent.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1800; MARY SLESSOR P/76

 

In this post I will continue to share the story of an evangelical woman who lived in the first half of 1800 named Mary Slessor. She lived from 1848 - 1915. Mary eventually applied to the Foreign Mission Board of the United Presbyterian Church. In 1876, she travelled to West Africa. While there she was assigned to the Calabar region in the land of the Efik people. As a missionary, she went to other tribes as well, spreading the word of Jesus. Mary was the driving force behind the establishment of the Hope Waddell Training Institute in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Efiks.

It was the belief in the area that the birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse.Consequently, the natives often abandoned these babies in clay pots to die. Mary adopted every child she found abandoned and had them live with her at the Mission House.

In 1892, Mary became vice-consul in Okoying, where she had been living since 1888, presiding over the native court. Unfortunately, she suffered intermittent fevers from the malaria she contracted during her early years in Calabar. These fevers eventually weakened her to the point that she could no longer walk long distances in the rain forest but had to be pushed along in a handcart. In early January 1915, she suffered a particularly sever fever. As a consequence, Mary died on 13 January 1915.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1800; MARY SLESSOR P/75

 In this story I will focus on another evangelical woman who lived in the first half of 1800. Her name is Mary Slessor. She lived from 1848 - 1915. Mary was born in Gilcomston, Aberdeen, Scotland. Her parents were Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father was a shoemaker by trade. However, unable to keep up shoemaking, he took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother was a skilled weaver and went to work in the mills.

At the age of eleven, Mary began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian. Mary herself developed an interest in religion, and when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend, she wanted to teach. Mary started her mission at the age of 27, upon hearing that David Livingstone, the famous missionary and explorer had died. She decided then that she wanted to follow in his footsteps. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1800; LOTTIE MOON P/74

                                                                                                                                                                           

In this post I will continue to share the story of a woman named Lottie Moon. She lived from 1840 - 1912. In 1873, Lottie set sail for China, a country her sister would soon leave but where Lottie would spend nearly 40 years. 

In China, Lottie taught in girls' schools, evangelised in towns and villages and opened a mission station in the country's exterior - an unusual role for a single woman. Over time she adopted Chinese dress and grew to love the people of China.

Lottie wrote hundreds of letters to Southern Baptists, urging them to support international missions. She wrote, "Could a Christian woman possibly desire higher honour than to be permitted to go from house to house and tell of a Saviour to those who have never heard his name?" Later she urged, "Oh! That my words could be as a trumpet call, stirring the hearts of my brothers and sisters to pray, to labour, to give themselves to this people."

Lottie's efforts led to the formation of the Woman's Missionary Union and the establishment of what became known as the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. 

Lottie died in 1912, having given her all for Christ. She remains the most famous Southern Baptist missionary of all time. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1800; LOTTIE MOON P/73

 

In this story and in the next one I will go back to evangelical women who lived in the first half of 1800 because I believe these two women deserve to have their stories told. The first woman is named Lottie Moon. She lived from 1840 - 1912. Lottie was born in Virginia, where she grew up on Viewmont Plantation, not far from Monticello. 

From a wealthy family, Lottie enjoyed the advantages of an outstanding education and became one of the first women in the South to complete coursework for a master's degree. She knew seven different languages and sometimes read the New Testament in its original Greek.

The death of  Lottie's father and the Civil War hurt the fortunes of the Moon family and Lottie began working as a teacher. As a young woman, she also committed her life to Christ. When the Southern Baptist Foreign Mission Board appointed her younger sister Edmonia as a missionary to China, Lottie took note. Now that the board had begun sending you single women overseas, Lottie wanted to be part of this group. 

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; LILIAN TRASHER P/72

 

In this post I will continue sharing the story of a woman named Lillian Trasher. She lived from 1887 - 1961. Lilian went to Egypt where she worked with a missionary couple. While in that country she found herself responsible for an infant whose mother had died. With no one else to care for the child she determined to do it herself and believe God for provision. 

Lilian's ministry gained the respect of the Egyptian people and political leaders, so that she was able to survive political and social changes. Now known as the Lillian Trasher Orphanage, by the end of her life the ministry cared for and educated more than 1200 children.

By February 2019, the "Church of God Evangel" reported that Lillian's monthly expenses were $260 to care for 80 children. Readers of the "Evangel" regularly sent financial support and letters of encouragement, and her expressions of gratitude frequently appeared in the publication. With a growing orphanage, however, she had to seek support from many sources. 

With most of her support coming from outside of the Church of God, Lillian applied for an appointment as an Assemblies of God missionary in 1919. Her last correspondence printed in the "Church of God Evangel" appeared a year earlier. She graciously thanked general overseer Tomlinson for an offering with a commendation that he had "always been so faithful in sending to us." With the orphanage having grown to 90 children, she requested that the overseer reminds the Church of God people to pray for her ministry. Her letter concluded, "It is a comfort for us to know that those at home are praying for us."

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; LILIAN TRASHER 1887 P/71

 

Today I will continue my series on Evangelical women who lived in the second half of 1800. In this story I will focus on a woman named Lilian Trasher. She lived from 1881 - 1961. 

Lilian was one of many Pentecostal missionaries called to take the gospel to the ends of the earth before there were organised Pentecostal mission boards to raise financial support and send them.

Lilian was baptised with the Holy Spirt and came into the Church of God through a 1909 revival in Dahlenega, Georgia, where she was actively involved with the local congregation. 

For a time she assisted Church of God minister Sam C. Perry in evangelistic work, and she also served at the Elhanan Training Institute and Orphanage operated by Sam's sister, Mattie Perry in Marion, North Carolina. By at least 1914 Trasher was a credentialed Evangelist in the Church of God.

 

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; CLARA BELLE DRISDALE WILLIAMS P/70

  

In this post I will continue my story on Clara Bell Drisdale Williams. She lived from 1885 - 1994. In 1924, the Williams family left Texas and moved to Las Cruces, New Mexico where they homesteaded 640 acres of land. Clara continued her education by taking extension and correspondence courses from the University of Chicago. However, in 1928 she enrolled at the New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts (now New Mexico State University). While Clara was a student she was segregated from other students because of her race and often had to listen to lectures outside of classrooms and take notes while standing.

In 1937, at age 51, Clara became the first African American to graduate from New Mexico State University. She received a bachelor of arts in English, but was not allowed to participate in her class's graduation. Despite her humiliation, Clara continued her education at the university by taking twelve hours of graduate work. 

After graduation, Clara taught at the Booker T. Washington School in the racially segregated Las Cruces school system for twenty-seven years before retiring and moving to Chicago in 1951.

In 1980, 43 years after she graduated, Clara received an honorary law degree along with an apology from school officials for the racist treatment she endured while a student at New Mexico State University.

Clara died in 1994, at the age of 108. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; CLARA BELLE DRISDALE WILLIAMS P/69

  

Today I will continue my series on Evangelical woman who lived in the second half of 1800.In this story I will focus on a woman named Clara Belle Drisdale Williams. She lived from 1885 - 1994. Clara was born to sharecroppers Isaac and Carrie Melinda Moppins Drisdale in LaGrange, Texas.

Clara was first educated in a one-room country school house near LaGrange but in 1901 she entered Prairie View Normal and Independent College (now Prairie View Agricultural and Mechanical University), in Prairie View, Texas. She graduated from the Institution with a certificate in domestic arts, as its valedictorian in 1905. After graduation, she was the head of the Institution's sewing department before moving to El Paso, Texas.

In 1917, Clara married Jasper Williams, a pharmacist in El Paso. Together they ran a drugstore and became parents of three sons, Jasper, James and Charles.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; JULIA HUTCHINS P/68

In this story I will focus on a woman named Julia Hutchins. She holds a special place in the history of the Azusa Street Revival, for she was the African-American pastor who invited William Seymour to come from Houston to Los Angeles to serve as pastor of the Santa Fe Street Holiness Mission. It was she who locked Seymour out of the church because of his teaching on the baptism in the Holy Spirit. 

Thankfully, however, her story does not end there. She soon repented of this action and became a whole- hearted supporter of Seymour and his teaching that tongues is “ the biblical evidence” of one’s being baptised in the Holy Spirit.

At the Azusa Street Mission Julia was herself baptised in the Holy Spirit and re-affirmed an earlier call to go to Africa as a missionary. Within five months of the beginning of the revival she and her husband, along with their young niece Leila McKinney, left the mission to go as missionaries to Liberia on the West African Coast. They were accompanied by G.W. Batman and Lucy Farrow.

Upon leaving Azusa Street Julia and her colleagues preached their way across the heartland of America to the East Coast. From there they proceeded by ship to Liverpool, England. From Liverpool they sailed to Monrovia, Liberia. All along the way the missionaries faithfully spread the message of Pentecost. 

We know little of Julia’s ministry in Liberia nor how long she stayed; however, we do know that she was one of the first Pentecostal missionaries to set foot on the African Continent. Like many early Pentecostal women, her story simply fades into history. We can assume that when Julia returned to the U.S.A. she continued to minister in the Spirit until her death.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; EMMA COTTON P/67

In this post I will focus on a woman named Emma Cotton. She lived from 1877 - 1952. Emma was of Creole descent and was born in the State of Louisiana. 

She first appeared in history during the Azusa Street Revival. She was the founder of the Azusa Temple as well as other Pentecostal churches across the United States, Her preaching and involvement in the Pentecostal circuit, as well as her friendship with famous evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson paved the way for women in leadership in the 1900s.

Emma was inspired by “the great awakening of the Spirit.” At the revival she stated that she was healed of weak lungs and cancer that was found in her nose. 

Emma soon met her husband Henry C. Cotton, who worked as a railway cook on a run between Los Angelos and San Antonio. While Henry was away on work, Emma was available to participate in evangelistic work around California. Emma and her husband returned to Louisiana for a period before she was appointed Assistant State Mother of California for her church. Returning to California, Emma held a variety of church services all across the state. She held divine healing services at the Pentecostal Assembly in San Jose in 1916 followed by the establishment of multiple Pentecostal churches in Bakersfield, Fresno, and Oakland.

By 1920, Emma had stepped down from her role as Church Mother to become a full-time pastor for her own church, the Azusa Temple, in Los Angeles. Together, Emma and her husband co-pastored the church through the denomination The Church Of God In Christ (COGIC) but remained independent as a church due to COGIC’s decision to not ordain women. Today, the church is known as Crouch Memorial Church, named after  one of Emma’s proteges, Samual Crouch. To this day the church is an active congregation affiliated with COGIC.

By April 1939, Emma had edited and published a paper called “The Inside Story of the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit - Azusa Street- April 1906.” This paper included details of her eyewitness accounts of events surrounding the Azusa Street Revival as well as an emphasis on the role of women in the church. While many accounts focus on the prominence of men in leadership, Emma wrote about the importance of Lucy Farrow and Julia Hutchins in the success of the revival.

Emma’s bout of cancer returned in 1950 after nearly half a century of reprieve. She died in 1952.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; MARY JANE MCLEOD BETHUNE P/66

 

In this post I will continue my story on a woman named Mary Jane McLeod Bethune. She lived from 1875 - 1955. As a champion of racial and gender equality, Mary founded many organisations. For instance, in 1924, she was elected president of the National Association of Coloured Women's Clubs.

In 1935, she became the founding president of the National Council of Negro Women in New York City, bringing together representatives of 28 different organisations to work to improve the lives of Black women and their communities.

A friend of Eleanor Roosevelt, Mary became the highest ranking African American women in government when President Franklin Rooseveld named her director of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration in 1936. She remained in that position until 1944.She was also a leader of the president's unofficial "Black cabinet."

In 1940, she became vice-president of the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured Persons, a position she held for the rest of her life.

Aditionally, Mary was a businesswoman who co-owned a Daytona, Florida resort and co-founded the Central Life Insurance Company of Tampa. 

Mary died in 1955.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; MARY JANE MCLEOD BETHUNE P/65

  

In this story I will continue to focus on a woman named Mary Jane McLeod Bethune. She lived from 1875 - 1955. Mary married Albertus Bethune is 1898. They moved to Savannah, Georgia,where she did social work until they moved to Florida. A visiting Presbybeterian minister, Coyden Harold Uggams, persuaded the couple to relocate to Palatka, Florida, to run a mission school. They moved in 1899. Mary ran the mission school and began an outreach to prisoners. However, Albertus left the family in 1908 and relocated to South Carolina.

Mary then moved to Daytona where, in 1904, she rented a small house for $11 per month. She made benches and desks from discarded crates and acquired other items through charity. She then started the Educational and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls. She initially had six students - five gitls and her son.However, within one year, she was teaching 30 girls at the school. After two years of operation, 250 girls were enrolled.

In 1923, Daytona School merged with the co-educational Cookman Institute, run by the Methodist Church. The Institute was the first Black College in Florida. Mary became the president at a time when Black women rarely headed colleges,

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; MARY JANE MCLEOD BETHUNE P/64

 

In this story I will focus on a woman named Mary McLeod Bethune. She lived from 1875 - 1955. Her parents were Sam McLeod and Patsy McIntosh. They were former slaves. Mary noticed racial inequality as a child, observing that the Black community had access to less wealth and opportunity. She remembered particularly visiting the home of the Wilson family that had enslaved her mother - where she explored a play house while her mother worked. Mary picked up a book and one of the Wilson girls admonished her with "Put down that book, you can't read." Mary later cited the incident as contributing to her desire for literacy and education.

In 1886, Mary began attending Mayesville's one-room Black schoolhouse, Trinity Mission School, which was run by the Presbyterian Board of Missions of Freedmen. The school was five miles from her home, and she walked there and back. 

She attended Scotia Seminary (now Barber- Scotia College) from 1888 - 1894. And she attended Dwight L.Moody's Inistitute for Home and Foreign Missions in Chicago (now the Moody Bible Inistitute) from 1894 - 1895, hoping to become a missionary to Africa. Told by the Presbyterian mission board where she applied to become a missionary, that Black missionaries were not needed, she planned to teach as education was a prime goal among African Americans.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; LUCY TURNER SMITH P/63

In this post I will focus on a woman named Lucy Turner Smith. She lived from 1875- 1952. Lucy was born in Woodstock, Georgia. She was one of six children and was raised by her mother alone. 

Lucy married William Smith in 1896, and together they had nine children. The family moved to Athens, Georgia, in 1908. Shortly thereafter, her husband left, and Lucy began to earn a living by taking in sewing. She moved to Atlanta, and then to Chicago, where she arrived in 1910. Her husband rejoined the family in Chicago.

Lucy had joined the Baptist Church when she was twelve years old. In Chicago she discovered Pentecostalism, and by 1912 was attending Stone Church, a Pentecostal Assembly. She believed she had a gift for faith healing, and in 1916, she started prayer meetings in her home with two other women. As the meetings grew, Lucy established the Langley Avenue All Nations Pentecostal Church in 1920. At first the church did not have a permanent building but was modelled as a “tent meeting.” In the mid-twenties, Lucy decided to build a new church building on Langley Avenue, and construction was completed in December 1926. This would be the first church in Chicago ever established by a woman pastor.

In addition to her faith healing ministry, Lucy was a dynamic preacher. She developed an active community outreach program, feeding thousands during the Great Depression. She also developed a robust gospel music ministry. All Nations was one of the first African American churches to broadcast worship services on the radio. 

Lucy sold the Langley Avenue church building in 1938, and built a new church building. At the height of its popularity, All Nations had a membership of 3,000. By the end of her ministry Lucy estimated that she had prayed for more than 200,000 people, during her weekly faith healing sessions.

Lucy died in 1952. Over 60,000 people attended her funeral. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; FLORENCE CRAWFORD P/62

In this post I will share the story of a woman named Florence Crawford. She lived from 1872 - 1936. The following is her personal story.

I was brought up in a home of unbelief. I never knew what it was to hear my mother pray and I never laid my hand on a Bible until I was a grown woman, but God looked down into my heart and saw that I wanted something real.

One night as I was dancing in a ballroom I heard a voice speak out of Heaven and say:”Daughter, give Me thine heart.” I did not know it was the Voice of God so I went on dancing. Again the Voice spoke. It seemed my feet became heavy and the place was no longer beautiful to me. Again the Voice spoke much louder, “Daughter, give Me thine heart.” The music died away and I left the ballroom; and for three days and nights I prayed and wept, wrestling against the powers of atheism and darkness. The enemy would tell me there was no God, and that the Bible was a myth. I could hardly eat or sleep, and it seemed there was no hope for me, but I thought: “Why did God speak out of Heaven if there were no hope?” Again the Voice spoke much louder,”Daughter, give Me thine heart.”

At last I remembered a woman who was a Christian, and I went to her home. When she opened the door and looked at my face, she said, “You want God.” I said, “I want Him more than anything else in the world.” Right there I fell on my knees, and as she prayed for me, God came into my heart.

Oh, the rest, the peace, the quietness that flooded my soul was wonderful! As I wept for joy, I said, “I must go and tell the others.” I went to the home where some friends were waiting for me to join them in a card game. They had cards on the table and were ready to play but I told them, “No cards for me; I have found Jesus!” They saw the light of another world on my face, and the cards were put away.

What a change God made in my heart! Everything I had loved that was of the world was taken out of my heart; but, oh, how I loved lost souls. Often I wept as I saw those who looked sad, and many times I would stop and tell them the story of Jesus.

How I thank God when I heard of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. He led me to a little mission. It was not a fine hall, but just an old barn-like building with an old board laid on two chairs for an altar. The floor was carpeted with sawdust; the walls and beams blackened by smoke. I looked around to see if anyone saw me go in, but I would not have cared if the whole world saw me go out. I had found a people who had the experience I wanted. The first “Hallelujah ” I heard echoed down in my soul. When I went out of there that day, the only thing I wondered was: Can I ever get it?

From Monday till Friday I sought God and read my Bible at every possible moment between my duties. That Friday afternoon at the mission, the preacher stopped and said, “Somebody in this place wants something from God.” As I sat in my chair, the power of God shook my being, and rivers of divine love flooded my soul. My tongue began to praise God in another language.

I had many afflictions of my body but I had never thought to pray for my healing. However, one day I prayed that God would heal my lungs and He did. Furthermore, as a young girl I had been thrown from a carriage and as a result had to wear a brace with straps and a metal plate. One night the prayer of faith was offered for me, and God instantly healed me. I walked twenty -three blocks that night and had no pain. From that day to this, I have never had a tinge of pain from that problem.

Florence led the Apostolic Faith work from 1907 until her passing on June 20, 1936.

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800: OTELIA MARIA CARRINGTON CUNNINGHAM P/61

                                                                                                                                                                         

In this post I will continue to focus on a woman named Otelia Maria Carrington Cunningham. She lived from 1867 -1934. As Otelia travelled the state for her job, she also spoke about suffrage to local groups and attended suffrage meetings and convention at the state as well as the national level. She was also a delegate at the 1920 Democratic Convention in San Francisco - one if not the first woman delegate from North Carolina.

In a letter to the editor of the Raleigh News and Observer after Tennessee ratified the 19th amendment, Otelia wrote: "If it is right for women to be breadwinners and taxpayers, it surely can be no disgrace for women to know something about their movement and the laws under which they live." Her speeches and quotes were written up in newspapers.

Otelia was president of the women's church group of Holy Trinity Episcopal in Greensboro and in her 60s went to Duke University to study French.

Otelia died in 1934.

 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; OTOLIA MARIA CARRINGTON CUNNINGHAM P/60

                                                                                                                                                                               

In this story I will focus on a woman named Otelia Maria Carrington Cunningham. She lived from 1867 1934. Otelia was born in Virginia to privilege and married a wealthy North Carolina tobacco farmer, but experienced hardship in 1910 when her husband's tobacoo business went bankrupt.

Otelia then got a job and sought to make other women's lives better by fighting to give them a voice regarding their own lives and their own future. She believed if women could contribute to society - support the war effort, hold jobs, raise children - they had a right to vote.This despite the fact that in the South women were generally thought to be too ladylike and genteel to have the vote.

Otelia was president of the North Carolina Equal Suffrage Association in 1917 and 1918 when the women's sufrage movement had decided to focus on supporting the war effort. She worked for the state, speaking to schools and other organisations about fire safety. 

EVANGELICAL WOMEN IN THE SECOND HALF OF 1800; MAY ELEANOR FRAY P/ 59

In this story I will focus on a woman named May Elenanor Edick Frey. She lived from 1865 - 1954. Her father was a bricklayer, her mother was a suffragette. She possessed a gift for story telling and eventually became a reporter.

While covering the story of a revival, she met her future husband Peter Isaiah Frey. He shared the story about how he was delivered from alcoholism after experiencing salvation in Christ. The next night May herself experienced an encounter with God whilst she was writing notes for her story. She sensed an urgency to make a decision for Christ so she surrendered her life to Christ that night and never turned back. 

In the beginning she doubted the validity of women preachers because she never experienced seeing one, but people kept asking her to "take a night" of the campaign. Even through her self-doubts, others saw her gifts, talents and abilities. Those around her took notice and nudged her onward to lead. A group of local pastors within the Baptist Denomination of the Northern states (now American Baptists) urged her to become fully ordained. They met her for about two and a half hours to interview her and unanimously told her they wanted to ordain her as a pastor. With much humility, she accepted and was confirmed as the first ordained woman in the Northern Baptist Convention in 1905.

May was first exposed to Pentecostalism through a friend who called in someone to pray over her when she was dying from tuberculosis. Before the pastor finished praying, she scared her nurses and everyone around her by getting up and walking around. She reported that she was completely and miraculously healed. Though she was an ordained pastor in the American Baptist Denomination, a second Pentecostal experience at the age of 54, led her to seek ordination with the Assemblies of God.

May led a remarkable life because she served selflessly. She pastored, was a chaplain-nurse, travelled overseas for missions work, was a world-famous evangelist and became an accomplished writer.

May died in 1954.