Adele Marion Fielde (March 30, 1839 – February 23, 1916) was a

social activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

missionary, scientist, and writer.

Biography

Adelia Field was born in East Rodman,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

on March 30, 1839. Her parents were Leighton Field and Sophia Field. She graduated from

New York State Normal School The State University of New York at Albany, commonly referred to as the University at Albany, UAlbany or SUNY Albany, is a public research university with campuses in Albany, Rensselaer, and Guilderland, New York. Founded in 1844, it is one ...

in Albany in 1860. From 1883 to 1885, she studied medicine at the Medical College of Pennsylvania. Fielde also studied biology for two years at the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences, but did not receive a formal degree. At age 27, her fiancé, Reverent Cyrus A. Chilcott (), went to Thailand to engage in missionary work among the local

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

, and she followed, only to find he had passed several weeks before her arrival. She never married. In 1894, after the defeat of the

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

amendment to the

New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

constitution, Fielde was one of six prominent suffragists who founded the

League for Political Education The League for Political Education was a New York City-based group devoted to providing a forum where people of every rank and station could be educated on the important issues of the day. Founded as a pro-women's suffrage group, the League initial ...

. She worked with other suffragists to establish the Volunteer Committee with the goal of targeting New York society, using her wealth and status she established as a missionary in China to facilitate her efforts.

Key research contributions

Fielde made significant contributions to myrmecology, the study of ants. In particular, she devised the 'Fielde Nest', a portable observation nest that she then used to enable precise observations of ant behaviour, and which was also used by others including

William Morton Wheeler William Morton Wheeler (March 19, 1865 – April 19, 1937) was an American entomologist, myrmecologist and Harvard professor. Biography Early life and education William Morton Wheeler was born on March 19, 1865, to parents Julius Morton Wheeler ...

. She published over 20 papers about ants in less than 10 years. She carried out her myrmecological research at Woods Hole, Massachusetts, one of the few institutions that was sympathetic to female students at that time. In addition to studying there, she also gave lectures. Key discoveries include demonstrating that ants use their antennae to recognise nestmates and that ants react to vibrations in the ground detected via their legs, rather than 'hearing' sound travelling through the air. Fielde also wrote a comprehensive dictionary and guide to the Chinese

Teochew language Teochew or Chaozhou (, , , Teochew endonym: , Shantou dialect: ) is a dialect of Chaoshan Min, a Southern Min language, that is spoken by the Teochew people in the Chaoshan region of eastern Guangdong and by their diaspora around the world. I ...

, and was known to locals as "Miss Fielde" ().

Selected works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fielde, Adele M. 1839 births Baptist missionaries in China 1916 deaths American women scientists American entomologists Women entomologists Myrmecologists American zoologists Hymenopterists People from Jefferson County, New York American expatriates in China Baptist missionaries from the United States Female Christian missionaries 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American writers 19th-century American women writers 19th-century American writers Baptists from New York (state) American expatriates in Thailand