Alice Mabel Bacon (February 26, 1858 – May 1, 1918) was an

American writer American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry ...

, women's educator and a foreign advisor to the Japanese government in

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Early life

Alice Mabel Bacon was the youngest of the three daughters and two sons of Reverend

Leonard Bacon Reverend Leonard Bacon (February 19, 1802 – December 24, 1881) was an American Congregational preacher and writer. He held the pulpit of the First Church New Haven and was later professor of church history and polity at Yale College. Biograp ...

, pastor of the Center Church in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

, and professor in the

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

, and his second wife, Catherine Elizabeth Terry. In 1872, when Alice was fourteen, Japanese envoy

Mori Arinori Viscount was a Meiji period Japanese statesman, diplomat, and founder of Japan's modern educational system. Early life Mori was born in the Satsuma domain (modern Kagoshima prefecture) from a ''samurai'' family, and educated in the ''Kaisenjo' ...

selected her father's home as a residence for Japanese women being sent overseas for education by the

Meiji government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji o ...

, as part of the

Iwakura Mission The Iwakura Mission or Iwakura Embassy (, ''Iwakura Shisetsudan'') was a Japanese diplomatic voyage to the United States and Europe conducted between 1871 and 1873 by leading statesmen and scholars of the Meiji period. It was not the only such m ...

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself on a national basis. In ...

, 286-87 Alice received twelve-year-old

Yamakawa Sutematsu Yamakawa (characters for "mountain" and "river") may refer to: *Yamakawa, Tokushima, town in Oe District, Tokushima *Yamakawa, Fukuoka, town in Yamato District, Fukuoka * 8923 Yamakawa, asteroid People with the surname * Erika Yamakawa (born 1982) ...

as her house-guest. The two girls were of similar age, and soon formed a close bond. For ten years the two girls were like sisters and enhanced each other's interests in their different cultures.Takagi, p. 78

Education and career

Bacon graduated from high school, but was forced to give up hopes of attending university due to economic circumstances. Nevertheless, she was able to pass examinations for a Bachelor of Arts from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1881, and held a post as a teacher at the

Hampton Institute Hampton University is a private, historically black, research university in Hampton, Virginia. Founded in 1868 as Hampton Agricultural and Industrial School, it was established by Black and White leaders of the American Missionary Association aft ...

in 1883. In 1888, Bacon received an invitation to come to Japan from Yamakawa Sutematsu and

Tsuda Ume was a Japanese educator and a pioneer in education for women in Meiji period Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Tsuda Umeko" in . Originally named Tsuda Ume, with ''ume'' referring to the Japanese plum, she went by the name Ume Tsuda ...

to serve as a teacher of the

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

at the Gakushuin Women's School (Peeresses' School) for Japanese girls from aristocratic families. She returned to Hampton Normal School after a year. Hearing that one of her students wanted to become a nurse but was refused entrance into training schools because of her race, Bacon sought to establish a hospital at the institute. With the help of General Samuel C. Armstrong, Hampton's principal, funds were raised to construct the

Dixie Hospital Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas shift over the years), or the extent of the area it cover ...

. The hospital which opened in May 1891 provided nursing education as well as medical care for the surrounding community. Sutematsu, Alice, Ukeko, Shigeko

In April 1900, she was invited back to Japan to help establish the

Joshi Eigaku Juku is a private women's university based at Kodaira, Tokyo. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious higher educational institutions for women in Japan, contributing to the advancement of women in society for more than a century. History The ...

(Women's English Preparatory School), which was the forerunner of

Tsuda College is a private women's university based at Kodaira, Tokyo. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious higher educational institutions for women in Japan, contributing to the advancement of women in society for more than a century. History The u ...

, staying until April 1902. During most of this period, she assisted Tsuda Umeko, refusing compensation except for her housing. Bacon remained single all her life. She adopted two Japanese girls as her daughters, Umeko's niece Watanabe Mitsu, and Hitotsuyanagi Makiko. The latter married

William Merrell Vories Merrell Vories Hitotsuyanagi (; born William Merrell Vories; October 28, 1880 – May 7, 1964) was an educator, architect, entrepreneur, Christian lay missionary, and founder of the Omi Mission. Born in the United States, he later became a natur ...

in 1919. Based on her experiences in Japan, Bacon published three books and many essays, and eventually came to be known as a specialist on Japanese culture and women. Her last teaching position was at Miss Capen's School for Girls at

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

from 1908 to 1910.

Death

Alice died in her hometown of

New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

on 1 May 1918 at the age of 60. She was buried at the

Grove Street Cemetery Grove Street Cemetery or Grove Street Burial Ground is a cemetery in New Haven, Connecticut, that is surrounded by the Yale University campus. It was organized in 1796 as the New Haven Burying Ground and incorporated in October 1797 to replace the ...

Works

* ''The Work of the Tuskegee Normal School'' 1887 * ''Japanese Girls and Women'' (Boston: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1891
download on Project Gutenberg
* ''A Japanese Interior'' (Boston, Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1893) * ''The Negro and the Atlantic exposition.'' 1896 *

Notes

Footnote

:1.Originally there were five girls sent but two became ill and returned to Japan the other three

, and

Nagai Shigeko Nagai may refer to: *Nagai (surname), a Japanese surname *Nagai, Yamagata, a city in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan *An alternative name for Nagapattinam Nagapattinam (''nākappaṭṭinam'', previously spelt Nagapatnam or Negapatam) is a town in ...

. Ms. Tsuda was placed with the

Charles Lanman Charles Lanman (June 14, 1819 - March 4, 1895) was an American author, government official, artist, librarian, and explorer. Biography Charles Lanman was born in Monroe, Michigan, on June 14, 1819, the son of Charles James Lanman, and the gr ...

family and Ms. Nagai was placed in the

John Stevens Cabot Abbott John Stevens Cabot Abbott (September 19, 1805 – June 17, 1877), an American historian, pastor, and pedagogical writer, was born in Brunswick, Maine to Jacob and Betsey Abbott. Early life He was a brother of Jacob Abbott, and was associated ...

household. "Three Japanese Girls." ''The Heathen Woman's Friend.'' pp. 286-87.

References

* * * * *

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bacon, Alice Mabel 1858 births 1918 deaths 19th-century American women educators Foreign educators in Japan Foreign advisors to the government in Meiji-period Japan American expatriates in Japan American Japanologists Burials at Grove Street Cemetery 20th-century American non-fiction writers 19th-century American educators 20th-century American women educators 20th-century American educators American women non-fiction writers 20th-century American women writers