Almeda C. Adams (February 26, 1865 – September 8, 1949) was a musician, teacher, and author who, with the assistance of Adelle Prentiss Hughes, founded the Cleveland Music School Settlement.

Biography

Adams was born on February 26, 1865, in

Meadville, Pennsylvania Meadville is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Pennsylvania. The city is within of Erie and within of Pittsburgh. It was the first permanent settlement in Northwestern Pennsylvania. The population was 13,388 at the 2010 censu ...

to James Adams, an itinerant preacher, and Katherine Adams (née Ketchum). As an infant, Almeda lost her eyesight and was blind the rest of her life. Her family lived in many places in Ohio, and Almeda attended the State School for the Blind in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. She sold 2000 subscriptions to the '' Ladies Home Journal'' to earn a scholarship to the New England Conservatory of Music. After graduation, she taught for a period in Nebraska at Lincoln Normal University and Nebraska School for the Blind, eventually returned to New York city for further study, and finally settled in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. In Cleveland, Adams pursued many musical endeavors including teaching at several settlement houses. Inspired by the creation of music settlement houses in New York City and encouraged by her father, she approached Adella Prentiss Hughes, who founded The Cleveland Orchestra, for assistance in establishing a music settlement house in Cleveland. In 1912, Adams, with the assistance of Hughes, established the Cleveland Music School Settlement with a $1000 donation from the Fortnightly Musical Club and support from other notable Cleveland families. The Cleveland Music School Settlement, which continues to operate today as The Music Settlement, grew to include music instruction, music therapy, and other services at both its main location and several outreach sites. Adams was dedicated to making music instruction available to children and adults and focused on making lessons and other services accessible to underprivileged individuals. From its inception, The Cleveland Music Settlement School provided free and low-cost instruction to better serve the community. Along with the establishment of the Cleveland Music School Settlement, Adams also directed the Schumann Society from 1918 to 1931, which was a choral group for working girls. Adams published ''Seeing Europe Through Sightless Eyes'' in 1929. In this book, Adams described her personal reactions to art she was able to experience in Europe either through the descriptions of the voice student she was chaperoning or through touch.Sumner, Allen
"She Can See Without Eyes! Blind Woman Tours Europe Alone, Visits Art Galleries and Climbs Alps 'For the View'"
''Griffin Daily News'' (August 11, 1927): 3, via Georgia Historic Newspapers She continued to teach until 1948 and died a year later on September 8, 1949, at the age of 84. Adams was interred with her family in

Lakeview Cemetery Lake View Cemetery is a Private property, privately owned, Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Rural cemetery, garden cemetery located in the cities of Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Cleveland Heights, and East Cleveland, Ohio, East Cleveland ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Almeda New England Conservatory alumni 20th-century American educators 20th-century American women educators 20th-century American women musicians 20th-century American musicians 1865 births 1949 deaths People from Meadville, Pennsylvania Blind musicians American music educators American women music educators Burials at Lake View Cemetery, Cleveland American blind people Blind educators American musicians with disabilities