Margaret Elizabeth Johnstone ( zh, t=莊思端; 18 May 1851 – 29 September 1909) was an English missionary and educator in Hong Kong. In the 1860s, Margaret accompanied her father, a widowed army officer, on his posting to Hong Kong. She was enrolled in the English school opened by

Susan Baxter Susan Harriet Sophia Baxter (9 December 1828 – 30 June 1865), also known as 白思德 in the Chinese community, was a British missionary and educator in Hong Kong. Susan was the third child born to Joanna and Robert Baxter. A parliamentary ...

and first met her teacher Mary Jane Oxlad (1840–1922) there in 1864. Later Margaret returned with her father to Ireland when his regiment left Hong Kong. After the death of her father, Margaret applied to the Society for Promoting Female Education in the East (FES) to be a missionary. After a period of training, she set sail for Hong Kong in March 1874. Margaret was assigned to the Baxter Vernacular Schools for Girls in Hong Kong, first assisting Oxlad. After Oxlad was transferred to Japan in 1877, Margaret took over their supervision. In 1880, she started a small boarding school for Chinese girls, which was later moved to the property known as 'Fairlea' on Bonham Road. The 'Fairlea' school provided Christian education for the daughters of Chinese Christians and served as a home for poor and orphaned girls, a training ground for day-school teachers, and the mission house of the FES missionaries. In 1891, the Diocesan Home and Orphanage transformed into a boys' school and the girls from DHO were accepted as students in 'Fairlea' by Margaret. Margaret also played an important part in establishing the

Diocesan Girls' School Diocesan Girls' School (DGS) (), and Diocesan Girls’ Junior school, one of the oldest girls' schools in Hong Kong and a well known secondary and primary school in Kowloon, HK, was founded in 1860 by the Anglican (Episcopalian) Church (Hong K ...

in 1900. To evangelise and foster literacy among women, Margaret and her colleagues worked closely with the

Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...

, in which the FES was dissolved in 1899. By then there were eight schools spread over Hong Kong and Kowloon, including the villages of

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

, Shau Ki Wan and

To Kwa Wan To Kwa Wan () is a bay and an area of the eastern shore of Kowloon peninsula. The area is part of urban Hong Kong, and is situated between Hok Yuen, Hung Hom, Ma Tau Wai and Ma Tau Kok. Administratively, the area belongs to the Kowloon City ...

. In 1906 Margaret suffered a stroke, which obliged her, partially paralysed, to leave Hong Kong. She died in England in 1909. In June 1911, her old students and friends erected a tablet in St. John's Cathedral, on which her missionary work was highly praised.

References

* Dictionary of Hong Kong Biography, Edited by May Holdsworth and Christopher Munn, HKU Press, 2012 {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnstone, Margaret Elizabeth Hong Kong philanthropists Hong Kong educators 1851 births 1909 deaths Hong Kong Anglicans Hong Kong expatriates in the United Kingdom 19th-century British philanthropists 19th-century Hong Kong people

See also

References