Maria (Harrison) Bissell Hotchkiss (August 14, 1827 – November 10, 1901) was an American educator, heiress, and philanthropist. She was married to wealthy munitions maker

Benjamin B. Hotchkiss Benjamin Berkeley Hotchkiss (October 1, 1826 – February 14, 1885) was one of the leading American ordnance engineers of his day. American career Hotchkiss was born in Watertown, Connecticut, and moved to Sharon, Connecticut in childhood; ...

, though long estranged. Upon receiving his inheritance she founded

The Hotchkiss School The Hotchkiss School is a coeducational University-preparatory school#North America, preparatory school in Lakeville, Connecticut, United States. Hotchkiss is a member of the Eight Schools Association and Ten Schools Admissions Organization. It i ...

, a private boarding school in

Lakeville, Connecticut Lakeville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States, close to Dutchess County, New York. It is within the town of Salisbury, but has its own ZIP Code (06039). As of the 2010 census, the population of Lak ...

, in 1891.

Early life

Maria Harrison Bissell was born on August 14, 1827, in

Salisbury, Connecticut Salisbury () is a town situated in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is the northwesternmost in the state of Connecticut; the Massachusetts-New York-Connecticut tri-state marker is located at the northwest corner of the town ...

. Her father was William Bissell (1794-1869), and her mother was Eliza Ann Loveland (1800-1841). She grew up of slender means on a farm in Salisbury named "Tory Hill" with her two brothers, William Loveland Bissell (1833-1922) and Charles H. Bissell (1829-1928). The family was related to Presidents

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

and

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

. Educated at Amenia Academy in

Amenia, New York Amenia is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 4,436 at the 2010 census. The town is on the eastern border of the county. History Amenia is one of the original towns formed by act of March 7, 1788. It compris ...

, she went on to work as a teacher there.

Marriage

In 1850 she married

, a Connecticut born gun maker. By the time of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

he had become a noted munitions developer. Hotchkiss patented a line of

projectiles A projectile is an object that is propelled by the application of an external force and then moves freely under the influence of gravity and air resistance. Although any objects in motion through space are projectiles, they are commonly found i ...

for rifled

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

that was used extensively during that conflict. When the U.S. government showed little interest in funding new weapons after the war Hotchkiss moved to France in 1867 - without Maria. There he set up a munitions factory,

Hotchkiss et Cie Société Anonyme des Anciens Etablissements Hotchkiss et Compagnie was a French arms and, in the 20th century, automobile manufacturer first established by United States gunsmith Benjamin B. Hotchkiss. He moved to France and set up a factory, ...

, which went on to develop the renowned revolving barrel artillery piece known as the Hotchkiss gun.

Inheritance

Benjamin Hotchkiss died young, at 58, in February 1885. Upon receiving her husband's inheritance, Maria considered macadamizing the streets of Salisbury and

Sharon, Connecticut Sharon is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States, in the northwest corner of the state. At the time of the 2020 census, the town had a total population of 2,680. The ZIP code for Sharon is 06069. The urban center of the town is ...

for use by automobiles. However, the idea was rejected by both towns, which thought the upkeep would be too expensive. Instead, she was convinced by

Timothy Dwight V Timothy Dwight V (November 16, 1828 – May 26, 1916) was an American academic, educator, Congregational minister, and President of Yale University (1886–1898). During his years as the school's president, Yale's schools first organized as a uni ...

, the President of

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

, to start a preparatory school. In 1891 she donated the land, buildings, and the endowment to found the

Hotchkiss School The Hotchkiss School is a coeducational University-preparatory school#North America, preparatory school in Lakeville, Connecticut, United States. Hotchkiss is a member of the Eight Schools Association and Ten Schools Admissions Organization. It i ...

, a private boarding school in Lakeville.Lael Tucker Wertenbaker, Maude Hill Basserman, ''The Hotchkiss School: A Portrait'', Hotchkiss School, 1966, p.

/ref>''The New Encyclopædia Britannica: Macropaedia : Knowledge in depth'', Encyclopædia Britannica, 1975, p. 9

/ref> The school purchased "Tory Hill," the farm where Mrs. Hotchkiss was born and spent her childhood, in 2010. In 1893, she founded the Hotchkiss Library in

,Sharon Historical Society, ''Sharon'', Arcadia Publishing, 2014, p. 47
/ref> helping to choose its architectural design.

Personal life

Maria married Benjamin B. Hotchkiss on May 27, 1850. However, he permanently moved to France in 1867, subsequently marrying a Miss Cunningham from New York in a French civil ceremony without first divorcing. Later, Maria resided at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. She died on November 10, 1901, in New York City. She was buried in Lakeville with her Bissell relatives in the Town Hill Cemetery, which lies within the campus of The Hotchkiss School.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hotchkiss, Maria Bissell 1827 births 1901 deaths People from Salisbury, Connecticut Educators from New York City 19th-century American women educators Founders of schools in the United States Philanthropists from New York (state) American women philanthropists 19th-century American educators 19th-century American philanthropists 19th-century women philanthropists