Melicent Knapp Smith (October 15, 1816 – September 24, 1891) was an American educator and Christian missionary in the

Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kur ...

. She was a member of the Tenth Company sent to the islands by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions in 1841.

Early life

Melicent Knapp was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, the daughter of Jared Knapp and Mary Owen Knapp. Her brother Horton Owen Knapp (1813-1845) was also a missionary in Hawaii, preceding her by five years.R. Thomas Collins, Jr.
''One Life at a Time: A New World Family Narrative, 1630-1960''
(Ravensyard Publishing 1999): 122-127.

In Hawaii

Melicent Knapp arrived in Hawaii with her new husband, a medical missionary, in 1842, as a member of the Tenth Company sent by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM). They were stationed at Koloa, Hawaii on the island of

Kauai Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the 21st largest island ...

. She looked after their congregation and household, and provided hospitality for the wives and children of visiting sea captains, while her husband treated patients all over the island. She started and operated the Koloa Boarding School for Girls, teaching with two of her daughters, Emma and Lottie, from 1861 until 1871."William Owen Smith (1848-1929)"
Trustees, The Kamehameha Schools Archives. She also taught Bible study and sewing classes for Hawaiian women.

Personal life

Melicent Knapp married physician James William Smith in 1841. They had nine children born between 1843 and 1857, including William Owen Smith (1848-1929), Jared Knapp Smith (1849-1897), and Melicent Philena Smith Waterhouse (1854-1943). Two daughters, both named Mary, died in infancy. Melicent Knapp Smith was widowed in 1887 and died in 1891 in Koloa, aged 74 years. Her gravesite is in the churchyard at Koloa Union Church. The Smith Family papers are archived at the Kauai Historical Society. Alfred S. Hartwell was one of Melicent Knapp Smith's sons-in-law. Her descendants included grandson Alfred Herbert Waterhouse (1877-1948). The Koloa Scholarship Fund was established in memory of James William Smith, Melicent Knapp Smith, Jared Knapp Smith, Alfred Waterhouse, and Mabel Plamer Waterhouse."Koloa Residents Seek Expansion of Scholarship"
''Honolulu Advertiser'' (September 11, 1994): 13. via Newspapers.com

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Melicent Knapp 1816 births 1891 deaths American Protestant missionaries People from Greenwich, Connecticut Protestant missionaries in Hawaii Female Christian missionaries Missionary educators