Robert Hamill Nassau (1835 – May 6, 1921) was an

American 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, pe ...

presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

who spent forty years in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Early life and studies

Nassau was born in

Montgomery Square Marshal Montgomery Square (french: Square Maréchal Montgomery, nl, Maarschalk Montgomeryplein), usually shortened to Montgomery Square, is a major intersection in the Brussels municipality of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre, Belgium. It is named in hono ...

, Pennsylvania and went to the Lawrenceville School in Lawrenceville,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, continuing his education at the College of New Jersey. From 1856 to 1859 he moved on to the

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a private school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1812 under the auspices of Archibald Alexander, the General Assembly of ...

and obtained a medical qualification from Pennsylvania Medical School in 1861.

Career

On the instigation of the Presbytery of

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

he joined the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions as a missionary, with his first posting being to the African island of

Corisco Corisco, Mandj, or Mandyi, is a small island of Equatorial Guinea, located southwest of the Río Muni estuary that defines the border with Gabon. Corisco, whose name derives from the Portuguese word for lightning, has an area of , and its highe ...

. Throughout his career he served as a missionary in many places: Benita; Belambla; Kangwe; Talaguga;

Baraka Baraka or Barakah may refer to: * Berakhah or Baraka, in Judaism, a blessing usually recited during a ceremony * Barakah or Baraka, in Islam, the beneficent force from God that flows through the physical and spiritual spheres * Baraka, full ''ḥ ...

(Libreville); and Batanga. Nassau established a mission station in

Lambaréné Lambaréné is a town and the capital of Moyen-Ogooué in Gabon. It has a population of 38,775 as of 2013, and is located 75 kilometres south of the equator. Lambaréné is based in the Central African Rainforest at the river Ogooué. This rive ...

. He returned to the USA in 1906 and settled in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

Personal life

Nassau's first wife was Mary Cloyd Latta, a fellow missionary who died on Corisco in 1870. They had three sons William Latta, George Paull and Charles Francis His second wife was Mary Brunette Foster (died 1884), with whom he had a daughter Mary Brunette Foster.

Death

Robert Hamill Nassau died in Ambler, Pennsylvania on May 6, 1921.

Legacy

His papers are kept as part of the

Burke Library Burke Library of the Union Theological Seminary is located at 3041 Broadway, in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1838, since 2004 it has been a part of the Columbia University Libraries. Holding over 700 ...

Archives, held at the

Columbia University Libraries Columbia University Libraries is the library system of Columbia University and one of the largest academic library systems in North America. With 15.0 million volumes and over 160,000 journals and serials, as well as extensive electronic resources ...

, New York.

Publications

* ''Where Animals Talk: West Africa Folk Lore Tales'' (1900) * '' Fetichism in West Africa'' (1904)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nassau, Robert Hamill American Presbyterian missionaries 1835 births 1921 deaths Protestant missionaries in Equatorial Guinea Protestant missionaries in Gabon Presbyterian missionaries in Africa