Zilpah Polly Grant Banister (May 30, 1794 – December 3, 1874) was an American educator known primarily for founding Ipswich Female Seminary in

Ipswich, Massachusetts Ipswich is a coastal town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,785 at the 2020 census. Home to Willowdale State Forest and Sandy Point State Reservation, Ipswich includes the southern part of Plum Island. A reside ...

, in 1828. Zilpah Grant began teaching at the age of fifteen. Eventually she saved up enough money to enter Byfield Academy and study under the charismatic clergyman Joseph Emerson, a leading proponent of women's education. At Byfield, she befriended Mary Lyon, who later taught with Grant for several years. From 1824 to 1827 (or 1828), Grant served as principal of Adams Female Academy at Derry, New Hampshire. She then founded Ipswich Female Academy. Grant's curricula at Adams and Ipswich reflected Emerson's influence; they blended rigorous academic studies, moral oversight, and teacher training. Grant expected students to study for the joy of learning, rather than working for grades or prizes. Mary Lyon was Grant's assistant and, later, principal at Ipswich until she left to found

Mount Holyoke Seminary Mount Holyoke College is a private liberal arts women's college in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It is the oldest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of elite historically women's colleges in the Northeastern United States. ...

in 1834

On September 7, 1841, Grant married William B. Banister and moved with him to

Newburyport, Massachusetts Newburyport is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, northeast of Boston. The population was 18,289 at the 2020 census. A historic seaport with vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island. The mo ...

. She continued to be active to promote women's education, and published a pamphlet entitled ''Hints on Education'' in 1856.

References

*Capen, Eliza Paul, and Leonard W. Labaree. "Zilpah Grant and the Art of Teaching: 1829." ''New England Quarterly'' 20 (1947): 347–364.

External links

Burial place of Zilpah P. Grant Banister in Oak Hill Cemetery, Newburyport, Massachusetts.
1794 births 1874 deaths American educators People from Newburyport, Massachusetts {{US-edu-bio-stub