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Mary Slessor

2015-08-27T16:13:58Z

Writeswift: grammar fix

{{Use British English|date=May 2014}}

{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]] and rescuing unwanted children
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]]. Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]]. She is credited with having stopped the killing of [[twins]] among the Efik, a particular ethnic group in Nigeria. <ref>http://www.historymakers.info/inspirational-christians/mary-slessor.html</ref>

==Early life==
[[File:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]] in a poor working-class family. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb /> At the age of eleven, Mary began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Mary had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name = trinity>{{Citation | url = http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html | title = Mary Slessor: 'Mother of All the Peoples' | publisher = Holy Trinity | place = New Rochelle, NY}}.</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)| The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name = dacb>{{Citation | url = http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html | last = Hardage | first = Jeannette | contribution = Slessor, Mary | title = Dictionary of African Christian Biography}}.</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she wanted to teach.<ref name = trinity /> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early missionary career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name = trinity /> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region in the land of Efik people. She was warned that the Efik people there believed in traditional West African religion and had superstitions in relation to women giving birth to twins. Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>{{Citation | url = http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf | last = Livingstone | first = WP | title = Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary | publisher = Hodder & Stoughton | place = London | year = 1927}}.</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Calabar, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of Western education, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name = quinn>{{Citation | url = http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html | last = Quinn | first = Frederick | contribution = Mary Slessor, 1848–1915 | title = Dictionary of African Christian Biography}}.</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to WP Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881–82, they were much impressed. They stated, "…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them." This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone />

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Calabar.

After this hiatus, Slessor returned to Calabar. She saved hundreds of twins out of the bush, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by animals. She helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]].

During this third mission to Calabar, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, "There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to." She had also found a sense of independence, writing, "Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country."

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Efiks. The superstitious threat against twins was not only in Calabar; but also spread to a town Arochukwu on the far west of Calabar. There was an Elementary School named in honor of Mary Slessor. This is located in Arochukwu, a town west of Calabar, about three half hours drive away. The people of Calabar are Efik tribe though the popular Arochukwu town is in Ibo tribe. Both Calabar and Arochukwu share some common cultures and are in southeastern Nigeria, in Cross River State and Abia State respectively.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv |url= http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127 |title= Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846–1960 |first=William H |last=Taylor |pages=127–28 | publisher =Brill |year=1996 |ISBN= 90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Efiks. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain and she became known as the "white queen of Okoyong". Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education.{{Citation needed |date=November 2014}}

In 1892, Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Calabar, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>{{Citation | url = http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm | title = Biographical history | publisher = Edinborough University}}.</ref>

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from the malaria she contracted during her first station to Calabar. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up her mission work to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk long distances in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. In early January 1915, while at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku, she suffered a particularly severe fever. Slessor died on 13 January 1915.<ref name=DailyRecord />

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)| Cross River]] to [[Akwa Akpa|Duke Town]] for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, [[Frederick_Lugard,_1st_Baron_Lugard|Sir Frederick Lugard]], telegraphed his "deepest regret"' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod />

==Commemoration in Calabar and among the Efiks==
Slessor's work in [[Okoyong]] earned her the [[Efik language|Efik]] nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.

Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value placed on her work.

Some of these include:
* Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
* Mary Slessor Roundabout
* Mary Slessor Church
* Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar
* [[List_of_minor_planets:_4001%E2%80%935000 | Main-belt asteroid 4793 Slessor]] (1988 RR4)<ref>{{Citation | title = Jet propulsion laboratory | publisher = NASA | url = http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=4793;orb=1;cov=0;log=0;cad=0#discovery}}.</ref> named after her to mark the centenary celebrations on 13 January 2015.

==Memorial in [[Achimota School]], [[Ghana]]==
A girl's house, "Slessor House", was named after Mary Slessor in [[Achimota School]], [[Ghana]].<ref>https://www.facebook.com/AchimotaSchool/posts/10152030385256741</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]
==Gallery==
{{Gallery
| title =
| lines = 4
|File:"Mary Slessor, Ma Eme, Chief Edim and Ekenge People", Calabar, late 19th century (imp-cswc-GB-237-CSWC47-LS2-025).jpg|"Mary Slessor, Ma Eme, Chief Edim and Ekenge People", Calabar, late 19th century
|File:"Mary Slessor Presiding at Okoyong Court, Calabar", late 19th century (imp-cswc-GB-237-CSWC47-LS2-032).jpg|"Mary Slessor Presiding at Okoyong Court, Calabar", late 19th century
|File:"Mary Slessor and her family", Calabar, late 19th century (imp-cswc-GB-237-CSWC47-LS2-019).jpg|"Mary Slessor and her family", Calabar, late 19th century
}}
==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
| first =Donna | last = White
|work= The Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876–1915
|first=JH |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=Brill}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
===Books===
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c. 1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pp. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh, 1926.
* {{Citation | last = Hardage | first = Jeanette | url = http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm | title = Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother | publisher = The Lutterworth Press | year = 2010 | ISBN = 978-0-7188-9185-5}}.
* {{Citation | last = Robertson | first = Elizabeth | title = Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary | place = Edinburgh | publisher = NMS Enterprises | edition = revised | year = 2008 | ISBN = 978-1-90166350-1}}.

===Booklet===
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" – A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. Out-of-print booklet, 1978, Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee), now Handsel Press. D.15545, 15546 under ‘Mary Slessor’ in ''List of Reference Works'', Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
* {{Citation | contribution-url = http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html | contribution = Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn | title = Heroes of history}}.

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:British expatriates in Nigeria]]
[[Category:People of colonial Nigeria]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-21T15:58:42Z

Writeswift: Undid revision 609268325 by 190.148.226.121 (talk). See WP:MOS

{{Use British English|date=May 2014}}

{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]] and rescuing unwanted children
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[File:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Slessor began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)|The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region. She was warned that the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstitions, and that ritual sacrifice of children—twins in particular—was common among the people to whom she would be ministering. Nonetheless, the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>

Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of education or any status for women, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to W. P. Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, "…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them." This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Africa.

After this hiatus, Slessor returned to Africa. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could.

During this third mission to Africa, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, "There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to." She had also found a sense of independence, writing, "Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country."

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain and she became known as the "white queen of Okoyong". Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children, particularly the unwanted—especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892, Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from the malaria she contracted during her first station to Calabar. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up her mission work to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk long distances in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. In early January 1915, while at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku, she suffered a particularly severe fever. Slessor died on 13 January 1915.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his "deepest regret"' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Slessor's work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh, 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-15T19:24:19Z

Writeswift: fixed spelling of "After" originally caught by 99.146.98.97

{{Use British English|date=May 2014}}

{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]] and rescuing unwanted children
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[File:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Slessor began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)|The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region. She was warned that the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstitions, and that ritual sacrifice of children—twins in particular—was common among the people to whom she would be ministering. Nonetheless, the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>

Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of education or any status for women, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to W. P. Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, "…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them." This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Africa.

After this hiatus, Slessor returned to Africa. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could.

During this third mission to Africa, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, "There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to." She had also found a sense of independence, writing, "Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country."

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain and she became known as the "white queen of Okoyong". Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children, particularly the unwanted—especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892, Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from the malaria she contracted during her first station to Calabar. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up her mission work to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk long distances in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. In early January 1915, while at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku, she suffered a particularly severe fever. Slessor died on 13 January 1915.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his "deepest regret"' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Slessor's work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh, 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-15T19:15:36Z

Writeswift: Undid good faith revision 608652025 by 99.146.98.97 (talk) See MOS:DATEFORMAT

{{Use British English|date=May 2014}}

{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]] and rescuing unwanted children
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[File:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Slessor began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)|The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region. She was warned that the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstitions, and that ritual sacrifice of children—twins in particular—was common among the people to whom she would be ministering. Nonetheless, the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>

Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of education or any status for women, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to W. P. Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, "…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them." This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Africa.

Ater this hiatus, Slessor returned to Africa. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could.

During this third mission to Africa, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, "There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to." She had also found a sense of independence, writing, "Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country."

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain and she became known as the "white queen of Okoyong". Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children, particularly the unwanted—especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892, Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from the malaria she contracted during her first station to Calabar. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up her mission work to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk long distances in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. In early January 1915, while at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku, she suffered a particularly severe fever. Slessor died on 13 January 1915.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his "deepest regret"' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Slessor's work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh, 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-08T13:25:05Z

Writeswift: Removing GOCE in-use template; removing copy-edit template

{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]] and rescuing unwanted children
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[Image:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Slessor began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)|The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region. She was warned that the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstitions, and that ritual sacrifice of children—twins in particular—was common among the people to whom she would be ministering. Nonetheless, the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>

Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of education or any status for women, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to W. P. Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, “…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them.” This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Africa.

Ater this hiatus, Slessor returned to Africa. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could.

During this third mission to Africa, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, ”There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to.” She had also found a sense of independence, writing, ”Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country.”

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain and she became known as the "white queen of Okoyong". Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children, particularly the unwanted—especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892, Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from the malaria she contracted during her first station to Calabar. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up her mission work to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk long distances in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. In early January 1915, while at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku, she suffered a particularly severe fever. Slessor died on 13 January 1915.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his "deepest regret"' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Slessor's work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh, 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-08T13:23:44Z

Writeswift: Copy editing, updating infobox, cleaning up reference format

{{GOCEinuse}}

{{copy edit|date=February 2013}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]] and rescuing unwanted children
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[Image:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Slessor began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)|The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region. She was warned that the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstitions, and that ritual sacrifice of children—twins in particular—was common among the people to whom she would be ministering. Nonetheless, the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>

Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of education or any status for women, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to W. P. Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, “…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them.” This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Africa.

Ater this hiatus, Slessor returned to Africa. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could.

During this third mission to Africa, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, ”There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to.” She had also found a sense of independence, writing, ”Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country.”

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain and she became known as the "white queen of Okoyong". Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children, particularly the unwanted—especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892, Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from the malaria she contracted during her first station to Calabar. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up her mission work to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk long distances in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. In early January 1915, while at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku, she suffered a particularly severe fever. Slessor died on 13 January 1915.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his "deepest regret"' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Slessor's work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh, 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = Use Ikot Oku, Calabar, [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-08T12:57:41Z

Writeswift: /* Among the Okoyong and Efik */ copy editing

{{GOCEinuse}}

{{copy edit|date=February 2013}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]]
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[Image:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Slessor began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)|The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region. She was warned that the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstitions, and that ritual sacrifice of children—twins in particular—was common among the people to whom she would be ministering. Nonetheless, the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>

Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of education or any status for women, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to W. P. Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, “…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them.” This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Africa.

Ater this hiatus, Slessor returned to Africa. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could.

During this third mission to Africa, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, ”There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to.” She had also found a sense of independence, writing, ”Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country.”

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain and she became known as the "white queen of Okoyong". Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children, particularly the unwanted—especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892, Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Mary Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from malaria contracted in her first station. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk all day or night in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. She eventually died during a particularly severe fever, on 13 January 1915, at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British Officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his 'deepest regret' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Mary Slessor' work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh published 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-08T12:50:35Z

Writeswift: Disambiguated: United Presbyterian Church → United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)

{{GOCEinuse}}

{{copy edit|date=February 2013}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]]
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[Image:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Slessor began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church (Scotland)|The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region. She was warned that the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstitions, and that ritual sacrifice of children—twins in particular—was common among the people to whom she would be ministering. Nonetheless, the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>

Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of education or any status for women, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to W. P. Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, “…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them.” This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Africa.

Ater this hiatus, Slessor returned to Africa. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could.

During this third mission to Africa, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, ”There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to.” She had also found a sense of independence, writing, ”Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country.”

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Mary Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Mary Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain as the 'white queen of Okoyong'. Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children and in particular unwanted children, especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892 Mary Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

Mary Slessor went to live among the Okoyong which lived near the Efiks who live in [[Calabar]], in present day Nigeria. There she successfully fought against the killing of twins at infancy.

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Mary Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from malaria contracted in her first station. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk all day or night in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. She eventually died during a particularly severe fever, on 13 January 1915, at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British Officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his 'deepest regret' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Mary Slessor' work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh published 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-07T18:25:23Z

Writeswift: copy editing lead and first two sections (copy edit to continue)

{{GOCEinuse}}

{{copy edit|date=February 2013}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]]
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]], protecting native children and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[Image:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from [[Buchan]], was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859, the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic and, unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Slessor began work as a "half-timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill, meaning she spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners and the other half working for the company.

The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by [[United Presbyterian Church|The United Presbyterian Church]] (later [[United Free Church of Scotland|the United Free Church of Scotland]]) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and decided she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later.

Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region. She was warned that the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstitions, and that ritual sacrifice of children—twins in particular—was common among the people to whom she would be ministering. Nonetheless, the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>

Slessor lived in the missionary compound for 3 years, working first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but she contracted malaria and was forced to return to Scotland to recover. She left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref> After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was three miles farther into Calabar, in Old Town. Since Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised by learning to eat the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]

Issues Slessor confronted as a young missionary included the lack of education or any status for women, as well as widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him into the next world.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref>

The birth of twins was considered a particularly evil curse. Natives feared that the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Unable to determine which twin was fathered by the evil spirit, the natives often abandoned both babies in the bush. Slessor adopted every child she found abandoned, and sent out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to W. P. Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, “…she enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them.” This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at many churches, sharing stories from Africa.

Ater this hiatus, Slessor returned to Africa. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or be eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. As a missionary, she went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could.

During this third mission to Africa, Slessor received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness, writing, ”There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to.” She had also found a sense of independence, writing, ”Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain, and no one will worry about me if I go up country.”

Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Mary Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Mary Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain as the 'white queen of Okoyong'. Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children and in particular unwanted children, especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892 Mary Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

Mary Slessor went to live among the Okoyong which lived near the Efiks who live in [[Calabar]], in present day Nigeria. There she successfully fought against the killing of twins at infancy.

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Mary Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from malaria contracted in her first station. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk all day or night in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. She eventually died during a particularly severe fever, on 13 January 1915, at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British Officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his 'deepest regret' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Mary Slessor' work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh published 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]

Mary Slessor

2014-05-07T17:10:26Z

Writeswift: added GOCE in-use template

{{GOCEinuse}}

{{copy edit|date=February 2013}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Mary Slessor
|image = Mary Slessor.jpg
|caption = Mary Slessor
|birth_date = {{birth-date|2 December 1848}}
|birth_place = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|1|13|1848|12|2|df=y}}
|death_place = [[Nigeria]]
|other_names =
|known_for = Christian [[Missionary]] work in Africa; promoting [[women's rights]]
|occupation =
|nationality = [[Scotland|Scottish]]
|religion = [[Christian]] ([[United Presbyterian Church of Scotland]])
}}

'''Mary Mitchell Slessor''' (2 December 1848 – 13 January 1915) was a [[Scotland|Scottish]] [[missionary]] to [[Nigeria]].
Her work and strong personality allowed her to be trusted and accepted by the locals while spreading [[Christianity]] and promoting [[women's rights]].

==Early life==
[[Image:Mary-slessor.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Mary Slessor]]

Mary Slessor was born on 2 December 1848 in Gilcomston, close to [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]]. She was the second of seven children of Robert and Mary Slessor. Her father, originally from Buchan, was a shoemaker by trade. In 1859 the family moved to [[Dundee]] in search of work. Robert Slessor was an alcoholic, and unable to keep up shoemaking, took a job as a labourer in a mill. Her mother, a skilled weaver, also went to work in the mills.<ref name=dacb/> At the age of eleven, Mary Slessor began work as a "half timer" in the Baxter Brothers' Mill. She spent half of her day at a school provided by the mill owners, and the other half working for the company. The Slessors lived in the slums of Dundee. Before long, Mary's father died of pneumonia, and both her brothers also died, leaving behind only Mary, her mother, and two sisters.<ref name=dacb/> By age fourteen, Mary Slessor had become a skilled jute worker, working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. with just an hour for breakfast and lunch.<ref name=trinity>[http://www.holytrinitynewrochelle.org/yourti19263.html "Mary Slessor:'Mother of All the Peoples'", Holy Trinity, New Rochelle, NY]</ref>

Her mother was a devout Presbyterian who read each issue of the ''Missionary Record'', a monthly magazine published by The United Presbyterian Church (later United Free Church of Scotland) to inform members of missionary activities and needs.<ref name=dacb>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor_mary.html Hardage, Jeannette, "Slessor, Mary", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> Mary Slessor developed an interest in religion and, when a mission was instituted in Quarry Pend (close by the Wishart Church), she volunteered to teach.<ref name=trinity/> Mary Slessor was 27 when she heard that [[David Livingstone]], the famous missionary and explorer, had died, and she wanted to follow in his footsteps.

==Early Missionary Career==
Eventually, Mary Slessor applied to the United Presbyterian Church's Foreign Mission Board. After training in Edinburgh, she set sail in the S.S. Ethiopia on 5 August 1876, and arrived at her destination in West Africa just over a month later. Slessor, 28 years of age, red haired with bright blue eyes,<ref name=trinity/> was first assigned to the [[Calabar]] region, and warned about the people there believed in witchcraft and other superstition. Ritual sacrifice of children, and twins in particular, was common among the people she would be ministering to, but the young missionary remained undaunted.<ref name=mag>[http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue46/12009415.html Toms, Sally, "The life of a Scots woman and 19th century missionary to Nigeria", ''Scotland Magazine'', issue 46, p.42]</ref>
Mary Slessor worked first in the missions in Old Town and Creek Town. She lived in the missionary compound for 3 years. She wanted to go deeper into Calabar, but the malaria she contracted forced her return to Scotland and to recover. She thus left Calabar for Dundee in 1879.<ref name=livingstone>[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]</ref>

After 16 months in Scotland, Slessor returned to Africa, but not to the same compound. Her new assignment was 3 miles further into Calabar, in [[Old Town]]. Since Mary Slessor assigned a large portion of her salary to support her mother and sisters in Scotland, she economised, and took to eating the native food.
[[File:Mary-slessor-and-adopted-children.jpg|thumb|right|Mary Slessor with adopted children Jean, Alice, Maggie and May. Image taken in Scotland]]
Issues that Mary Slessor confronted as a young missionary included widespread human sacrifice at the death of a village elder, who, it was believed, required servants and retainers to accompany him in the next world, as well as the lack of education or any status for women.<ref name=quinn>[http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/slessor2_mary.html Quinn, Frederick, "Mary Slessor, 1848 - 1915", ''Dictionary of African Christian Biography'']</ref> The birth of twins was considered an evil curse. Natives feared the father of one of the infants was an evil spirit, and that the mother had been guilty of a great sin. Twin babies were often abandoned in the bush. Mary adopted every child that she found abandoned, and set out twins missioners to find, protect and care for them at the Mission House. Some Mission compounds were alive with babies.<ref name=livingstone/> Slessor once saved a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy did not survive. Mary took the girl as her daughter and called her Janie.

According to Livingstone, when two deputies went out to inspect the Mission in 1881-82, they were much impressed. They stated, “...She enjoys the unreserved friendship and confidence of the people, and has much influence over them.” This they attributed partly to the singular ease with which Slessor spoke the language.<ref name=livingstone/>

After only three more years, Slessor returned to Scotland on yet another health furlough. This time, she took Janie with her. During the next 3 years, Slessor looked after her mother and sister (who had also fallen ill), raised Janie, and spoke at churches all over, sharing stories from Africa.

Mary again returned to Africa, with more determination then ever. She saved hundreds of twins out of the fierce jungle, where they had been left either to starve to death or get eaten by wild animals. She prevented wars between local people, helped heal the sick and stopped the practice of determining guilt by making the suspects drink poison. She went to other tribes, spreading the word of [[Jesus Christ]] wherever and whenever she could. While in Africa, she received news that her mother and sister had died. She was overcome with loneliness. She wrote,”There is no one to write and tell my stories and nonsense to.” She had also found a sense of writing, ”Heaven is now nearer to me than Britain,and no one will worry about me if I go up country.” Mary Slessor was a driving force behind the establishment of the [[Hope Waddell Training Institute]] in Calabar, which provided practical vocational training to Africans.<ref>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://books.google.ca/books?id=vjqqzE4ByhMC&pg=PA127
|title=Mission to educate: a history of the educational work of the Scottish Presbyterian mission in East Nigeria, 1846-1960
|first=William H. |last=Taylor
|pages=127–128
|publisher=BRILL |year=1996
|ISBN=90-04-10713-4}}</ref>

==Among the Okoyong and Efik==

In August 1888, Slessor traveled north to [[Akpap-Okoyong|Okoyong]], an area where previous male missionaries had been killed. She thought that her teachings, and the fact that she was a woman, would be less threatening to unreached tribes. For 15 years, Mary Slessor lived with the Okoyong and [[Efik people]]. She learned to speak Efik, the native language, and made close personal friendships wherever she went, becoming known for her pragmatism and humour. Mary Slessor lived a simple life in a traditional house with Africans. Her insistence on lone stations often led Slessor into conflict with the authorities and gained her a reputation for eccentricity. However, her exploits were heralded in Britain as the 'white queen of Okoyong'. Slessor did not focus on evangelism, but rather on settling disputes, encouraging trade, establishing social changes and introducing Western education. Slessor frequently campaigned against injustices against women and sought to raise their status. She also took in outcasts and worked tirelessly to protect children and in particular unwanted children, especially twins.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

In 1892 Mary Slessor became vice-consul in Okoyong, presiding over the native court. In 1905 she was named vice-president of Ikot Obong native court. In 1913 she was awarded the Order of St John of Jerusalem. Slessor suffered failing health in her later years but remained in Africa, where she died in 1915.<ref name=eul>[http://www.mundus.ac.uk/cats/2/81.htm Biographical history, Edinborough University]</ref>

Mary Slessor went to live among the Okoyong which lived near the Efiks who live in [[Calabar]], in present day Nigeria. There she successfully fought against the killing of twins at infancy.

==Death==
For the last four decades of her life, Mary Slessor suffered intermittent fevers from malaria contracted in her first station. However, she downplayed the personal costs, and never gave up to return permanently to Scotland. The fevers eventually weakened Slessor to the point where she could no longer walk all day or night in the rainforest, but had to be pushed along in a hand-cart. She eventually died during a particularly severe fever, on 13 January 1915, at her remote station near Use Ikot Oku.<ref name=DailyRecord/>

Her body was transported down the [[Cross River (Nigeria)|Cross River]] to Duke Town for the colonial equivalent of a state funeral. A Union Jack covered her coffin. Attendees included the Provincial Commissioner, along with other senior British Officials in full uniform. Flags at government buildings were flown at half mast. Nigeria's Governor-General, Sir Frederick Lugard, telegraphed his 'deepest regret' from Lagos and published a warm tribute in the Government Gazette.<ref name=ServingGod/>

==Commemoration in Calabar and Amongst the Efiks==

Mary Slessor' work in Okoyong earned her the Efik nickname of ''Obongawan Okoyong'' (Queen of Okoyong). This name is still used commonly to refer to her in present day Calabar.
Several memorials in and around the Efik provinces of Calabar and Okoyong testify to the value of her work.
Some of these include:
*Mary Slessor Road in Calabar
*Mary Slessor Roundabout
*Mary Slessor Church
*Statues of her (usually carrying twins) at various locations in Calabar.

==See also==
* [[List of female adventurers]]

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name=DailyRecord>{{cite web
|url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/fashion-and-beauty/2010/08/29/red-hot-designers-hail-scots-missionary-for-inspiring-african-style-86908-22521443/
|title=Red-hot designers hail Scots missionary for inspiring African style
|date=29 August 2010
|author=Donna White
|work=Daily Record
|accessdate=2011-09-06}}</ref>

<ref name=ServingGod>{{cite book |ref=harv
|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/1581622
|title=Serving God and the Empire: Mary Slessor in South-Eastern Nigeria, 1876-1915
|first=J. H. |last=Proctor
|pages=45–61
|publisher=BRILL}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
;Books
* Robertson, Elizabeth, ''Mary Slessor: The Barefoot Missionary.'' Edinburgh: NMS Enterprises Ltd - Publishing, Revised Edition 2008. ISBN 9781901663501
* Benge, Janet & Geoff (c1999) ''Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar''. YWAM Publishing. 205 pages. ISBN 1-57658-148-9.
* Gruffydd, Gan Ceridwen ''Brenhines Y Diffeithwch (Mary Slessor)'' Llundain, in Welsh published 1926.
* Hardage, Jeanette. http://www.lutterworth.com/lp/titles/marysles.htm ''Mary Slessor Everybody's Mother'', The Lutterworth Press (2010), ISBN 978-0-7188-9185-5.

;Booklet
* Rev. J. Harrison Hudson, Rev. Thomas W. Jarvie, Rev. Jock Stein. ''"Let the Fire Burn" - A Study of R. M. McCheyne, Robert Annan and Mary Slessor''. This is an out-of-print booklet that was published in 1978 by Handsel Publications (formerly of Dundee). The company is now called Handsel Press. It is listed as D.15545, 15546 under Mary Slessor in List of Reference Works at the Local Studies Department of Dundee Central Library, The Wellgate, Dundee, DD1 1DB.

==External links==
*[http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/slessor Dundee City Library Local Research Biography]
*[http://rsparlourtricks.blogspot.com/2005/12/mary-slessor.html Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: Mary Slessor]
*Article on her in the ''[[Church Times]]'', 5 January 2007
*[http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/islessor.html Mary Slessor Biographies]
*[http://www.heroesofhistory.com/page33.html Triumphs of Florence Nightingale, Francis Schaeffer, Mary Slessor and Alexander Solzhenitsyn] at www.heroesofhistory.com
*[http://www.tracts.ukgo.com/slessor2of14.pdf Livingstone, W. P., ''Mary Slessor of Calabar, Pioneer Missionary'', Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London, 1927]

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2011}}
{{Protestant missions to Africa}}

{{Authority control|VIAF=38158535}}

{{Persondata
| NAME = Slessor, Mary
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Scottish Presbyterian missionary
| DATE OF BIRTH = 2 December 1848
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Aberdeen]], [[Scotland]], [[United Kingdom|UK]]
| DATE OF DEATH = 13 January 1915
| PLACE OF DEATH = [[Nigeria]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slessor, Mary}}
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Aberdeen]]
[[Category:People from Dundee]]
[[Category:Scottish Presbyterians]]
[[Category:Scottish Christian missionaries]]
[[Category:Presbyterian missionaries]]
[[Category:Christian missionaries in Nigeria]]
[[Category:Female Christian missionaries]]