Harriet Newell (née Atwood; October 10, 1793 – November 30, 1812) was a Christian missionary and memoirist. She was the first American to die in foreign mission service.[1][2][3]
She had developed an interest in missions through a courtship with Rev.
Samuel Newell, missionary to the
Burman empire. On February 9, 1812, they married. In the same month, the Newells sailed to India, along with
Adoniram Judson, his wife
Ann,[6]Samuel Nott, and Nott's wife. On their arrival at
Calcutta in June 1812, they were denied residence by
BritishEast India Company and were asked to leave. Accordingly, the Newells took a ship to
Mauritius. At sea, three weeks before reaching the island, she gave birth to a child who died after five days.[7]
Death and legacy
Newell died November 30, 1812 in
Mauritius, less than a year into her journey. She left a journal and a few letters, the record of her religious feelings, and the events of her short missionary life. They were published posthumously.[7][8] going into a number of editions.
Following their publication, she became a hero and role model for Christians during the nineteenth century. Many children were named for her over the following decades, including
Harriet Newell Noyes who also went on to be a missionary.[9]
^Covell, Ralph R.
"Margaret Newell Noyes". Bio Dictionary of Chinese Christianity. Archived from
the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
Attribution
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the
public domain: Hanaford, Phebe Ann (1877). "Women Missionaries".
Women of the Century (Public domain ed.). B.B. Russell. p.
427.