Maria Bissell Hotchkiss
| Maria Bissell Hotchkiss | |
|---|---|
| Born |
1827 Salisbury, Connecticut |
| Died |
1901 New York City |
| Education | Amenia Academy |
| Occupation | Educator |
| Spouse(s) | Benjamin B. Hotchkiss |
| Parent(s) |
William Bissell Eliza Ann Loveland |
Maria Harrison (Bissell) Hotchkiss (1827–1901) was an American heiress, philanthropist, and educator. She was the 1891 founder of the Hotchkiss School, a private boarding school in Lakeville, Connecticut.
Biography
Early life
Maria Harrison Bissell was born in 1827 in Salisbury, Connecticut.[1] She grew up in Tory Hill, Connecticut.[1] Her father was William Bissell and her mother, Eliza Ann Loveland. She had two siblings. She was a member of the famed Bissell family and related to President Benjamin Harrison.[1] She was educated at Amenia Academy.[1]
Career
She worked as a teacher at her alma mater, Amenia Academy.[1]
Upon receiving her husband's inheritance, she suggested macadamizing the streets of and Sharon, Connecticut for use of automobiles.[1] However, the idea was rejected by both towns, who thought the upkeep would be too expensive.[1] Instead, she was convinced by Timothy Dwight V, the Chancellor of Yale University, to start a preparatory school.[1] As a result, she founded the Hotchkiss School, a private boarding school in Lakeville, in 1891.[2][3] A philanthropist, she donated the land, the buildings and the endowment for the school.[3]
In 1893, she founded the Hotchkiss Library in Sharon, Connecticut.[4][5] She helped choose the architectural design.[5]
Personal life
She married Benjamin B. Hotchkiss.[1] However, he became a bigamist when he moved to Paris and married another woman, Mrs Cunningham.[1] Later, she resided at the Plaza Hotel in New York City.[3]
Death
She died in 1901 in New York City.[3]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Stephen Birmingham, 'What Made Maria Do It?', in Hotchkiss: A Chronicle of an American School, Ernest Kolowrat (ed.), New Amsterdam Books, 1998, pp. 1-12
- ↑ Lael Tucker Wertenbaker, Maude Hill Basserman, The Hotchkiss School: A Portrait, Hotchkiss School, 1966, p. 1
- 1 2 3 4 The New Encyclopaedia Britannica: Macropaedia : Knowledge in depth, Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1975, p. 93
- ↑ Hotchkiss Library website
- 1 2 Sharon Historical Society, Sharon, Arcadia Publishing, 2014, p. 47