Eliza Clark Garrett (March 5, 1805 – November 24, 1855) was an American educator and philanthropist. She played an important role in the early

history of Chicago Chicago has played a central role in American Economy of the United States, economic, Culture of the United States, cultural and Politics of the United States, political history. Since the 1850s Chicago has been one of the dominant metropoli ...

, founding the Garrett Bible Institute and contributing to the education of women.

Early life

Born in 1805 on a farm close to the town of

Newburgh Newburgh (''"new"'' + the English/Scots word ''"burgh"'') may refer to: Places Scotland *Newburgh, Fife, a former royal burgh *Newburgh, Aberdeenshire, a village England *Newburgh, Lancashire, a village * Newburgh, North Yorkshire, a village ...

in New York state, Clark was from a devout family. At age 20, she married

Augustus Garrett Augustus Garrett (1801 – November 30, 1848) was an American politician who twice served as Mayor of Chicago (1843–1844, 1845–1846). He was a member of the Democratic Party. Early life and career Garrett married Eliza Clark in 1825 i ...

, and the couple's daughter Imogene was born in 1830. Departing New York, the Garretts lived in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

for a time, but had to flee the city after getting in debt. Moving to

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, the couple's young daughter died of

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

in 1833 and was buried on the banks of the Mississippi. Garrett gave birth to a second child, a son named Charles, in 1834. The Garrets also had another son, John.

Move to Chicago

Facing difficulties in New Orleans as well, the Garretts separated for a short while—Augustus to Chicago, while Eliza returned to Newburgh. Reuniting in 1835 in Chicago, the couple worked in real estate and prospered. Augustus eventually was elected

mayor of Chicago The mayor of Chicago is the Chief executive officer, chief executive of city Government of Chicago, government in Chicago, Illinois, the List of United States cities by population, third-largest city in the United States. The mayor is responsib ...

twice. Eliza became a prominent member of the Clark Street Methodist Episcopal Church. Through her association with the Church, Garrett became aware of the lacking educational facilities for

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

clergy in the region.

Later life

In 1848, Garrett's husband Augustus died after a short, sudden illness. Inheriting a considerable portion of his fortune, Garrett became determined to establish a biblical institute and opportunities for women's education in the young city. Despite having to make considerable payments of her husband's debts, Garrett was able to found the North Western Female College, a preparatory school for girls, in 1854. Garrett's desire to create a biblical institute became a controversy within the Methodist Church's upper ranks, due to a view held by some at the time that a surplus of education would degrade the holiness of the clergy. However, her considerable financial support overcame hesitation in the organization. On January 1, 1855, the Garrett Bible Institute was founded north of the city, in Evanston. Garrett, along with others, rode to the site on sleighs to celebrate. However, despite still being a relatively young woman, Garrett fell ill the following November, suffering from bilious colic. She died on November 24, 1855, at age 50. Her funeral, at

Rosehill Cemetery Rosehill Cemetery (founded 1859) is a historic rural cemetery on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois in the United States. At , it is the largest cemetery in the city of Chicago and its first private cemetery. The Entrance Gate and Administration ...

, was described by the '' Northwestern Christian Advocate'' newspaper as "one of the longest that ever moved from our city."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Garrett, Eliza Clark 1805 births 1855 deaths Burials at Rosehill Cemetery Philanthropists from Chicago