Elizabeth Barrows Ussher
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Elizabeth Freeman Barrows Ussher (20 October 1873 – 14 July 1915) was a Christian missionary and a witness to the Armenian genocide. Barrows described the atrocities against the Armenians as "systematic and wholesale massacre." Much of her life is described in the 1916 publication by her father John Otis Barrows, who described her as a "martyr of the Great War".John Otis Barrow
In the land of Ararat, a sketch of the life of Mrs. Elizabeth Freeman Barrows Ussher, missionary to Turkey and a martyr of the great war.
PDF file, direct download.
She was the wife of missionary physician Clarence Ussher.


Life and work

Elizabeth Freeman Barrows was born in
Kayseri Kayseri () is a large List of cities in Turkey, city in Central Anatolia, Turkey, and the capital of Kayseri Province, Kayseri province. Historically known as Caesarea (Mazaca), Caesarea, it has been the historical capital of Cappadocia since anc ...
,
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
on 20 October 1873 to Christian missionary parents. Due to her brother's poor health condition, when Barrows was two years old she and her family moved to
Manisa Manisa () is a city in Turkey's Aegean Region and the administrative seat of Manisa Province, lying approximately 40 km northeast of the major city of İzmir. The city forms the urban part of the districts Şehzadeler and Yunusemre, with ...
in the hope that a change of environment would be helpful for the child. Once in Manisa, the Barrows family remained with other missionaries already stationed there. After Elizabeth's brother's health improved, the family traveled to Constantinople, where they managed to find a house in
Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...
, a suburb of the city. When Elizabeth was seven, the family visited the United States and headed for
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
. The family eventually settled in Atkinson,
New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
and, at the age of eleven, Elizabeth Barrows was baptized in the local church. The Barrows family then moved to
Newington, Connecticut Newington is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region. Located south of downtown Hartford, Newington is an older, mainly residential suburb located in Greater Hartford. As of 2023, t ...
, where Elizabeth received her early education. She continued her education with Evangelist preacher
Dwight L. Moody Dwight Lyman Moody (February 5, 1837 – December 22, 1899), also known as D. L. Moody, was an American evangelist and publisher connected with Keswickianism, who founded the Moody Church, Northfield School and Mount Hermon School in Mas ...
at the age of fourteen in 1888. Barrows entered the
Northfield Seminary Northfield Mount Hermon School (abbreviated as NMH), is a co-educational College-preparatory school, college-preparatory school in Gill, Massachusetts. It educates boarding and day students in grades 9–12, as well as post-graduate students. It ...
and studied there for three years. After returning to her family residence in Connecticut, she became a teacher in a local school. In 1895, after teaching for nearly a year, she was accepted in
Goucher College Goucher College ( ') is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Towson, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1885 as a Nonsectarian, nonsecterian Women's colleges in the United States, ...
in
Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
, Maryland. She was known as 'Beth' by her classmates and was elected vice-president of her class. A classmate wrote of her: After graduating from the seminary, Barrows decided to return to the Ottoman Empire and serve as a missionary in the region. She embarked from
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, Massachusetts, on 18 October 1899 and arrived in Constantinople, where she remained for five days and then took a boat to
Trabzon Trabzon, historically known as Trebizond, is a city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. The city was founded in 756 BC as "Trapezous" by colonists from Miletus. It was added into the Achaemenid E ...
. From Trabzon she went to
Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. It is the site of an ...
en route to Van, where she was to be greeted by Clarence Ussher and other missionaries. However, in the meantime, an order was sent from Constantinople demanding that Barrows be sent back to the capital under suspicion of Armenian revolutionary activity. The suspicion was based on a telegraph sent from the England branch of the Armenian Relief Society, suggesting that she take care of Armenian orphans. Through the intervention of the American consuls in Erzurum, permission was ultimately granted. Barrows married Clarence Ussher on 26 June 1900 in a church in Van. The wedding was the first American wedding in Van and the ceremony was attended by many Ottoman dignitaries and prominent members of the Armenian community. Following her marriage, Elizabeth Ussher became a teacher at a girls school in Van and was the head of the musical department. She also taught Biblical studies to various other schools in the area and was part of the
Young Women's Christian Association The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swit ...
in Van. She helped provide shelter for orphans and widows and taught them arts and crafts. Many of the items produced by the orphans and widows were sold around the world. After teaching for a few years, she decided to return to the United States in 1908, where she visited her family in the town of
Stonington, Connecticut Stonington is a town located on Long Island Sound in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The municipal limits of the town include the borough of Stonington (borough), Connecticut, Stonington, the villages of Pawcatuck, Connecticut, Pa ...
. After staying for a year, Ussher decided to return, embarking from Boston on 24 July 1909 and arriving in
Batum Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ), historically Batum or Batoum, is the second-largest city of Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's southwest, north of the border ...
. After making a brief stop in
Tiflis Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...
, Ussher went to
Echmiadzin Vagharshapat ( ) is the 5th-largest city in Armenia and the most populous municipal community of Armavir Province, located about west of the capital Yerevan, and north of the closed Turkish-Armenian border. It is commonly known as Ejmiatsin ...
,
Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...
to witness the anointment of the new
Catholicos of All Armenians The Catholicos of All Armenians () is the chief bishop and spiritual leader of Armenia's national church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, and the worldwide Armenian diaspora. The Armenian Catholicos (plural Catholicoi) is also known as the Armenian ...
, Matthew II Izmirlian. She then departed from Echmiadzin and stopped in Igdir and eventually arrived in Van. A few years later, however, World War I began.


Armenian genocide

During the
Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily t ...
, Elizabeth Ussher was stationed in Van when the Van Resistance took place. Throughout the time, she wrote about the events in daily entries in her diary. These diary entries, along with a description of the events, were then published by her father John Otis Barrows in 1917 in a book entitled ''In the Land of Ararat: A Sketch of the Life of Mrs. Elizabeth Freeman''. Once the resistance began, Barrows stated that "although the Vali calls it a rebellion, it is really an effort to protect the lives and the homes of the Armenians." She also reported that a campaign of burning Armenian residences and households throughout various parts of area was initiated. On 21 April, Ussher described the ominous circumstances of their stay at the summer home on the lakeside of Van: By 3 May, Ussher noted the relative resilience of the Armenians, and on 5 May added that "it has been more than two weeks since fighting began in the city, and the Armenians have the advantage. By this you see that the Vali has not succeeded in his diabolical purpose to wipe them out in three days." However, in a diary entry on the same day, she had also made note of the "systematic and wholesale" massacres against Armenians that were taking place throughout the
vilayet A vilayet (, "province"), also known by #Names, various other names, was a first-order administrative division of the later Ottoman Empire. It was introduced in the Vilayet Law of 21 January 1867, part of the Tanzimat reform movement initiated b ...
of Van: Ussher notes, however, that "many of the Turkish soldiers are averse to this butchery", adding that "the Vali has promised plunder and glory to the lawless Kurds, who are nothing loath to do his will." In the same entry, Ussher describes how forty women and children who were "dying or wounded from Turkish bullets" had been brought to their hospital to be cared for. In the meantime, Ussher describes how the Varak Armenian monastery, a refuge for some 2,000 people, was burnt and destroyed by the Turkish authorities.


Death

Elizabeth Ussher and her husband were heavily involved in helping Armenians fleeing the genocide. They provided shelter in their residence to one hundred families; on 8 May Elizabeth described her home in this way: "Every available covered spot is crowded with families with little bedding, cribs, crying babies, and many sick from exposure, lack of food and fear." She eventually contracted
typhus Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposu ...
which had broken out and spread amongst the refugees. She died on 14 July 1915 at the age of 41, in Edremit, Van on the shores of lake Van, and was buried in Van. Her husband also contracted typhus and went into a coma, but survived.


See also

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Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily t ...


References


Bibliography

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Profile at
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* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ussher, Elizabeth Barrows 1873 births 1915 deaths Witnesses of the Armenian genocide Female Christian missionaries American Protestant missionaries Northfield Mount Hermon School alumni People from Kayseri Deaths from typhus People from Atkinson, New Hampshire Goucher College alumni Protestant missionaries in the Ottoman Empire Protestant missionaries in Turkey American expatriates in the Ottoman Empire People from Newington, Connecticut