Esther Biddle Rhoads (November 26, 1896 – February 4, 1979) was an American educator and Quaker relief worker. She was a teacher at the Friends Girls School in Tokyo from 1917 to 1940, and returned to Japan after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

to rebuild the school as its principal; she was also tutor of Prince

Akihito Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is a member of the Imperial House of Japan who reigned as the 125th emperor of Japan from 1989 until 2019 Japanese imperial transition, his abdication in 2019. The era of his rule was named the Heisei era, Hei ...

from 1950 to 1960.

Early life and education

Rhoads was born in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, the daughter of Edward Garrett Rhoads and Margaret Ely Paxson Rhoads. Her family were Quakers; her father was a physician. She attended

Germantown Friends School Germantown Friends School (GFS) is a coeducational independent PreK–12 school in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States under the supervision of Germantown Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of ...

Drexel Institute Drexel University is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony Joseph Drexel, Anthony J. Drexel, a financier ...

, and in 1921 completed a bachelor's degree at

Earlham College Earlham College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Richmond, Indiana. The college was established in 1847 by the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and has a strong focus on Quake ...

in Indiana. In 1927 she earned a master's degree in religious education from

Teachers College, Columbia University Teachers College, Columbia University (TC) is the graduate school of education affiliated with Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, Teachers College has been a part of Columbia University since ...

Career

Rhoads went to teach in Japan in 1917, at the Friends Girls School in Tokyo. At the school, she also coached sports, directed student theatrical productions, and oversaw a dormitory. She and her mother were in Tokyo for the

Great Kantō Earthquake Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" * Artel Great (bo ...

in 1923. She left Japan in 1940. During the war, she worked in California with the

American Friends Service Committee The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is a Religious Society of Friends ('' Quaker)-founded'' organization working for peace and social justice in the United States and around the world. AFSC was founded in 1917 as a combined effort by ...

(AFSC) and used her Japanese language and cultural understanding to support Japanese-Americans incarcerated in internment camps. After the war, Rhoads returned to Japan, as commissioner of Licensed Agencies for Relief in Asia (LARA). In 1949, became principal of the Friends Girls School in Tokyo. She also tutored Crown Prince Akihito, from 1950 to 1960. She left her Japan posts in 1960. In retirement, Rhoads went to Tunisia, to work with the AFSC in to provide humanitarian relief to refugees of the

Algerian War The Algerian War (also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence) ''; '' (and sometimes in Algeria as the ''War of 1 November'') was an armed conflict between France and the Algerian National Liberation Front (Algeri ...

. Rhoads received the Fourth Order of the Sacred Treasure in 1952, from

Emperor Hirohito , Posthumous name, posthumously honored as , was the 124th emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, from 25 December 1926 until Death and state funeral of Hirohito, his death in 1989. He remains Japan's longest-reigni ...

; she received the Third Order of the Sacred Treasure upon her retirement in 1960. She also held the highest decoration given by the

Japanese Red Cross Society The is the Japanese affiliate of the International Red Cross. The Imperial Family of Japan has traditionally supported the society, with the Empress as Honorary President and other imperial family members as vice presidents. Its headquarters ...

, and was presented with symbolic keys to the city of Tokyo. A biography, ''Footprints of a Quaker,'' was published in Japanese.

Personal life

Rhoads died in 1979, in Germantown, Pennsylvania, at the age of 82. A large collection of her papers is held in the

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Fr ...

Libraries' Quaker & Special Collections.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhoads, Esther Biddle 1896 births 1979 deaths American Quakers 20th-century American educators American expatriates in Japan Germantown Friends School alumni Earlham College alumni Drexel University alumni Teachers College, Columbia University alumni Biddle family