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Frances E. Townsley (September 13, 1850 – 1909) was an American Baptist minister and evangelical preacher, as well as a lecturer and a writer in prose and verse. She was the second-known woman to be ordained in the Baptist faith, and the first then-
Northern Baptist The American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) is a mainline/evangelical Baptist Christian denomination within the United States. The denomination maintains headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The organization is usually considered mainl ...
woman minister to be thus credentialed. After ordination, she endured criticism and resistance.


Early life and education

Frances ("Fannie") Eleanor Townsley was born in
Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York Ci ...
, September 13, 1850. Her father was Gad Townsley, a commission merchant, and a strong abolitionist who died during a cholera epidemic. Her mother Charlotte Davis Townsley, in early widowhood, would work till midnight and took in boarders to support the family; she also wrote unpublished prose and verse. During her early years, the child lived in
Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts Shelburne Falls is a historic village in the towns of Shelburne and Buckland in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The village is a census-designated place (CDP) with a population of 1,731 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Sp ...
. The public-school education she received was excellent. Once, when asked where she was educated, she said: "Partly in a village academy, partly in
Wheaton College Wheaton College may refer to: * Wheaton College (Illinois), a private Christian, coeducational, liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois * Wheaton College (Massachusetts) Wheaton College is a private liberal arts college in Norton, Massachus ...
, partly in the studies of individual pastors, mainly in the University of Sorrow." Townsley's "call to preach" was sudden, positive, and undoubted. She spoke her first piece when five years old, the
Psalm 23 Psalm 23 is the 23rd psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "The Lord is my shepherd". In Latin, it is known by the incipit, "". The Book of Psalms is part of the third section of the Hebrew Bible, and a b ...
. She owed much of her training as a public speaker to her mother. Among the things committed to memory during the first ten years of her life were
Nathaniel Parker Willis Nathaniel Parker Willis (January 20, 1806 – January 20, 1867), also known as N. P. Willis,Baker, 3 was an American author, poet and editor who worked with several notable American writers including Edgar Allan Poe and Henry Wadsworth Longfello ...
' ''Sacred Poems'', parts of
John Milton John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet and intellectual. His 1667 epic poem ''Paradise Lost'', written in blank verse and including over ten chapters, was written in a time of immense religious flux and polit ...
's ''
Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consists of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse. A second edition followed in 1674 ...
'',
Robert Pollok Robert Pollok (19 October 1798 – 15 September 1827) was a Scottish poet best known for his work, '' The Course of Time'', published in the year of his death. Biography Pollok was born at North Moorhouse Farm, Loganswell, Renfrewshire, Scotl ...
's ''
The Course of Time ''The Course of Time'' is a ten-book poem in blank verse, first published in 1827. It was the last published and most famous work of Scottish poet Robert Pollok. The first edition of the poem sold 12,000 copies, and by its fourth edition it had ...
'',
Richard Chenevix Trench Richard Chenevix Trench (Richard Trench until 1873; 9 September 1807 – 28 March 1886) was an Anglican archbishop and poet. Life He was born in Dublin, Ireland, the son of Richard Trench (1774–1860), barrister-at-law, and the Dublin wri ...
's ''The Miracles and Parables of Christ'',
Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...
' "
Sermon on the Mount The Sermon on the Mount (anglicized from the Matthean Vulgate Latin section title: ) is a collection of sayings attributed to Jesus of Nazareth found in the Gospel of Matthew (chapters 5, 6, and 7). that emphasizes his moral teachings. It is ...
", as well as
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
poetry and prophecy, and many patriotic selections. She became a professing Christian before she was eighteen years old, after turbulent struggles, mental and spiritual.


Career

After completing her education at Wheaton College, Townsley became a teacher. She became a preacher against her previous ideas of the woman's sphere. She was licensed by the
Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts Shelburne Falls is a historic village in the towns of Shelburne and Buckland in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The village is a census-designated place (CDP) with a population of 1,731 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Sp ...
, Baptist Church in 1874, after preaching for a year. After twelve years of work as an evangelist in
Maine Maine () is a U.S. state, state in the New England and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and territories of Canad ...
,
New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...
,
Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...
,
Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
,
Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...
,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...
,
Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
,
Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minne ...
,
South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...
, and
Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the so ...
, she was ordained by a council of Baptist Churches in April 1885, in
Fairfield, Nebraska Fairfield is a city in Clay County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 387 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Hastings, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Fairfield got its start in 1872 with the construction of the rai ...
. She was State evangelist for the Nebraska
Woman's Christian Temperance Union The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international Temperance movement, temperance organization, originating among women in the United States Prohibition movement. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social ref ...
, serving as an editor of the organization's ''
The Union Signal ''The Union Signal'' (formerly, ''The Woman's Temperance Union'', ''Our Union'') is a defunct American newspaper, established in 1883 in Chicago, Illinois. Focused on temperance, it was the organ of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), ...
''. While residing in
Ashland, Nebraska Ashland is a city in Saunders County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,453 at the 2010 census. History Ashland is located at the site of a low-water limestone ledge along the bottom of Salt Creek, an otherwise mud-bottomed stream ...
, she served as pastor of the Immanuel Baptist Church. Removing to
Maywood, Illinois Maywood is a village in Proviso Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States in the Chicago metropolitan area. It was founded on April 6, 1869, and organized October 22, 1881. The population was 23,512 at the 2020 United States Census. Histor ...
by the turn of the century, the Women's National Sabbath Alliance bestowed an award on one of Townsley's essays. From 1898 until 1902, she was in
Vassar, Michigan Vassar is a city in Tuscola County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Founded March 1, 1849. The population was 2,727 at the 2020 census and 2,697 in 2010 (an increase of about 1.1%). The city is located on the western edge of Vassar Township but is ...
where she served as pastor. Retiring because of poor health, she preached, taught, and led reform work until her death in 1909.


Selected works

* ''A Pilgrim Maid: The Self-told Story of Frances E. Townsley'', 1908 * ''The Sabbath Training of the Child for Eternity'', 190?


Notes


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Townsley, Frances Eleanor 1850 births 1909 deaths 19th-century American newspaper editors 19th-century American women writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American women writers American Baptist Churches USA ministers Religious leaders from Albany, New York American religious writers Woman's Christian Temperance Union people Wikipedia articles incorporating text from A Woman of the Century