Abbie Park Ferguson
Encyclopedia
Abbie Park Ferguson was founder and president of Huguenot College.
She graduated from Mount Holyoke College
(then Mount Holyoke Female Seminary) in 1856. She taught in Niles, Michigan
until 1858 and later in New Haven, Connecticut
from 1867 until 1873.
In 1873 Ferguson and another Mount Holyoke graduate (1862), Anna Bliss, moved to Cape Town, South Africa and established the first women's college
in the region, Huguenot College in 1898. Abbie Park Ferguson was president of Huguenot College (which eventually became Huguenot University College) until her retirement in 1910.
She took a leave to return to the United States from 1905 to 1906 during which time she received an M.A. from Mount Holyoke. In 1912, Mount Holyoke honored her with a Doctor of Letters.
She died at Huguenot on March 25, 1919, aged 82.
She graduated from Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College is a liberal arts college for women in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It was the first member of the Seven Sisters colleges, and served as a model for some of the others...
(then Mount Holyoke Female Seminary) in 1856. She taught in Niles, Michigan
Niles, Michigan
Niles is a city in Berrien and Cass counties in the U.S. state of Michigan, near South Bend, Indiana. The population was 11,600 at the 2010 census. It is the greater populated of two principal cities of and included in the Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a...
until 1858 and later in New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
from 1867 until 1873.
In 1873 Ferguson and another Mount Holyoke graduate (1862), Anna Bliss, moved to Cape Town, South Africa and established the first women's college
Women's college
Women's colleges in higher education are undergraduate, bachelor's degree-granting institutions, often liberal arts colleges, whose student populations are composed exclusively or almost exclusively of women...
in the region, Huguenot College in 1898. Abbie Park Ferguson was president of Huguenot College (which eventually became Huguenot University College) until her retirement in 1910.
She took a leave to return to the United States from 1905 to 1906 during which time she received an M.A. from Mount Holyoke. In 1912, Mount Holyoke honored her with a Doctor of Letters.
She died at Huguenot on March 25, 1919, aged 82.