{"id":138,"date":"2021-02-03T20:19:41","date_gmt":"2021-02-03T20:19:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/?page_id=138"},"modified":"2021-06-23T03:54:18","modified_gmt":"2021-06-23T03:54:18","slug":"martin-family-brooch","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/martin-family-brooch\/","title":{"rendered":"Martin Family Brooch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Charlie Rouhandeh ’21<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Maker unknown. Martin Family Brooch, ca. 1865. Middlebury College Special Collections and Archives, Hair Jewelry Collection<\/a>, C-138, 334.2.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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In 1859, two newlyweds from Vermont, Mary Elizabeth Allen Martin (1839-1893) and Carlos (whom Mary called \u201cCarlie\u201d) Roscoe Martin (1835-1864) traversed the U.S. by stagecoach and train and then boarded a ship called the \u201cEureka\u201d which brought them to Fuzhou, China. Mary and \u201cCarlie\u201d <\/strong>Martin had been married for all of two months <\/strong>when they left Vermont. Mary gave birth to two sons in China: Edward Homer (1861-1917) and Lucius Allen (1862-1864). The Martin family socialized with other missionaries, delivered sermons in Chinese and English, and employed Chinese servants. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photographer unknown. Group of Protestant missionaries in China, ca. 1860-1864. Carlos R. Martin (Carlie) is standing, with full beard; Mary Elizabeth Martin is seated at far left. Middlebury College Special Collections and Archives, Martin Missionary Collection, C-127<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Ye-Chung, Photographer (Hong Kong), “Lucius Martin with Chinese Nurse,” ca. 1863-4. Middlebury College Special Collections and Archives, Martin Missionary Collection, C-127<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Reading Mary’s diary<\/a> reveals a preoccupation with health and illness: at least one member of the family was sick at any given time, and they watched friends and friends\u2019 children die. The most commonly mentioned illnesses in Mary\u2019s diary are intestinal, with repeated cases of dysentery and cholera. After seeing so many in their community struck by illness, Mary and Carlie\u2019s young son Lucius died of cholera<\/a> in September of 1864. Carlie died one day after. Mary buried her husband and youngest son and after much deliberation decided to go back to Vermont with her eldest son. She and Edward departed from Hong Kong in March of 1865. Their lives went on \u2014 Edward became the Middlebury Town Doctor and Mary remarried, wedding Rev. Clark Wedgeworth of Franklin County in 1881 (1838-1904).[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Houseworth & Co., Photographers, Portrait of Mary Elizabeth Allen Martin, San Francisco, California, date unknown. Middlebury College Special Collections and Archives, Martin Missionary Collection, C-127.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Carlie had graduated from the Concord Biblical Institute, was ordained as a deacon, appointed a minister, and married to Mary all in the same summer\u2014 the summer of 1859. They left New York on October 26th<\/sup> of the same year and did not reach Fuzhou until April of the following year. There was no transcontinental railroad, nor were there high-powered modern ships. Illness was almost inevitable, and death extremely common. It is hard to determine exactly drove this young couple to move their lives across the globe in an era of such uncertainty. A descendant of the Martins asserts that it was their dedication to spreading the word of God.[2]<\/sup><\/a> Historical context, however, uncovers darker motivations for the United States to establish its presence in China. Fuzhou became the hub of the tea trade in the mid-nineteenth century, and the British spearheaded this with their 1843 Treaty of Nanjing,[3]<\/sup><\/a> which ended the Opium War. It took the United States but three years to react to British involvement by establishing their own missions.[4]<\/sup><\/a> The uncertainty around the abolition of slavery during the Civil War left questions about meeting demand for labor, and an 1869 Lamoille County newspaper wrote in great detail about about how Chinese people were the perfect servants because they \u201cknow their place and are willing to keep it.\u201d[5]<\/sup><\/a> Thus, the United States was interested in establishing roots in China in order to compete in the global market and find alternate sources of labor. Carlie Martin, as a young newly appointed deacon, was a perfect candidate for the long and dangerous voyage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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George Ernest Morrison (Australian, 1862-1920), Foo Chow Mission Cemetery, Fuzhou, Fujian, China, ca. 1870. From Album of Hong Kong – Canton – Macau – Amoy – Foochow<\/em>, p. 86<\/a>. NII \u201cDigital Silk Road\u201d \/ Toyo Bunko. doi:10.20676\/00000201.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Note: Fuzhou was spelled various ways in this time. This paper cites sources who use various spellings, namely \u201cFoo Chow\u201d and \u201cFuh Chau.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Creator unknown, Martin Shrine, ca. 1864-5. Stone (likely soapstone). Middlebury College Special Collections and Archives, Martin Missionary Collection, C-127. The following transcriptions and translations were provided by Peter Han-Chih Wang and Stephen Whiteman:

Central plaque: \u4ec1\u4eba\u5b5d\u5b50\u98a8 “Benevolent person and filial son Feng.\u201d
Four posts of the inner stepped wall read, from right to left:  
\u540e\u571f\u975e\u5409\u7a74   “The earth is an inauspicious burial place”   
          \u5373\u96b9\u57ce\u8ca1\u5eab    “Approach the treasure house of the spirit world.”
Top: \u798f luck\/good fortune
Middle: \u5c71 mountain \u660e bright and clear \u6c34 water \u79c0 beautiful \u5c71\u660e\u6c34\u79c0 “beautiful landscape\/water scenery”
Bottom left (vertical marker): \u5fe0 loyalty \u5b5d obedience to parents [likely for Lucius]
Bottom right (vertical marker): \u5ec9 not corrupting \u7bc0 integrity
Bottom left stone wall: \u8e1e\u864e crouching tiger
Bottom right stone wall: \u9f8d\u87e0 circling dragon 
\u9f8d\u87e0\u864e\u8e1e great location [often used to refer to the tomb of the royalty and wealthy]  <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

When Carlie died, Mary spent months deliberating whether to return to the U.S. Her husband and son had been buried, together, only a few days after they died. Lucius\u2019s coffin was placed on top of Carlie\u2019s. On the day of their joint funeral, Mary noted in her diary, “Lucius rests on the bosom of his dear papa\u2014a place where in life he loved to be.\u201d[6]<\/sup><\/a> The distance between the permanent resting places of the Martins is one of the most compelling aspects of their family history. Unable to visit her husband and son\u2019s grave after her departure from China, Mary was left with limited memorabilia. She pasted into her diary rose and cypress leaves that surrounded their graves, and brought home with her the diary of her late husband. A shrine carved in soapstone is held by Middlebury College Special Collections<\/a>, with inscriptions in Chinese referring to the father and son buried together. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Mary Elizabeth Martin Herbarium.Transcriptions clockwise from top left read: \u201cCedar from Mission Cemetery 1865″; “monthly rose from dear Carlie\u2019s and Lucius\u2019 grave, Fuh Chau Feb. 1865”; “Cedar from Mission Cemetery Fuh Chau”; Evergreen from the side of Carlie\u2019s grave.”<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Mary Elizabeth Allen Martin, Herbarium, ca. 1860-65. Middlebury College Special Collections & Archives, Martin Missionary Collection. Caption reads: “Cypress from dear Carlie’s + Lucius’ grave Mission Cemetery Fuh Chau China. Sent by Mrs Lites + Mrs Baldwin in 1865.”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

What separates this brooch, this very simple woven hair piece, from Mary\u2019s other memorabilia, is how portable, personal, and permanent it is. There is no record of whose hair was used, but Mary specifically recounts cutting Lucius\u2019s hair in a 1864 diary entry. Considering the culture surrounding hair and hairwork in this era, as well as the often brief diary entries Mary wrote, it is entirely plausible that she saved some of Lucius\u2019s hair but did not mention this in her entry. The same can be said of Carlie\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As Lucius was laid to rest on his father\u2019s bosom, a piece of them (their hair) could rest against hers. In this way, it certainly matters that this piece is a brooch rather than a delicate necklace or ornate wall hanging. There is a permanence to the hair brooch that doesn\u2019t exist in any other Martin family memorabilia I have found. It is shielded by glass, and the hair seems to be set in place in a way that is by no means precarious, securely interwoven. This loose structure is likely what has preserved this piece all these years; not a single hair splitting nor a wire rusting would be noticeable considering the sheer number of strands the piece contains. Unlike the leaf pressings, which decay rapidly, and the shrine, which is neither extremely personal nor portable, the brooch is a constant symbol of Mary\u2019s mourning and appreciation for Carlos Roscoe and Lucius Allen Martin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photograph courtesy of Rebekah Irwin, Middlebury College Special Collections.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

For another memorial item with connections to Protestant missionaries based in Fuzhou, see our entry on the Peet Family brooch.<\/a> <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Detail, Hairwork chain with charm in the form of a book, n.d. Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History, Middlebury, VT. Gift of Mrs. Frances A. Waite, 1968, 68.20.b.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Cite this essay<\/strong>: Charlie Rouhandeh, “Martin Family Brooch,” in Perspectives on Hairwork:<\/a> Historic Vermont<\/em>, ed. Ellery Foutch (Winter 2021): https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/martin-family-brooch\/<\/a> [date accessed]<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Notes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are grateful to the staff of Middlebury College Special Collections and Archives for so generously providing us access to the remarkable and extensive materials in the Martin Missionary Collection even during a global pandemic! Their online inventory reveals many of the rich resources in this collection available to scholars: link<\/a>. Thanks also to Peter Han-Chih Wang and Stephen Whiteman for their translations and perspectives on the small stone shrine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[1]<\/sup><\/a> Destromp, Barb. Memorial page for Mary Elizabeth Allen Wedgeworth\u201d (1 Feb. 1839-14 May 1893), Find a Grave Memorial ID 16618853<\/a>, citing Milton Village Cemetery, Milton, Chittenden County, Vermont, USA. Maintained by Barb Destromp (contributor 46785064<\/a>), November 12, 2006. https:\/\/www.findagrave.com\/memorial\/16618853\/mary-elizabeth-wedgeworth<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

[2]<\/sup><\/a> Mary Elisabeth Allen Martin. Mrs. M.E.A. Martin\u2019s Diary. <\/em>Transcribed by John Lucius Buttolph III. Morrisville, Vermont, 1987. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

[3]<\/sup><\/a> Chisholm, Hugh. \u201cFuchow\u201d in The Encyclopaedia Britannica: A Dictionary of Arts, Science, Literature, and General Knowledge<\/em>. 271-272, 11th<\/sup>ed., Vol. 11. New York: Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1910. https:\/\/ia800307.us.archive.org\/31\/items\/encyclopaediabrit11chisrich\/encyclopaediabrit11chisrich.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

[4]<\/sup><\/a> American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions and Dwight Goddard, Report of the jubilee year of the Foochow Mission of the A.B.C.F.M., 1896<\/em>. Shanghai: American Presbyterian Mission Press, 1897.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[5]<\/sup><\/a> D.H.B., “Our Relations with the Chinese,” Lamoille Newsdealer<\/em> 19 Oct. 1869, 2. Link<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[6]<\/sup><\/a> Mary Elizabeth Allen Martin, Diary<\/em>, 7 Sept. 1864 (p. 24 of transcript).<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Further reading:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carlson, Ellsworth C. The Foochow Missionaries, 1847-1880<\/em>. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Asia Center, 1974.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cummings, A.I. “Cholera Infantum.” The Boston Medical and Surgical Journal<\/em> XLV, no. 17 (26 Nov. 1851): 341-344. link<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Somerville, J.R. “J.R. Somerville’s Report on the Health of Foochow (Pagoda Anchorage) for the half year ended 31st March, 1873.” Medical Reports… Forwarded by the Surgeons to the Customs at the Treaty Ports in China <\/em>5 (Jan.-Mar. 1873), 37-46; see especially “Burials in the Mission Cemetery Foochow, January 1st 1862, to December 31st, 1872,” 46. Link<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additional historic photography collections featuring Fuzhou and the American Mission Cemetery:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dutton & Michaels, et al, “Straits, Java, China,” album ca. 1860-1880. The Getty, 84.XA.1240. Link<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

International Mission Photography Library, USC Libraries<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The American Mission Cemetery in Fuzhou was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. These photographs give a sense of its former appearance.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

http:\/\/digitallibrary.usc.edu\/digital\/collection\/p15799coll123\/id\/49369<\/p>\n\n\n\n

http:\/\/digitallibrary.usc.edu\/digital\/collection\/p15799coll123\/id\/49411<\/p>\n\n\n\n

http:\/\/digitallibrary.usc.edu\/digital\/collection\/p15799coll123\/id\/49368<\/p>\n\n\n\n

http:\/\/digitallibrary.usc.edu\/digital\/collection\/p15799coll123\/id\/49411\/rec\/1<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Charlie Rouhandeh ’21 In 1859, two newlyweds from Vermont, Mary Elizabeth Allen Martin (1839-1893) and Carlos (whom Mary called \u201cCarlie\u201d) Roscoe Martin (1835-1864) traversed the U.S. by stagecoach and train and then boarded a ship called the \u201cEureka\u201d which brought<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":163,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-138","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-projects"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818.jpeg",1374,1084,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818.jpeg",1374,1084,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818.jpeg",1374,1084,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818-150x150.jpeg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818-300x237.jpeg",300,237,true],"large":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818-1024x808.jpeg",720,568,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818.jpeg",1374,1084,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818.jpeg",1374,1084,false],"featured-blog-large":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818-720x300.jpeg",720,300,true],"featured-blog-small":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818-230x230.jpeg",230,230,true],"featured-service":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818-600x330.jpeg",600,330,true],"featured-recent-work":["https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/FA00155C-1E67-4F2E-95DD-F359C61C6818-365x365.jpeg",365,365,true]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"charlie rouhandeh","author_link":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/author\/crouhandeh\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":" Projects<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"Charlie Rouhandeh ’21 In 1859, two newlyweds from Vermont, Mary Elizabeth Allen Martin (1839-1893) and Carlos (whom Mary called \u201cCarlie\u201d) Roscoe Martin (1835-1864) traversed the U.S. by stagecoach and train and then boarded a ship called the \u201cEureka\u201d which brought","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/138","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/138\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1052,"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/138\/revisions\/1052"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elleryfoutch.middcreate.net\/hairwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}