Van Cott, Maggie Newton (25 March 1830–29 August 1914), Methodist evangelist and preacher, was born Margaret Ann Newton in New York City, the daughter of William K. Newton, an estate agent for John Jacob Astor, and Rachel A. Primrose. Her parents were Episcopalian, and she was confirmed in that denomination at age eleven. A year later, her younger brother died and the family began a series of moves, settling in Williamsburg, Long Island. Maggie gained an appreciation of Methodism from her maternal grandfather, who introduced her to prayers and hymns. In Williamsburg, the family lived near a Methodist church, and although she was forbidden to attend services there, Maggie would sit in the cupola of the house to overhear the singing....
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Van Cott, Maggie Newton (1830-1914), Methodist evangelist and preacher
Sheryl A. Kujawa
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Willing, Jennie Fowler (1834-1916), evangelist, reformer, and church worker
Joanne Carlson Brown
Willing, Jennie Fowler (22 January 1834–06 October 1916), evangelist, reformer, and church worker, was born in Burford, Canada West (present-day Ontario), the daughter of Horatio Fowler, a homesteader and participant in the Papineau Rebellion of 1837, and Harriet Ryan, the daughter of the founder of Canadian Methodism, Henry Ryan. The Fowlers settled in Newark, Illinois, following Horatio’s expulsion from Canada after the failure of the rebellion. Jennie was a sickly child and largely self-educated. Her first job was as a school teacher in Illinois at age fifteen....
