Abigail Hopper Gibbons
Encyclopedia
Abigail Hopper Gibbons (December 7, 1801 – January 16, 1893) was a schoolteacher, abolitionist
, and social welfare activist, who assisted in founding numerous programs and societies during and following the Civil War
.
She grew up in a Quaker
family, and her father, Isaac Hopper, spent much of his time and money aiding runaway slave
s. His daughter would come to share her father's beliefs and spent much of her life working for social reforms, including prison reform
, welfare, civil rights
, and care for soldiers returning from the Civil War. Eventually, a political shift in the Quaker organization resulted in Gibbons' father and husband being disowned by the society for their anti-slavery activities. Abigail Gibbons left the organization and never returned.
.
Gibbons and her father founded the Women's Prison Association
(WPA) of New York City in 1845. She lobbied for improvements in the city's prisons, advocated the hiring of police matrons, and urged the establishment of separate prisons for women. She frequently visited the various prisons in and about New York. For twelve years, she was also president of a German industrial school for street children. In 1853, the Women's Prison Association
separated from its parent, the Prison Association, and Gibbons obtained a New York State charter for her group. Under her leadership, the WPA undertook an aggressive program of legislative lobbying. She protested jail overcrowding and demanded that women prisoners be searched only by female matrons.
was established in 1861, shortly after the Civil War began, with the purpose to recruit nurses and to provide adequate medical care to the Union wounded. When the Commission set up a training base at David's Island Hospital
in New York, Gibbons was among the trainees.
She traveled to Washington D.C., to help at the Washington Office Hospital, helping the wounded and distributing supplies. She also helped to establish two field hospitals in Virginia. At Point Lookout, Maryland, the government took over a hotel and 100 guest cottages and converted them into a hospital complex with accommodations for 1500 soldiers. It was named Hammond General Hospital. Gibbons vied with Dorothea Dix
, the Union Superintendent of Nurses, for control of the hospital, and Gibbons was finally appointed its head matron. She left the hospital in 1863, when it was converted into Point Lookout Confederate Prison.
On Tuesday, July 14, 1863, Gibbons' Manhattan home at 339 West 29th Street was attacked by rioters during the Draft Riots due to her staunch support for abolitionism, despite the fact that Gibbons' Women's Prison Association
(WPA) clients were Irish immigrants struggling with alcohol dependency, made worse by the extreme poverty in which they lived. Gibbons and her staff worked tirelessly to provide these women with a place to stay, a supportive community, and practical skills training. They created programs for these women, who had previously only known poverty and trouble in their lives.
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
, and social welfare activist, who assisted in founding numerous programs and societies during and following the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
She grew up in a Quaker
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
family, and her father, Isaac Hopper, spent much of his time and money aiding runaway slave
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
s. His daughter would come to share her father's beliefs and spent much of her life working for social reforms, including prison reform
Prison reform
Prison reform is the attempt to improve conditions inside prisons, aiming at a more effective penal system.-History:Prisons have only been used as the primary punishment for criminal acts in the last couple of centuries...
, welfare, civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
, and care for soldiers returning from the Civil War. Eventually, a political shift in the Quaker organization resulted in Gibbons' father and husband being disowned by the society for their anti-slavery activities. Abigail Gibbons left the organization and never returned.
Early life
She was born in Philadelphia in 1801, the third of ten children. Her father, Isaac T. Hopper, was of the Hicksite branch of Quakers and became an active and leading member of The Pennsylvania Abolition Society, often in direct confrontation with slave kidnappers who had deluged Philadelphia. Hopper also sheltered many poor Quakers in his house, despite his family's large size and unstable financial status. The Hoppers were frequently called upon to protect the rights of African-Americans and garnered a reputation as friends and advisers of the "oppressed race" in all emergencies. Hopper was also an overseer of the Benezet School for African-American children and a volunteer teacher in a free school for African-American adults.Women's Prison Association
Abigail Hopper taught school for several years in Philadelphia and New York. In 1833, she married a fellow Quaker, James Sloan Gibbons, who was also an ardent abolitionist. In 1836, the pair moved to New York City, where they had six children. Two of their sons died in infancy, and a third died suddenly after an accident in which he was involved while attending Harvard UniversityHarvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.
Gibbons and her father founded the Women's Prison Association
Women's Prison Association
The Women's Prison Association , founded 1845, is the oldest advocacy group for women in the United States. The organization has historically focused on New York City and New York State issues, but since 2004 it has also umbrella'd the Institute on Women & Criminal Justice, focusing on women and...
(WPA) of New York City in 1845. She lobbied for improvements in the city's prisons, advocated the hiring of police matrons, and urged the establishment of separate prisons for women. She frequently visited the various prisons in and about New York. For twelve years, she was also president of a German industrial school for street children. In 1853, the Women's Prison Association
Women's Prison Association
The Women's Prison Association , founded 1845, is the oldest advocacy group for women in the United States. The organization has historically focused on New York City and New York State issues, but since 2004 it has also umbrella'd the Institute on Women & Criminal Justice, focusing on women and...
separated from its parent, the Prison Association, and Gibbons obtained a New York State charter for her group. Under her leadership, the WPA undertook an aggressive program of legislative lobbying. She protested jail overcrowding and demanded that women prisoners be searched only by female matrons.
Civil War
With the coming of the war, Gibbons knew that nurses would be needed to care for the wounded. The United States Sanitary CommissionUnited States Sanitary Commission
The United States Sanitary Commission was a private relief agency created by federal legislation on June 18, 1861, to support sick and wounded soldiers of the U.S. Army during the American Civil War. It operated across the North, raised its own funds, and enlisted thousands of volunteers...
was established in 1861, shortly after the Civil War began, with the purpose to recruit nurses and to provide adequate medical care to the Union wounded. When the Commission set up a training base at David's Island Hospital
Davids' Island (New York)
Davids' Island is a island off the coast of New Rochelle, New York, in Long Island Sound. Currently uninhabited, in the past it was the site of Fort Slocum. Plans are to preserve the island as public parkland under the Westchester County Parks system. The island is home to the endangered Kemp’s...
in New York, Gibbons was among the trainees.
She traveled to Washington D.C., to help at the Washington Office Hospital, helping the wounded and distributing supplies. She also helped to establish two field hospitals in Virginia. At Point Lookout, Maryland, the government took over a hotel and 100 guest cottages and converted them into a hospital complex with accommodations for 1500 soldiers. It was named Hammond General Hospital. Gibbons vied with Dorothea Dix
Dorothea Dix
Dorothea Lynde Dix was an American activist on behalf of the indigent insane who, through a vigorous program of lobbying state legislatures and the United States Congress, created the first generation of American mental asylums...
, the Union Superintendent of Nurses, for control of the hospital, and Gibbons was finally appointed its head matron. She left the hospital in 1863, when it was converted into Point Lookout Confederate Prison.
On Tuesday, July 14, 1863, Gibbons' Manhattan home at 339 West 29th Street was attacked by rioters during the Draft Riots due to her staunch support for abolitionism, despite the fact that Gibbons' Women's Prison Association
Women's Prison Association
The Women's Prison Association , founded 1845, is the oldest advocacy group for women in the United States. The organization has historically focused on New York City and New York State issues, but since 2004 it has also umbrella'd the Institute on Women & Criminal Justice, focusing on women and...
(WPA) clients were Irish immigrants struggling with alcohol dependency, made worse by the extreme poverty in which they lived. Gibbons and her staff worked tirelessly to provide these women with a place to stay, a supportive community, and practical skills training. They created programs for these women, who had previously only known poverty and trouble in their lives.