Kate Youngman
Encyclopedia
Kate M. Youngman was an American missionary who established the Ihaien leprosy
hospital in Tokyo
, Japan
, in 1894. It was active from 1894 until 1942.
, on December 17, 1841. Her mother died when she was 14 and her father died when she was 17. Her fianceé died in the American Civil War
when she was 21. She was dispatched to Japan as a missionary in 1873 by the American Presbyterian Church
, when the freedom of faith was ascertained in Japan. She worked as a teacher and missionary at Shin-ei Girls' School. In 1877, she established the "Kohzensha", a Christian organization which was dedicated to the propagation of Christianity, education, and charity. In 1892, Youngman found that a Christian developed leprosy and escaped from a Catholic leprosy hospital because of difference of religion. Youngman proposed that another facility be made for leprosy patients to live without fear of spiritual conflict, but The Presbyterian Church rejected her proposal for funding the project. However, in 1894, the Mission to Lepers began funding her organization. In October, 1894, Ihaien was started on 4,950 square meters of land at Meguro, Tokyo
. Kitasato Shibasaburo
proposed to send doctors and supplies if Ihaien would change to a hospital which was accomplished in 1899.
Youngman herself was reluctant to the hospitalization of the organization, and lost interest in the project. In 1910, she left the Kohzensha and died on September 29, 1910 after 12 days in bed. Her monument is in Somei, Tokyo.
.
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
hospital in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, in 1894. It was active from 1894 until 1942.
History
Kate M. Youngman was born in Kingston, New YorkKingston, New York
Kingston is a city in and the county seat of Ulster County, New York, USA. It is north of New York City and south of Albany. It became New York's first capital in 1777, and was burned by the British Oct. 16, 1777, after the Battles of Saratoga...
, on December 17, 1841. Her mother died when she was 14 and her father died when she was 17. Her fianceé died in the American 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...
when she was 21. She was dispatched to Japan as a missionary in 1873 by the American Presbyterian Church
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
The Presbyterian Church , or PC, is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States. Part of the Reformed tradition, it is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the U.S...
, when the freedom of faith was ascertained in Japan. She worked as a teacher and missionary at Shin-ei Girls' School. In 1877, she established the "Kohzensha", a Christian organization which was dedicated to the propagation of Christianity, education, and charity. In 1892, Youngman found that a Christian developed leprosy and escaped from a Catholic leprosy hospital because of difference of religion. Youngman proposed that another facility be made for leprosy patients to live without fear of spiritual conflict, but The Presbyterian Church rejected her proposal for funding the project. However, in 1894, the Mission to Lepers began funding her organization. In October, 1894, Ihaien was started on 4,950 square meters of land at Meguro, Tokyo
Meguro, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It calls itself Meguro City in English.Meguro hosts fifteen foreign embassies and consulates. One of Tokyo's most exclusive residential neighborhoods is located in Meguro....
. Kitasato Shibasaburo
Kitasato Shibasaburō
Baron was a Japanese physician and bacteriologist. He is remembered as the co-discoverer of the infectious agent of bubonic plague in Hong Kong in 1894, almost simultaneously with Alexandre Yersin.-Biography:...
proposed to send doctors and supplies if Ihaien would change to a hospital which was accomplished in 1899.
Youngman herself was reluctant to the hospitalization of the organization, and lost interest in the project. In 1910, she left the Kohzensha and died on September 29, 1910 after 12 days in bed. Her monument is in Somei, Tokyo.
Ihaien Hospital
The original idea of the Ihaien was to house people with leprosy and let them live with spiritual comfort. Kitasato Shibasaburo, a famous doctor at the Institute of Infectious Diseases belonging to the Interior Ministry, sent a doctor and also patients in 1899 when it was changed to a hospital. The hospital's patients numbered about 50 and were also quite poor. In addition to them, the government sent patients called Seikan (government patients) which sometimes led to strife between them and the already established patients. The Ihaien Hospital was closed in 1942 because of financial difficulties, and 55 patients were transferred to Tama Zenshoen SanatoriumTama Zenshoen Sanatorium
Tama Zenshoen Sanatorium, or National Sanatorium Tama Zenshoen, is a sanatorium for leprosy or ex-leprosy patients situated in Higashimurayama-shi, Tokyo-to, Japan starting in 1909.-Background:...
.
Further reading
- History of leprosy in Japan Shun-ichi Yamamoto. University of Tokyo Press, 1993. ISBN4-13-060404-X C3047
- Even their footsteps have disappeared. Christians in the history of leprosy in Japan. Mikiro Mori, Yorudan-sha.ISBN4-8428-0214-6 C0036
- Modernization of medicine and foreigners. Hajima Muneta. Sekai Hoken Tsushinsha. ISBN4-88114-607-6 C0047
- Japan Christianity History Encyclopedia Kyobunkan, 1988
- The Ihaien and the Ihaien and "Seikan", Hirai Y: National Hansen's Disease Museum Research Bulletin No.1 p30-43, 2010.
- Aru Gunzo, 100 Years of Kohzensha Kohzensha, 1978.