Middlebury
College Web Museum
Mary Elizabeth Allen Martin was a female missionary who traveled to various regions of China during the middle of the 19th century. She traveled with her husband and child. Although she rarely mentions her husband, as he is deeply involved in religious activities, she tells much about her personal life as well as her son's. This well kept diary helps provide a window into the life of a woman of the 19th century. Although she spends much of her time in the home, caring for her son, Eddie, she also explores the country and meets many new people during her time. Her fifty-five page diary tells of her life up until her death in May of 1865.