Lottie Moon
Charlotte Digges "Lottie" Moon (December 12, 1840 – December 24, 1912) was a Southern Baptist missionary who spent nearly forty years in China, but whose early life and family were closely tied to Albemarle County, Charlottesville, and Scottsville.
Moon was born at the family plantation, Viewmont, near Scottsville in Albemarle County, where a historical marker now commemorates her birthplace. In 1854, Lottie attended Albemarle Female Institute in Charlottesville; afterward she went onto Hollins University, graduating in 1861, she received one of the earliest advanced degrees awarded to a woman in the South.
Her family remained active in the region. Her sister, Oriana Moon Andrews, was a physician who served during the Civil War and later operated a hospital with her husband at Old Hall in Scottsville.
After beginning her career as a teacher, Moon was appointed a missionary to China in 1873. There she worked as an educator and evangelist under difficult conditions that included war, famine, and political upheaval. Through her writing and advocacy, she became an influential voice for missionary work and for expanding the role of women in the church.
Moon died of malnutrition in 1912 while returning to the United States, having given away much of her food and resources to those in need.
Her legacy endures through the annual “Lottie Moon Christmas Offering,” established in 1888 to support international missions.
References
- Adapted from the Wikipedia article Lottie Moon [1]
References
- Lottie Moon at Wikipedia