Henry Harris Jessup
Encyclopedia
Henry Harris Jessup was an American
Presbyterian
missionary, author, and a founder of the American University of Beirut
.
, Pennsylvania
, son of the jurist William Jessup (1797–1868). He was the grandfather of noted international jurist and diplomat Philip Jessup
. He enrolled at Cortland Academy in Homer, New York
for one year before attending Yale University
. He graduated from Yale in 1851 and from Union Theological Seminary
in 1855 at which point he was officially ordained; he immediately entered the foreign-missionary service of the Presbyterian church.
He spent his first four years of service in Tripoli, Lebanon
, devoting much time to leaning Arabic
at which he proved extremely deft. He married Caroline Bush during one trip back to America in 1857 and returned to Tripoli within a matter of months. During the Druse Revolts
, the Jessups moved to Beirut
and had three children. His wife took ill on sea voyage prescribed by a doctor and she died in Alexandria
, Egypt
. Jessup remarried in 1869 to Harriet Elizabeth Dodge with whom he had five children, though she too died in 1882. During one of his few trips back to America in 1884, Jessup married for the third and last time to Theodosia Davenport Lockwood.
Jessup served as the acting pastor for the Syrian Church of Beirut and superintendent of its school for thirty years, teaching almost any grade. He also became the first secretary of the Asfuriyeh Hosipital for the Insane, acted for a time as missionary editor for the Arabic journal El-Neshrah, and in 1866, was one of the founders of the Syrian Protestant College, now known as the American University of Beirut. Serving and teaching in Beirut tirelessly, he refused a professorship at Union Seminary in 1857, a position as secretary of the Presbyterian Board in 1870, and the post of United States minister to Persia in 1883.
Jessup also authored numerous books about Syrian history, which culminated in the work for which he is best known, Fifty-Three Years in Syria published in 1910, a two volume memoir and historical account of his life there. He died and was buried in Beirut.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism refers to a number of Christian churches adhering to the Calvinist theological tradition within Protestantism, which are organized according to a characteristic Presbyterian polity. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures,...
missionary, author, and a founder of the American University of Beirut
American University of Beirut
The American University of Beirut is a private, independent university in Beirut, Lebanon. It was founded as the Syrian Protestant College by American missionaries in 1866...
.
Biography
He was born at MontroseMontrose, Pennsylvania
Montrose is a borough in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania, United States, north by west of Scranton, Pennsylvania. Montrose was laid out in 1812 and incorporated as a borough on March 19, 1824. Its name is a combination of "mont", the French word for “mountain” and Rose, for Dr. L R. Rose, a...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, son of the jurist William Jessup (1797–1868). He was the grandfather of noted international jurist and diplomat Philip Jessup
Philip Jessup
Philip Caryl Jessup was a diplomat, scholar, and jurist from New York City.- Early life and education :Philip C. Jessup, the grandson of Henry Harris Jessup, received his undergraduate degree from Hamilton College in 1919. He then went on to earn a law degree from Yale Law School in 1924 and a Ph.D...
. He enrolled at Cortland Academy in Homer, New York
Homer, New York
Homer, New York may refer to either:*Homer , New York, located in Cortland County*Homer , New York, located within the Town of Homer...
for one year before attending Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
. He graduated from Yale in 1851 and from Union Theological Seminary
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York is a preeminent independent graduate school of theology, located in Manhattan between Claremont Avenue and Broadway, 120th to 122nd Streets. The seminary was founded in 1836 under the Presbyterian Church, and is affiliated with nearby Columbia...
in 1855 at which point he was officially ordained; he immediately entered the foreign-missionary service of the Presbyterian church.
He spent his first four years of service in Tripoli, Lebanon
Tripoli, Lebanon
Tripoli is the largest city in northern Lebanon and the second-largest city in Lebanon. Situated 85 km north of the capital Beirut, Tripoli is the capital of the North Governorate and the Tripoli District. Geographically located on the east of the Mediterranean, the city's history dates back...
, devoting much time to leaning Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
at which he proved extremely deft. He married Caroline Bush during one trip back to America in 1857 and returned to Tripoli within a matter of months. During the Druse Revolts
1860 Lebanon conflict
The 1860 Lebanon conflict was the culmination of a peasant uprising which began in the north of Lebanon as a rebellion of Maronite peasants against their Druze overlords. It soon spread to the south of the country where the rebellion changed its character, with Druze turning against the Maronite...
, the Jessups moved to Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
and had three children. His wife took ill on sea voyage prescribed by a doctor and she died in Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. Jessup remarried in 1869 to Harriet Elizabeth Dodge with whom he had five children, though she too died in 1882. During one of his few trips back to America in 1884, Jessup married for the third and last time to Theodosia Davenport Lockwood.
Jessup served as the acting pastor for the Syrian Church of Beirut and superintendent of its school for thirty years, teaching almost any grade. He also became the first secretary of the Asfuriyeh Hosipital for the Insane, acted for a time as missionary editor for the Arabic journal El-Neshrah, and in 1866, was one of the founders of the Syrian Protestant College, now known as the American University of Beirut. Serving and teaching in Beirut tirelessly, he refused a professorship at Union Seminary in 1857, a position as secretary of the Presbyterian Board in 1870, and the post of United States minister to Persia in 1883.
Jessup also authored numerous books about Syrian history, which culminated in the work for which he is best known, Fifty-Three Years in Syria published in 1910, a two volume memoir and historical account of his life there. He died and was buried in Beirut.
Writings
He wrote, besides various works for the American Press at Beirut:- The Women of the Arabs (1873) – http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/17278
- Syrian Home Life (1874) – http://www.archive.org/details/syrianhomelife00jessgoog
- The Mohammedan Missionary Problem (1879) – http://www.archive.org/details/mohammedanmissio00jessuoft
- The Greek Church and Protestant Missions (1884)
- The Setting of the Crescent and the Rising of the Cross (1898) – http://www.archive.org/details/settingofcrescen00jess
- Kamil, a Moslem Convert (1899)
- Fifty-Three Years in Syria (1910) – Volume 1 http://www.archive.org/details/fiftythreeyearsi011832mbp, Volume 2 http://www.archive.org/details/fiftythreeyearsi011830mbp