Rev. Judson Dwight Collins ' onMouseout='HidePop("76390")' href="/topics/Pinyin">Pinyin

Pinyin

Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...

: Kēlín; Foochow Romanized: Kŏ̤-lìng; February 12, 1823 - May 13, 1852) was the first Methodist

Methodist Episcopal Church

The Methodist Episcopal Church, sometimes referred to as the M.E. Church, was a development of the first expression of Methodism in the United States. It officially began at the Baltimore Christmas Conference in 1784, with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as the first bishops. Through a series of...

 missionary to China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

.

Life

On February 12, 1823, Judson Dwight Collins was born into a Methodist family in Rose

Rose, New York

Rose is a town in Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 2,442 at the 2000 census. The town was named after Robert S. Rose, an early landowner of the town....

, Wayne County

Wayne County, New York

Wayne County is a county located in the US state of New York. It is part of the Rochester, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area and lies on the south shore of Lake Ontario, forming part of the northern border of the United States with Canada. The name honors General Anthony Wayne, an American...

, New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

. His parents, Alpheus and Betsay Collins, were of English

English people

The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...

 and German origin. After graduation from the first class of the University of Michigan

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...

 in Ann Arbor in 1845, Collins served as an instructor for two years at the Wesleyan Seminary at Albion College

Albion College

Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are...

, teaching courses in Latin, Greek, chemistry, botany, and rhetoric.
In 1847, Collins was called to New York, where he was ordained an elder and commissioned along with M. C. White and his wife to China. They sailed from Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

 on April 15 and reached Foochow on September 6. To start an opening for the missionary work, Collins set up a school for boys in 1847 and another in 1848. He also worked with M. C. White on Bible translation and distribution of tracts. In 1850, he was appointed superintendent of the Foochow Mission.

Collins' short tenure in China was fraught with impediments and obstacles, including the strong Chinese xenophobia, the formidable language barrier, the poor sanitation and bad living conditions, and finally an illness that compelled him to return home to Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

 in 1851. He never regained his health afterwards, and at just 29 years of age, he died at his parents' home at Gregory, Lyndon Township

Lyndon Township, Michigan

Lyndon Township is a civil township of Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,728 as of the 2000 census.-Geography:The township is located in the northwest corner of Washtenaw County....

, Washtenaw County

Washtenaw County, Michigan

Washtenaw County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 344,791. Its county seat is Ann Arbor. The United States Office of Management and Budget defines the county as part of the Detroit–Warren–Flint Combined Statistical Area...

, Michigan, where he is buried, May of 1852, leaving no children.