Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- Created 1865-1974 (Creation)
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Extent and medium
4 boxes
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Constance (Ethel) Cousins was born on 22 September 1882, in Antananarivo (Tananarive), Madagascar. She was the daughter of the Rev. William Edward Cousins, missionary to Madagascar with the London Missionary Society, 1862-1899. By 1885, Constance and her siblings had returned to England, where they attended the Walthamstow Hall School for the daughters of missionaries. Constance then attended Oxford University, gaining first class honours in Physiology in 1904.
In 1911, Constance Cousins' application to serve with the London Missionary Society was turned down on the grounds that she displayed the symptoms of latent epilepsy (a diagnosis never subsequently confirmed). In November 1911, she went to the Almora Sanatorium for Tuberculosis in North India as an unpaid medical assistant. The Church of Scotland ran the Sanatorium and in November 1913 she transferred to the Church of Scotland's medical mission at Kalimpong (North India). Her appointment to the mission staff was confirmed in January 1914. During her period of service at Kalimpong (1913-1923) she was requested to help combat a cholera epidemic in neighbouring Bhutan. Thus, in August 1918, she and her assistant, Nurse Brodie, became the first European women to be admitted to that country. In 1923 Cousins returned as a permanent member of staff to the Almora Sanatorium. She also obtained a diploma from the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in London. She continued to work at Almora until her death in May 1944.
Archival history
GB 0102 MS 380325 Created 1865-1974 Collection (fonds) 4 boxes Cousins , Ethel Constance , 1882-1944 , medical missionary
Constance (Ethel) Cousins was born on 22 September 1882, in Antananarivo (Tananarive), Madagascar. She was the daughter of the Rev. William Edward Cousins, missionary to Madagascar with the London Missionary Society, 1862-1899. By 1885, Constance and her siblings had returned to England, where they attended the Walthamstow Hall School for the daughters of missionaries. Constance then attended Oxford University, gaining first class honours in Physiology in 1904.
In 1911, Constance Cousins' application to serve with the London Missionary Society was turned down on the grounds that she displayed the symptoms of latent epilepsy (a diagnosis never subsequently confirmed). In November 1911, she went to the Almora Sanatorium for Tuberculosis in North India as an unpaid medical assistant. The Church of Scotland ran the Sanatorium and in November 1913 she transferred to the Church of Scotland's medical mission at Kalimpong (North India). Her appointment to the mission staff was confirmed in January 1914. During her period of service at Kalimpong (1913-1923) she was requested to help combat a cholera epidemic in neighbouring Bhutan. Thus, in August 1918, she and her assistant, Nurse Brodie, became the first European women to be admitted to that country. In 1923 Cousins returned as a permanent member of staff to the Almora Sanatorium. She also obtained a diploma from the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in London. She continued to work at Almora until her death in May 1944.
Donated in 1980.
Papers, 1865-1974, of and relating to (Ethel) Constance Cousins, including correspondence with her family, photographs, press cuttings and the unpublished typescript biography by her niece Janet E. Cousins. Also includes letters dated 1893-1900 from her father, Rev. William Edward Cousins, chiefly from Madagascar.
The material has been arranged into seven sections: biography; family letters; education and life in England 1890-1911; early years in India: Almora, North India, 1911-1913; years in Kalimpong 1913-1923 (including a journey to Bhutan, August 1918); the second period at Almora 1923-1944; general.
Unrestricted.
No publication without written permission. Apply to archivist in the first instance.
English
Unpublished handlist.
15 May 2000 Actinomycetales infections Almora Ancient religions Anglicanism Asia Asian cultures Bhutan Biographies Children of missionaries Christianity Church of Scotland Church of Scotland medical mission , Kalimpong, India Church of Scotland sanatorium for tuberculosis , Almora, India Clergy Cousins , Ethel Constance , 1882-1944 , medical missionary x Cousins , Constance Cousins , family , of England and Madagascar Cousins , Janet E , fl 1947-1974 Cousins , William Edward , b 1840 , missionary Diseases Druk-Yul East Africa Educational systems Health services India Kalimpong Lay missionaries Literary forms and genres Literature Madagascar Medical centres Medical missionaries Medical missionary work Missionaries Missionary Society x LMS , London Missionary Society x London Missionary Society Missionary work National cultures Newspaper press Ordained missionaries Pathology Photographs Press Press cuttings Prose Protestantism Religions Religious activities Religious groups Religious institutions Religious movements Social sciences Social welfare South Asia Students Travel Travel abroad Tuberculosis University of Oxford x Oxford University Uttar Pradesh Visual materials West Bengal Women missionaries Womens education Womens missionary work Women students Catholicism
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Donated in 1980.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Papers, 1865-1974, of and relating to (Ethel) Constance Cousins, including correspondence with her family, photographs, press cuttings and the unpublished typescript biography by her niece Janet E. Cousins. Also includes letters dated 1893-1900 from her father, Rev. William Edward Cousins, chiefly from Madagascar.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
The material has been arranged into seven sections: biography; family letters; education and life in England 1890-1911; early years in India: Almora, North India, 1911-1913; years in Kalimpong 1913-1923 (including a journey to Bhutan, August 1918); the second period at Almora 1923-1944; general.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Unrestricted.
Conditions governing reproduction
No publication without written permission. Apply to archivist in the first instance.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
- Latin
Language and script notes
English
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
Unpublished handlist.
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
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Publication note
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Subject access points
- Religions » Ancient religions
- National cultures » Asian cultures
- Literary forms and genres » Prose » Biographies
- Religions » Ancient religions » Christianity
- Religious groups » Clergy
- Pathology » Diseases
- Educational systems
- Health services
- Literary forms and genres
- Literature
- Health services » Medical centres
- Religious activities » Missionary work
- National cultures
- Press » Newspaper press
- Pathology
- Visual materials » Photographs
- Press
- Press » Newspaper press » Press cuttings
- Literary forms and genres » Prose
- Religions » Ancient religions » Christianity » Protestantism
- Religions
- Religious activities
- Religious groups
- Religious institutions
- Religious institutions » Religious movements
- Social sciences
- Social welfare
- Students
- Travel
- Travel » Travel abroad
- Visual materials
- Educational systems » Womens education
- Students » Women students
- Religions » Ancient religions » Christianity » Catholicism
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Language(s)
- English