Lyon, Mary (lī`ən), 1797–1849, American educator, founder of Mt. Holyoke College, b. Buckland, Mass. She attended three academies in Massachusetts; later she taught at Ashfield, Mass., Londonderry, N.H., and Ipswich, Mass. Interested in promoting the higher education of women, she won the aid of several influential men and succeeded (1837) in establishing Mt. Holyoke Female Seminary (later Mt. Holyoke College) at South Hadley, Mass. She served as principal for 12 years, directing the development of a well-rounded college program and emphasizing the principle of service to others.

Bibliography

See biographies by E. Banning (1965) and E. A. Green (1979); M. F. Lansing, ed., Mary Lyon through Her Letters (1937).

Lyon, Mary (Mason)

(born Feb. 28, 1797, near Buckland, Mass., U.S.—died March 5, 1849, South Hadley) U.S. pioneer in higher education for women. She studied at various academies, supporting herself from age 17 by teaching. Her success as a teacher and administrator, and the demand for the young women she had trained, led to her plan for a permanent instructional institution for women. The school she founded in South Hadley, Mass., opened in 1837 as the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary (the forerunner of Mount Holyoke College), and she served as its principal until her death.

Lyon, Mary (1797–1849) educator; born in Buckland, Mass. After teaching in Massachusetts and New Hampshire seminaries, she was the planner and founding principal (1837–49) of the first permanent women's college in the U.S.A., Mount Holyoke Female Seminary (later College). Lyon modeled the curriculum on that of Amherst College, but hired only female permanent faculty.