Any information on "Miss C. M. Nicholson" a missionary to Palestine?

[kealexander]

I  think I wasn't looking far enough into the 20th c. I was so frustrated that I couldn't find travel info.

The reason I've been researching her is that I am writing a book on a 20th c. American missionary, Margaret Gaines, who served first in Tunisia, then in Jerusalem, then in Aboud, Palestine. She worked for over 40 years in that village of Aboud. When she arrived in 1964, there had been no Protestant work there since that of an English missionary, "Miss Nicholson" in the early 20th c. "Miss Nicholson" was well-respected by all. So, I started searching for any mentions of her. I found numerous ones in missionary periodicals, mostly published by the CMS, that described her work, first with the Jaffa Medical Mission. I went to the Church Mission Society archive in Birmingham, but she was not registered as a CMS missionary. I went through reels of microfilm of letters sent to the Palestinian offices during that time period and finally found one with her initials. But even with that, I wasn't able to find her full identity. Then I found some references to the Palestine Village Mission and the Yale Divinity School archive had some records of PVM. The archivist there sent me copies and found that she was listed as "foundress," but still no full name. So, your hard work has filled out the picture for me. I have looked for records of Mildmay Deaconesses, but the earliest ones don't seem to exist; some later ones are housed in the archives of The London Hospital. When I finally get this published, I'll be sure to give RootsChat full credit!

[mckha489]

Best wishes with all of that. It sounds very interesting.

Just as aside, not one of the 5 daughters of John Wilson Nicholson had any children. Henriette and Laura lived on 'independent means"  Laura died in Tunbridge Wells - presume she was living with Christina then.
Only Alice and Marion married. 

So.... they sound like the sort of family that would have photographs, but who is going to have them? No descendants.

Maybe Martha's brother's family?

[kealexander]

I'm going to keep looking. These deaconesses were almost like nuns in that they sort of gave themselves to the life of the church and a kind of anonymity. They did keep their surnames, but were always just identified as "Miss _____." As I was searching all those CMS records, I was just sort of taken aback by how many of these women are probably forgotten.

Alice, her sister was living at the vicarage where Pennefather served! This may mean that Margaret was one of the early deaconesses. And if they were living at 1 Boltons in 1861, it is probably an indication that they were of some means (her father was a barrister and under-sheriff--though I have no idea about how those posts paid in 1861). Anyway, it was often the spinster-type from a family of means who made these kind of commitments. So, these little tid-bits do add up.