Mary Haskell
Kahlil Gibran, Portrait of Mary Haskell, 1910 (Telfair Museums)
Born
Mary Elizabeth Haskell

December 11, 1873
Columbia, South Carolina
DiedOctober 9, 1964(1964-10-09) (aged 90)
Resting placeLaurel Grove Cemetery (North), Savannah, Georgia
Spouse
Jacob Florance Minis
​
​
(m. 1926; died 1936)​

Mary Elizabeth Haskell, later Minis (December 11, 1873 – October 9, 1964), was an American educator, best known for having been the benefactress of Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist Kahlil Gibran.

Life

Haskell was born in Columbia, South Carolina, to Alexander Cheves Haskell and his second wife Alice Van Yeveren (Alexander, sister of Edward Porter Alexander).[1] She was educated at the Presbyterian College for women, Columbia, South Carolina, and Wellesley College, Massachusetts, A.B., 1897.[1]

She was the principal[2] of a private school for girls in Boston, known as Miss Haskell's School for Girls.[3] She taught here, along with her elder sister Louise Porter Haskell. In 1918, this school merged with The Cambridge School of Weston.

On May 7, 1926, she married Jacob Florance Minis (1852–1936), whose first wife had died in 1921.

Relationship with Kahlil Gibran

In 1904, she met Kahlil Gibran at an exhibition of his work at Fred Holland Day's studio,[4] where she had offered to let him display his work at her institution. [5] This interaction began what would come to be a lifelong friendship between Haskell and Gibran. She is known to have funded his artistic endeavors and edited his English writings. There is contention among biographers as to possible romantic dynamics between the two.[6] Some assert that they were never romantically involved,[7] while others assert they were, but that Haskell's family opposed the relationship.[8] Between 1910 and 1911, Gibran proposed to Haskell, and they were briefly engaged. In a book by Joseph P. Ghougassian, Gibran was said to have "offered to marry her" in order to "repay back in gratitude to Miss Haskell," even "though the idea in his mind was despicable."[9] Haskell broke off the engagement, claiming she preferred him as a friend, rather than spouse. She continued to be his patron and friend. [10]

Haskell financed Kahlil Gibran's trip to Paris, allowing for his studies at the Académie Julian and the École des Beaux-Arts. As an act of appreciation for Haskell's support and friendship, Gibran dedicated several of his writings to her memory.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 Historical and Genealogical Collections Relating to the Descendants of Rev. James Hillhouse, p. 200.
  2. ↑ https://bostonlookingbackward.wordpress.com/tag/mary-haskell/
  3. ↑ https://www.historicnewengland.org/explore/collections-access/gusn/196406/
  4. ↑ Art, Telfair Museum of (January 2005). Telfair Museum of Art: Collection Highlights. University of Georgia Press. p. 184. ISBN 9780933075047.
  5. ↑ Ghougassian, Joseph (1973). Kahlil Gibran: Wings of Thought; the people's philosopher. New York: Philosophical Library. pp. 28–29. ISBN 9780802221155. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  6. ↑ Otto, Annie Salem (1970). The Letters of Kahlil Gibran and Mary Haskell. Houston. ISBN 0394432983.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ↑ Acocella, Joan (December 30, 2007). "Prophet Motive: The Kahlil Gibran phenomenon". The New Yorker. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  8. ↑ Amirani, Shoku; Hegarty, Stephanie (May 12, 2012). "Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet: Why is it so loved?". BBC News. BBC World Service. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  9. ↑ Ghougassian, Joseph (1973). Kahlil Gibran: Wings of Thought; the people's philosopher. New York: Philosophical Library. p. 28. ISBN 9780802221155. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  10. ↑ Ghougassian, Joseph (1973). . Kahlil Gibran: Wings of Thought; the people's philosopher. New York: Philosophical Library. pp. 28–29. ISBN 9780802221155. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  11. ↑ Ghougassian, Joseph P. (1973). Kahlil Gibran: Wings of Thought; the people's philosopher. New York: Philosophical Library. pp. 29–30. ISBN 9780802221155. Retrieved March 3, 2023.

Sources

Further reading

  • Hilu, Virginia, ed. (1972). Beloved Prophet: the Love Letters of Khalil Gibran and Mary Haskell.
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