Maud McKnight Lindsay
Maud McKnight Lindsay (1874–1941) was an American educator. She is best known for being the founder of the first free kindergarten in Alabama, and a friend of Helen Keller. In 1995, she was inducted into the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame.[1]
Biography
She was born on May 13, 1874, in Tuscumbia, Alabama, to Robert Burns Lindsay, a politician, and Sarah Miller Lindsay. She was the last of the family's nine children to be born. Maud was homeschooled before entering the Deshler Female Institute. As a child she was friends with Helen Keller.[2]
Lindsay learned from the kindergarten teacher Jeanne Pettit Cooper, and initially taught music at a kindergarten in Tuscumbia. In 1898, she founded, and became a teacher at the first free kindergarten in Alabama.[3]
Lindsay was also an author and poet. She published over 18 children books. The first was Mrs. Speckelty Hen.[2]
She was the third president of the Alabama Writers Conclave, and involved in several other clubs. Lindsay died on May 30, 1941.[2]
References
- ^ "Maud McKnight Lindsay (1874-1941)". Alabama Women's Hall of Fame. November 10, 2025. Archived from the original on November 10, 2025. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ^ a b c Butler, Mary S. (Summer 1941). "Maud McKnight Lindsay". The Alabama Historical Quarterly. 3 (2). Alabama Department of Archives and History: 178–188. Retrieved November 10, 2025 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Garner, Anita Miller (October 3, 2025) [Originally published 2009-08-06]. "Maud McKnight Lindsay". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Archived from the original on November 10, 2025. Retrieved November 10, 2025.