Mary Ann Hatten White
Schoolteacher. Born: January 3, 1830, New York. Married: Allen White April 15, 1867. Died: May 6, 1924, Emporia, Kansas.
Mary Ann Hatten White was born to Thomas and Ann Kelly Hatten, in Oswego, New York, on January 3, 1830. After moving the family to New York, her parents died, leaving 16-year-old Mary to care for her younger siblings. She worked her way through Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. Hatten moved to Kansas in 1864 and became a teacher in Council Grove. In her first teaching appointment, she invited an African American girl to her classroom and lost her job due to the Southern sympathizers.
She then met and married Dr. Allen White April 15, 1867. Together they had two sons, William Allen and Frederick Hatten, the latter dying at five months. The family moved to El Dorado, Kansas, in 1869. The Whites engaged in farming for a time, and from 1879 to 1881 operated their home as a hotel, called "The White House."
Mary died May 6, 1924, in Emporia.
Entry: White, Mary Ann Hatten
Author: Kansas Historical Society
Author information: The Kansas Historical Society is a state agency charged with actively safeguarding and sharing the state's history.
Date Created: April 2012
Date Modified: July 2012
The author of this article is solely responsible for its content.
