Sunday, March 27, 2016

NELLIE FRENCH STEVENS, A DEDICATED ADVOCATE FOR MAINE'S YOUTH


The Industrial School for Girls in Hallowell opened its doors in 1875 as a place of refuge and learning for neglected and vagrant girls ages seven to fifteen. The founders believed that with kindness, practical training and physical activity the girls could be groomed for useful and honorable lives.

The school was placed under state control in 1899, and in 1915 the name was changed to the State School for Girls. Early accounts of its conditions were somewhat unfavorable. Conditions at most institutions like this were not ideal in those years and the inmates, as they were then called, did not have a well-intentioned advocate like Nellie French Stevens until later.

Stevens has been described as gentile, humble, strong willed, capable and a maverick. She was also completely dedicated to reforming the school and “her girls” from the day she arrived in 1933. Her approach was new, even ground breaking and helped set a national trend.

Nell, as she was warmly called, was born in 1891, the youngest daughter of Charles H. and Charlotte (French) Stevens of Readfield.  Her father was a successful farmer and, for many years, the treasurer of the Kennebec County Agricultural Fair. He was given much credit for its being the largest and most successful county fair in Maine. Stevens’ 150 acre farm was ideally located near Lake Maranacook, a half-mile from the bustling village of Readfield Corner, and two miles from Maine Wesleyan Seminary and Female College (Kents Hill School). Nell received training at the Morse Conservatory of Music at the Seminary, became an adept pianist and pursued music as her career. But her course was set in another direction long before she realized it.

In 1865 Nell’s great-uncle, Rev. John L. Stevens, and her maternal grandfather, E.R. French, had witnessed the incarceration of a fourteen year old girl for a minor offense, and they began advocating for a school for wayward girls. The family rallied around the concept from the beginning, and E. R. French gave the first fundraising donation in 1870 towards building the Industrial School for Girls in Hallowell.  Stevens’ aunt, Fannie French Morse, was a pioneer in this field, having been superintendent at three Industrial Schools - in Lancaster, Massachusetts, Sauk Center, Minnesota, and lastly in Hudson, New York. Two of Stevens’ relatives served as housemothers at the school in Hallowell and her sister Edwina worked there as a “farm lady”, years before Stevens arrived. The mission had subtly become ingrained in her soul.

Stevens had been assistant director at Coburn Classical Institute in Waterville for ten years when she took a one-month absence to visit her aunt Fannie at the Industrial School for Girls in Hudson, NY. Stevens immediately became drawn to that mission and remained as French’s assistant for three years. She then joined the staff at the Massachusetts Reformatory for Women, for nine months, until she was offered the superintendency at Maine’s State School for Girls. By then the school in Hallowell was described as “penal and corrective in nature” – a deviation from its original purpose.

In 1937 Superintendent Stevens presented the annual report saying: “…the girls ‘crimes’ consist mostly of truancy, running away from home, disorderly conduct and ‘wanton and lascivious behavior’… only two or three of them were accused of anything as serious as assault or larceny… the school tries hard to improve the girls but the institution cannot work miracles such as changing the habits of fourteen or fifteen years…”. She had a big job ahead of her, but she was up to the task.

Stevens’ grand-niece, Susan Welsh of Wayne, tells how her aunt Nell spoke about “her girls” in glowing terms. So much so that Welsh, as a youngster, perceived the State School for Girls as a boarding school where young women were trained in the finer things, attended teas and learned music, arts and the classics. In fact, Stevens did expose “her girls” to all that and more in her quest to improve their chances for a good life as adults. In January, 1958 Portland Sunday Telegram ran a feature story about the school and Stevens. The reporter interviewed staff and young residents and returned with glowing reports of Stevens’ efforts and the school’s positive impact on the girl’s lives. He wrote: “While she has brought about gradual change since her administration began one fundamental principle has guided her.” He quoted Stevens by adding “…These are not problem children. These are children with problems… Young people want emotional security more than anything else under the sun and that’s what’s been lacking in their lives when they get into trouble. We try to give it to them here.

Nellie Stevens served as Chair of the National Conference of Women Superintendents. She was also treasurer of the Maine Welfare Association, and active in other professional organizations.  In 1957 she was awarded a Doctorate of Humane Letters by Nasson College and thereafter called Dr. Stevens. A short time before her retirement she attended a national seminar in New York.  Afterwards she told her sister “I must be getting out of touch. The only person I knew there, who I could carry on a conversation with, was Margaret Meade!” Perhaps that was when she decided to retire.

Stevens’ final year at the school was in 1959 when, as she presided over her final graduation, a special announcement was made. The State School for Girls would be officially renamed the Stevens Training Center in Dr. Stevens’ honor.

Stevens’ longtime friend, Grace Burleigh of Wayne, tells of one time several years after Stevens’ retirement, when the two women went to observe the Maine State Legislature in session. “We quietly made our way to the balcony”, said Burleigh, “No one knew we were coming, but the Speaker of the House spotted Nell and announced to the legislators they had an important visitor.” The entire House rose, turned to face the balcony, and gave Stevens a standing ovation. “She stood up to receive their applause”, said Burleigh, “but only because I insisted. She was a very humble lady.” Burleigh also related that Stevens continued to support and care about downtrodden youth throughout her days, and told Burleigh she thought the State of Maine made a mistake when they closed the Stevens School in 1970.

After retiring Stevens set-up residence in her cozy bungalow in Wayne, adjacent to her sister Edwina and husband.  This could be the end of her story, but far from it. She continued to serve on various welfare committees, was given a certificate of merit by the Maine Welfare Association and was in demand for public speaking engagements. She dove into music as church organist and choir director at Wayne Community Church. She became well known for the bell ringer groups she started in Wayne, Winthrop and South Portland, where she travelled weekly to direct a group of ringers at the South Portland Training Center. According to Welsh many of the gals who Stevens mentored over the years stayed in touch, and her pride and interest in them never waned.

Nellie French Stevens died in 1988 at age ninety-eight. She is buried with her parents and two siblings in Readfield Corner Cemetery, a short distance from her childhood home.


(c) 2015 All Rights Reserved Dale Potter-Clark
This story appeared in Discover Maine Magazine, Western Lakes and Mountains, 2015-16

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