Biography

Mary Richardson Walker (April 1, 1811 โ€“ December 5, 1897)[1][2] was an American missionary. She was the daughter of Joseph and Charlotte Richardson of West Baldwin, Maine.[3] Both parents were school teachers and valued education for all their children. She attended Maine Wesleyan Seminary. Mary wanted to be a missionary and applied at the American Board of Missionaries, but she was turned down, because she was not married.[4]

William Thayer, a mutual friend of Mary Richardson and Elkanah Walker, knew they wanted to be missionaries, so he set up a meeting between them. After a 48-hour courtship, Elkanah proposed to Mary.[3] A year later on March 5, 1838, they married hurriedly so they could depart for the Oregon Country as missionaries.[5] -Wikipedia