Cordelia Stanwood

Prior to her career as an ornithological-photographer, Stanwood was a teacher and a school principal, teaching grammar and art. Her writings appeared in popular magazines and included 20 scholarly articles in ornithological journals.

• Name — Cordelia Johnson Stanwood • Born — 8 January 1865 • Birthplace — Ellsworth, Maine USA • Died — 20 November 1958 • Place of death — Ellsworth, Maine USA • Fields — Ornithology Wildlife Photography • Education — Massachusetts College of Art and Design • Known for — Founding of Birdsacre Sanctuary Systematic investigations of bird behavior

Stanwood was the first of five children born to parents who were a wealthy merchant's daughter and a sea captain in Ellsworth, Maine. Her father was Roswell Leland Stanwood and her mother was Margaret Susan Stanwood (née Brown). Stanwood was named after her aunt Cordelia Johnson. At times, the family sailed with the father Roswell Leland Stanwood. Cordelia Stanwood was homeschooled until the age of 14, at which point she went to live with her aunt Cordelia Johnson, residing in Providence, Rhode Island. Stanwood often was known as "Cordie", a nickname she carried throughout her life. Growing up, her grandmother taught her various types of artisanship. In 1886, Stanwood graduated from an all-girls' high school in Providence. For the next year, she trained to become a teacher at the Providence Training School for Teachers, which was a normal school. She graduated in 1887, and her first teaching job was at Messer Street Training School. Stanwood desired to become a Critic Teacher at the school, to supervise the training of student teachers. To this end, Stanwood studied at the Martha's Vineyard Summer Arts Institute for a summer. This was where she first met Henry Bailey, a botanical artist who eventually became a mentor and friend. to Stanwood. Five years after being hired as a teacher, Bailey persuaded Stanwood to attend the Normal Arts School, later known as the Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston, Massachusetts. Stanwood was also a principal at this time. Unable to find employment in Boston following graduation, she returned to Providence, Rhode Island, to resume teaching. Through the year 1900, Stanwood taught elsewhere in schools in Massachusetts and New York. Stanwood passed several summers studying at the Martha's Vineyard Summer Arts Institute. Her experiences there re-kindled her interest in nature. She had opportunities to work with trained scientists, and she learned to combine the use of art and illustration in scientific observation, a skill that became instrumental in her career as an ornithologist. Stanwood deepened these skills in 1893 when she studied at the Massachusetts Normal Art School (later the Massachusetts College of Art)

• Illustration — Report of a Migration Sighting of a Northern Flicker, by Cordelia J. Stanwood At age 39, Stanwood had a "nervous breakdown", or neurasthenia, necessitating that she stop teaching, and was for several months at the Adams-Nervine Asylum. One historian reported that reasons for her neurasthenia included professional and financial pressures. As she recovered, Stanwood returned to her family home in Ellsworth, Maine, without resuming her teaching career. As she was recovering from her illness, Stanwood began birdwatching. She photographed and wrote about various bird species, emphasizing behavior observations, of which little was previously known. As her scientific observations developed, Stanwood corresponded with leading naturalists of the time, including John Burroughs and Frank Chapman. She published her findings in ornithological journals and various popular publications such as: "The Boys Scouts’ Yearbook, House Beautiful, Farm Mechanics, American Poultry Journal, and Nature Magazine." Although she was born into a home of financial means, Stanwood had little financial resources remaining at that stage of life. As she desired to be financially able to provide for herself, she thereby carried out various farm chores and selling her homemade crafts to earn an income. Her crafts included picture frames and woven products such as ornate baskets and rugs. Articles she wrote that were published in farming magazines and various popular magazines provided further income. Naturalist and writer Marcia Bonta states in her biography of Stanwood: "Too proud to accept help from anyone, even her siblings, she was reduced in her old age to selling greeting cards from door to door." • Illustration — Nashville Warbler, a species described extensively by Stanwood A particular area of expertise for Stanwood was the Wood warbler of Maine, more properly known as the Nashville warbler.