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Bernice Thornton Banning

Bernice Thornton Banning

Female 1885 - 1954  (69 years)

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  • Name Bernice Thornton Banning 
    Born 21 Feb 1885  Providence, Rhode Island, USA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Female 
    Died 28 Sep 1954  Ventura, California, USA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I07405  Family Tree
    Last Modified 29 Apr 2018 

    Father Edwin Thomas Banning,   b. 11 May 1864, Danielson, Connecticut, USA Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 18 May 1940, San Diego, California, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 76 years) 
    Mother Isabella Thornton,   b. 10 Jun 1864, Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England, United Kingdom Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 15 Jun 1915, San Diego, California, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 51 years) 
    Married 13 Jun 1883  Taunton, Massachusetts, USA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Family ID F2531  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsBorn - 21 Feb 1885 - Providence, Rhode Island, USA Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsDied - 28 Sep 1954 - Ventura, California, USA Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth 
    Pin Legend  : Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set

  • Photos
    Beatrice Banning
    Beatrice Banning
    US Passport Photo
    Dr. Bernice T. Banning
    Dr. Bernice T. Banning
    First principal of the Buddhist Girls School in Ceylon from January to December 1917.

    Census
    1900 US Census
    1900 US Census
    Middletown, Newport County, Rhode Island
    1910 US Census
    1910 US Census
    Providence, Providence County, Rhode Island
    1930 US Census
    1930 US Census
    Ojai, Ventura County, California
    1940 US Census
    1940 US Census
    Ojai, Ventura County, California

  • Notes 
    • Bernice Thornton Banning was born on February 21, 1885, in Providence, Rhode Island, and graduated from Brown University in 1905 and the University of Wisconsin in 1910. In 1916, she set out for the Far East, to travel in Japan, China, and India, and to teach in Ceylon. She was appointed the first principal of the Buddhist Girls School in Ceylon and filled that post for a year, from January to December 1917. The school, founded by Celestina Dias, also known as Mrs. Jeremias Dias, was located in a house called "The Firs" on Turret Road in Colombo. Now called Visakha Vidyalaya, the school has since moved to larger quarters.

      After completing her stint at the Buddhist Girls School, Bernice continued in her travels in Ceylon and India. In 1923, she applied for a passport at Madras, India, so that she might stay on there "for the purpose of study and recreation, on behalf of the Theosophical Society." The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875 by Helena Blavatsky and her associates, established its International Headquarters in Madras, a suburb of Adyar, India, sometime before the turn of the century.

      I don't know how long Bernice Banning remained in the Orient, but by 1930, she had returned to the United States and was living in Meiners Oaks in the Ojai Valley of Ventura County, California. The head of her household was the elder Margaret Reed, Bernice's companion in her Asian travels. Bernice continued in her work as a teacher. (She had taught at least as far back as 1910 when she was a university instructor.) She also wrote, though perhaps only a little for publication. Her story, "Finger of Kali," was published in the Winter 1931 (or Dec. 1930-Jan. 1931) issue of Oriental Stories. Oriental Stories, then in its second issue, would have been the perfect place for Bernice to display her knowledge of the Far East. The only other credits I have found for her are pieces written for The Adyar Bulletin, a Theosophical publication, and printed in the July 1915 and February 1919 issues. Bernice T. Banning died on September 28, 1954, in Ventura County, California. She was 69 years old.
      -- Tellers of Weird Tales; Artists & Writers in The Unique Magazine