Dan Beach Bradley M.D. (
18 July 1804 –
23 June 1873) was an
American Protestant missionary to
Siam from 1835 until his death.
Early life
Dan Beach Bradley was born on
18 July 1804 at
Marcellus, New York, the son of Judge Dan Bradley of Whitehall, New York, and Eunice Beach, who died soon after giving birth to her son. Dedicated to serve the Lord during a revival season, he studied medicine at the
College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, in the hope of being able to work as a medical missionary.
In November 1832, he was accepted as a missionary physician by the
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM). He graduated with his M.D. in April 1833, and in 1834 he married
Emilie Royce after a brief mail courtship, before setting sail together for Siam. Emilie, like Bradley, wanted to serve the Lord as a missionary among the "heathen".
Mission to Siam
On
2 July 1834, the Bradleys and a company of ABCFM and
Baptist missionaries set off with prayer and hymn singing on their voyage to Asia. After six arduous months, the Bradleys arrived at Singapore but it was a further six months before they could make their way to Siam. They finally reached Bangkok on
18 July 1835.
Emilie had never been well from the beginning of their service in Siam. In August 1845, she died of tuberculosis. On her deathbed she had a vision of the glory of God and died with her love of Jesus unbroken.
During his first few years Bradley suffered from chronic diarrhoea, but later he enjoyed 30 years of almost unbroken good health. He established a daily routine of cold baths, plain food and total abstinence from intoxicating beverages. A healthy variety of cares enabled him to find rest by turning from one task to another. Always there was Bible reading, hymn singing, prayer and family worship.
From ABCFM to AMA
Bradley's service was interrupted by his espousal of the controversial doctrine of
Christian Perfectionism, that freedom from sin is attainable while still living on this earth. The ABCFM regarded this as heresy and recalled him to America. On December 4, 1847, he had to resign, leaving his Siam mission without support.
In January 1848 he became associated with the
American Missionary Association (AMA). While in America trying to raise funds for his mission, he met Sarah Blachly, who became his second wife on
1 Oct 1848. At the end of October 1849, they set sail for Siam and after a voyage even more difficult than the first, he was able to resume his vocation in Bangkok by the end of May 1850. This would be his only time away from Siam during his 35 years in the country.
The AMA only gave limited support, so much of his time in Bangkok had to be spent making money to support his mission. Donations received in respect of medical services rendered (which were gratuitous) were also put to that purpose.
Accomplishments
Despite many years of preaching and distributing tracts, Bradley barely succeeded in converting one single person to Christianity. His main successes were in the fields of printing and publishing, in his influence with Kings
Mongkut and
Chulalongkorn and in American consular affairs and, above all, as a pioneer in the introduction of Western medicine to Siam where the introduction of vaccination against smallpox was among his most memorable achievements.
He founded the first ever newspaper in Siam, the
Bangkok Recorder, which was published monthly 1844-1845, and again 1865-1867. He also printed the annual almanac
Bangkok Calendar from 1859 till his death.
Death and legacy
Bradley died on June 23, 1873, a few weeks shy of his 69th birthday. He is buried in the
Bangkok Protestant Cemetery.
In 1981, Bangkok Christian Hospital began construction on a new 13-story edifice named in Bradley's honor: Mo Bradley Building (). It officially opened on August 3, 1987.
The grave of Dan Beach Bradley in the Bangkok Protestant Cemetery
.
See also
