Mary Chase Walker graduated from Framingham Normal School in 1864, in the midst of the Civil War. With twenty years of teaching experience already, she entered the normal school in 1861 to further her career. The Framingham Normal School had been in operation for twenty-two years and had a highly respectable reputation by this point in history, certifying many accomplished young women and fostering their careers. By becoming certified, Walker could pursue a higher salaried job.
Born in Methuen and raised in southern New Hampshire, Walker had only ever known New England. She began teaching at fifteen years old and accepted very meager pay (only $4 a month) and lodgings, but gained valuable experience. After successfully completing her studies at Framingham she was making a salary of $400 per year, which was cut in half due to budgetary constraints brought on by the Civil War. Despite the anxiety that comes with leaving the familiar, Walker left her home to seek out better wages and more opportunity. In April of 1865, she bought a $375 ticket aboard a steamer traveling from New York to San Francisco, California. The four week expedition was a difficult one for her; she became violently seasick on the last leg of the journey. A black stewardess took care of Walker during her illness, an act of kindness which Walker would later repay.
Upon arriving in San Diego, she experienced culture shock. Her journals describe her dismay at the landscape, the people, and the weather, all so very different from New England. Despite these obstacles, she persevered and worked with the children of San Diego County to educate them. Perhaps her biggest and most egregious bout of culture shock occurred when the same black stewardess from the ship came into town, and Mary Chase Walker lunched with her at a prominent local restaurant. This innocent act ignited the town; people were outraged. Parents pulled their children out of Walker’s school. The townspeople cried out for her to be fired as she did not uphold proper moral character, and she was shunned by most of her neighbors. After much debate amongst the school board, she was forced to resign from her position.
After her resignation, she found employment under a local journalist, Rufus Porter, as a tutor to his daughter Rufina. While under his employ, she was frequently visited by Ephraim Morse, a co-founder of San Diego. He served on the school board, and was one of the people who voted to have her stay on as a teacher, but was of course overruled. Morse and Walker married on December 20, 1866.
Described as charitable and warm throughout her remarkable life, Walker is remembered as the first teacher of the San Diego public school, a steady and resilient educator, and a brave single woman who boldly travelled to new frontiers to make something of herself. She died in 1899, leaving behind a loving husband and an impressive legacy.