Who is Emilia Clay, first black person to live in Finland, Rosa1890s, Sortavala
Rosa Emilia Clay was born in 1875 as the illegitimate daughter of a Namibian woman and a British merchant. She was raised by British missionaries. At the age of four, she was adopted by the Finnish missionary Karl Weikkolin. Karl was known as a kind man, but his wife treated the foster daughter like a servant.
The Weikkolins returned to Finland in 1888, taking Rosa with them. They traveled around Finland having Rosa sing at religious events in order to collect money. After this Rosa received a typical middle-class education. At the age of 19 was admitted to the Sortavala Seminar to study to become a teacher. She did well in the arts and was chosen as the leader of the school choir.
In 1898 Rosa graduated as a teacher and became the first African to receive Finnish citizenship. She started working as a school teacher in a tiny rural village but was soon forced to leave because of problems with prejudiced locals. She moved to the city of Tampere, where she thrived and became a well-liked teacher.
In 1903 Rosa fell in love with a wealthy Russian doctor, and they became engaged. But the romance ended in tragedy when the man shot himself a few weeks before the wedding.
Deeply shocked, Rosa decided that she needed a change of scenery, and left for America. She lived among other Finnish immigrants, married a Finnish writer, and had two children.
She became an important member of the American Finnish socialist community and an influential figure in the cultural life of American Finns. She lead a choir, directed plays, sang, and performed at Finnish community halls. Her beautiful voice earned her the nickname “The Finnish Sarah Bernhardt”.
