Coburn, Louise H.

The oldest of five children, Louise Helen Coburn was born on September 1, 1856 in Skowhegan, Maine. She entered Colby College in the Fall of 1873, becoming the second woman (after fellow Founder Mary Caffey Low) to graduate from Colby. Also like Mary, Louise would be added to the roll of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa honors society when it established a chapter at Colby in 1896.

After graduation, Louise attended the Harvard Summer School of Botany in 1880 and 1881, as well as Chicago University in 1893. She also studied abroad in France and Germany! Louise Coburn was honored by Colby College with the honorary degree of Litt. D.

Keenly aware of current affairs, Louise wrote many historical and literary papers. She also published poetry, with many of her poems collected in a volume titled “Kennebec and Other Poems.” Louise would serve as a trustee of all of her alma maters - the Bloomfield Academy in Skowhegan, the Coburn Classical Institute (formerly Waterville Classical Institute), and Colby College, where she broke barriers as the first female trustee. A devoted botanist, her herbarium held over 3,000 plants, an impressive collection that was donated to the University of Maine before her death.

Despite her many activities, Louise Coburn remained active in Sigma Kappa as well. She served as Chairman of the Coat-of-Arms Committee in 1908 and as a member of the Committee for the Revision of the Constitution in 1911. She also attended many conventions.

Louise Helen Coburn died on February 7, 1949 at the age of 93. She is buried in the Coburn lot of the Skowhegan cemetery.

Additional archival information about Louise H. Coburn can be found from the Colby College Special Collections: https://web.colby.edu/csc-home/low-coburn/