Henry Appenzeller

Life

Appenzeller was born in 1858 in Souderton, Pennsylvania. His paternal ancestors are said to have come from the Appenzell region of Switzerland and to have emigrated to America in the eighteenth century, settling in Pennsylvania. He arrived in Korea in April 1885 with his wife, Ella, as a missionary of the Methodist Episcopal Church (North). His Korean name was Apyeonseolla (亞篇薛羅).

In May 1902, at the Annual Conference held in Pyongyang, he was appointed district superintendent (a supervisory office overseeing a number of churches) for the southern region of Korea. On June 11 of that year, he boarded a ship at Chemulpo bound for a meeting of Bible translators in Mokpo. The vessel was involved in a collision off Eocheongdo Island, and he died at the age of forty-four. According to accounts, he was unable to escape because he was trying to rescue a Korean assistant and a student of Jeongsin Girls' School who were traveling with him. His body was never recovered; a cenotaph (a tomb without remains) stands in the Yanghwajin Foreign Missionary Cemetery in Seoul.

Ministry and Accomplishments

• Education: On August 3, 1885, he began teaching English and modern subjects to two students in his home, marking the beginning of Paichai Hakdang. As enrollment grew, King Gojong bestowed the name "Paichai Hakdang" on the school, along with a signboard bearing the name. The school later acquired a brick classroom building and a dormitory and established an industrial department for self-supporting students (students who worked while studying).
• Church planting: He founded a church that began with a Communion service held in his residence on October 11, 1885. In September 1887 he purchased a larger building and moved the congregation's place of worship there; this church became Chungdong First Methodist Church. He was also involved in founding Naeri Church in Incheon.
• Early evangelism: Because open missionary work was not permitted in the early years of his ministry, he devoted himself chiefly to teaching English. During this period he also assisted when a Korean, Noh Chun-kyung, was baptized.
• Bible translation: He participated in the Bible translation project together with missionaries of other denominations. He died while on his way to a meeting of the translators.

Influence on the Korean Church

Chungdong First Methodist Church and Paichai Hakdang, both founded by Appenzeller, are regarded as the starting points of Korean Methodism. The Korean Methodist Church honors him as the first missionary of Korean Methodism. Paichai Hakdang continues today as Pai Chai University and Pai Chai Middle and High Schools. His son, Henry Dodge Appenzeller, served as principal of the Paichai School for twenty years, and his daughter, Alice Rebecca Appenzeller, contributed to the development of Ewha Hakdang. His ministry was thus carried on into the next generation of his family.

Assessment and Commemoration

Appenzeller is regarded as a representative figure of the first generation of Protestant missionaries to Korea. He is chiefly praised for pursuing education, church planting, and Bible translation together. Facilities commemorating him include the following:

• Appenzeller Hall, Yonsei University (completed 1924; designated a Historic Site)
• Appenzeller Martyrdom Memorial Church, Gunsan (completed 2007)
• Appenzeller Memorial Hall, Seocheon (built 2012)

Depending on the commemorating body, his death is described either as "martyrdom" (death on account of faith) or as "death in the line of duty" (death while carrying out one's work). The Appenzeller Memorial Association was established in 2019. In the 2020s, the Institute for Korean Church History conducted research based on contemporary records to determine where the ship sank. No systematic critical assessment of his work was identified in the preparation of this article.