Amy Segerstedt

Amy Segerstedt (12 November 1835 – 16 November 1928) was a Swedish teacher, folk teacher, and philanthropist. She was the founder of the Braille Loan Library in Stockholm, and the (Association for Braille) in Sweden. She was particularly interested in girls' vocational training.

Biography Amy Johanna Fredrika Segerstedt was born in Åmål on 12 November 1835. Her father was Fredrik Segerstedt (died 1856), a provincial doctor in Åmål. She had three sisters, Amy, Lovisa, and Wilhelmina, as well as one brother, Vitalis.

The family moved to Uppsala in 1860, where Segerstedt trained as a teacher at Klosterskolan (Thengbergska school) in 1861. She worked in 1861–1874 as a governess and in 1874–1879, as a teacher at Clara Lind's girls' school in Gävle. Her final year of training, 1879–1880, was at a teacher seminar at Falu folk high school seminar, where she graduated in 1880. That same year, she became director of the newly established elementary school for girls in Åmål. After studying the "Hillic speech method" at schools for the deaf in Denmark and Norway, she became the director of Tysta skolan ('Silent school') in Stockholm in 1882, remaining until 1894.

In 1901, Segerstedt and her younger sister Helmina moved to Gothenburg, and in 1912, Segerstedt moved back to Åmål to be close to her oldest sister, Louise Larsson. Segerstedt died on 16 November 1928 and is buried in her brother-in-law's (Petter Larsson) family grave at Åmål cemetery.