Isabel Hapgood was born on November 21, 1851 in Boston Massachusetts. Her parents were Asa Hapgood and Lydia Anna Bronson Crossley who were of English-Scottish decent. Isabel had two brothers Asa Gustavus, a twin, and William Frank Hapgood. Isabel grew up in the family living in Worcester, Massachusetts. Isabel’s education came through attendance at private schools, Oread Collegiate Institute in Worcester between 1863 and 1865, and then transferred to Miss Procter’s School in Farmington, Connecticut, graduating in 1868, the year her father died. She showed a great aptitude for languages, mastering most Romance and Germanic languages as well as the Slavic languages of Russian, Polish, and Church Slavonic.
After her first trip to Russia, Isabel returned annually to Russia. Enchanted with the Russian choral singing, she embarked on a course of making the beauty of the Orthodox liturgy available in English. This course of action led to the translation of the Service Book that carries her name. The succession of Bishops of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands warmly supporting her efforts: Archbishop Nicholas gave her a complete set of Church Slavonic texts for use in her translation effort. Abp. Tikhon provided her practical advice and was remembered by Miss Hapgood as a sincere friend. The first edition appeared in 1906. The preparation of the Service Book was considered by Isabel Hapgood as a “gift of love”. For her eleven years of labor she was provided an honorarium of $500. Ms. Hapgood died on June 26, 1928.
(Source Orthodox Wiki)