Anne Jemima Clough (20 January 182027 February 1892) was an early English

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to vo ...

and a promoter of higher education for women. She was the first principal of

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...

Life

Clough was born at

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, the daughter of cotton merchant James Butler Clough and Anne (née Perfect). James Butler Clough was a younger son of a landed gentry family that had been living at Plas Clough in

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthi ...

since 1567. Anne's brother was

Arthur Hugh Clough Arthur Hugh Clough ( ; 1 January 181913 November 1861) was an English poet, an educationalist, and the devoted assistant to Florence Nightingale. He was the brother of suffragist Anne Clough and father of Blanche Athena Clough, who both becam ...

, the poet and assistant to

Florence Nightingale Florence Nightingale (; 12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was an English Reform movement, social reformer, statistician and the founder of modern nursing. Nightingale came to prominence while serving as a manager and trainer of nurses during th ...

. When two years old she was taken with the rest of the family to

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

. It was not till 1836 that she returned to

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

. Anne's own education was entirely at home, as was common for middle and upper-class women of the time. She worked as a volunteer in a Liverpool

charity school Charity schools, sometimes called blue coat schools, or simply the Blue School, were significant in the history of education in England. They were built and maintained in various parishes by the voluntary contributions of the inhabitants to ...

and became determined to run a school of her own. When her father became bankrupt in 1841, she took the opportunity to set up a small day school. This enabled her to contribute financially, while fulfilling her interest in education. She subsequently worked at the

Borough Road Borough Road is in Southwark, London SE1. It runs east–west between St George's Circus and Borough High Street. History and location The route was created as part of the planning and road improvements associated with the completion of ...

School and the

Home and Colonial School Society The Home and Colonial School Society was a Church of England institution founded in 1836 by Elizabeth Mayo, Charles Mayo, James Pierrepont Greaves and John S. Reynolds for the education of children and the training of teachers especially by the ...

. After her father's death, she moved to

Ambleside Ambleside is a town in the civil parish of Lakes and the Westmorland and Furness district of Cumbria, England. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Westmorland and located in the Lake District National Park, the town sits at the ...

, setting up a school for local children and boarders, Eller How. On the death of her brother Arthur, she moved to Surrey, to support her sister-in-law Blanche Clough in bringing up their three small children. The youngest daughter,

Blanche Athena Clough Blanche Athena Clough (1861–1960) was a British classicist and educational administrator who was the Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge (1920–1923). Biography Clough came up to Newnham College, Cambridge in 1884 to read Classics, some 1 ...

, would follow in her aunt's footsteps and herself become a notable educationalist. Keenly interested in the education of women, she made friends with

Emily Davies Sarah Emily Davies (22 April 1830 – 13 July 1921) was an English feminist who founded Girton College, Cambridge. She campaigned as a suffragist and for women's rights to university education. In her early life, she attended meetings of the ...

Barbara Bodichon Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon (born Barbara Leigh Smith; 8 April 1827 – 11 June 1891) was an English educationalist and artist, a philanthropist and her greatest skill was as a facilitator. She was a leading mid-19th-century feminist and women ...

Frances Buss Frances Mary Buss (16 August 1827 – 24 December 1894) was a British headmistress and a pioneer of girls' education. Life The daughter of Robert William Buss, a painter and etcher, and his wife, Frances Fleetwood, Buss was one of six of the ...

and others. She gave evidence to a Royal Commission on secondary schooling, based on her own teaching experience. After helping to found the North of England Council for Promoting the Higher Education of Women, she acted as its secretary from 1867 to 1870 and as its president from 1873 to 1874. Her scheme for peripatetic lecturers was the germ of the University Extension Movement.

The foundation of Newnham College

When the ‘Lectures for Ladies’ were set up in Cambridge in the 1870s, it became clear that women who lived at a distance would need accommodation.

Henry Sidgwick Henry Sidgwick (; 31 May 1838 – 28 August 1900) was an English Utilitarianism, utilitarian philosopher and economist and is best known in philosophy for his utilitarian treatise ''The Methods of Ethics''. His work in economics has also had a ...

invited Clough to take charge of the first hostel and its first five students, setting up in Regent Street, Cambridge, in 1871. The lectures and hostel swiftly became

, and Clough its first principal. The new college took a different approach to women's education from

Girton College Girton College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college at Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college status by the univ ...

: where Girton focused on equality, Newnham focused on intellectual flourishing. Girton insisted women take all the same exams as men, where Newnham allowed women to skip the "Little-Go" exam of Latin, Greek and divinity and progress directly to studying their chosen subject. Similarly, while Girton's residence was a more surprising design, created by architect

Alfred Waterhouse Alfred Waterhouse (19 July 1830 – 22 August 1905) was an English architect, particularly associated with Gothic Revival architecture, although he designed using other architectural styles as well. He is perhaps best known for his designs ...

, Newnham Hall was designed to be more tranquil and domestic. A later biographer described Clough as having "inexhaustible good humour, plenty of common sense and fun, and an enviable ability to admit when she was wrong. These qualities made her students cherish her and enabled her to work well and creatively with her colleagues." Though she had little experience of administration, she oversaw the building of the new college and negotiations over leasing the land. Her personality, commitment and drive made her "a recognised leader in the education of women".

Death and legacy

She was cared for at the end of her life by her niece

and her friend

Edith Sharpley Edith Sharpley (1859–1940) was a Classical Lecturer at Newnham College, Cambridge from 1884 to 1910. Life Sharpley was the second of ten children born to Sarah McNicoll and Dr Thomas Sharpley in Louth in Lincolnshire. She was born on 24 January ...

who was the classics lecturer. They were both present when she died, at Cambridge on 27 February 1892. Two portraits of Clough are at Newnham College, one by Sir

William Blake Richmond Sir William Blake Richmond (29 November 184211 February 1921) was a British painter, sculptor and a designer of stained glass and mosaic. He is best known for his portrait work and decorative mosaics in St Paul's Cathedral in London. Richmon ...

, the other by

James Jebusa Shannon Sir James Jebusa Shannon (3 February 1862 – 6 March 1923) was an Anglo-American artist. In 1886 he married Florence Mary Cartwright (d. 1948), with whom he had an only child, the illustrator Kitty Shannon (1887–1974). Life Shannon was bor ...

. Her grave is in the churchyard of the Church of St Andrew and St Mary, Grantchester, near Cambridge. Her legacy is marked in Clough Hall and the Clough memorial gates at

, a stained glass window at

Liverpool Cathedral Liverpool Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Liverpool, England. It is the seat of the bishop of Liverpool and is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Liverpool, diocese of Liverpool. The church may be formally re ...

, the Hope Street sculpture "A Case History" in

. Her birthplace in Liverpool is marked with a plaque, commemorating both Anne Jemima and her brother Arthur Hugh.

Edge Hill University Edge Hill University is a campus-based public university in Ormskirk, Lancashire, England. The university, which originally opened in 1885 as Edge Hill College, was the first non-denominational teacher training college for women in England, befo ...

has a hall of residence called Clough in honour of her contribution to higher education and the history of education in

References

Sources

* * * * This cites ''Memoir of Anne Jemima Clough'', by Blanche Athena Clough (1897).

External links