Flora Macdonald Mayor (20 October 1872, Kingston Hill,

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

– 28 January 1932, Hampstead, London), was an English novelist and short story writer, who published under the name F. M. Mayor.

Life and work

Flora MacDonald Mayor was born on 20 October 1872, at Kingston Hill, Surrey. Her father,

Joseph Bickersteth Mayor Joseph Bickersteth Mayor (24 October 1828 – 29 November 1916) was an English writer and scholar. He was best known for his books ''Greek for Beginners'' (1880), ''Sketch of Ancient Philosophy'' (1881), and ''Chapters on English Metre'' (1886). ...

(1828–1916), was an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

clergyman and professor of classics and then of moral philosophy at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

. John E. B. Mayor was her uncle. Her mother, Alexandrina Jessie Grote (1830–1927), was niece of the

utilitarian In ethical philosophy, utilitarianism is a family of normative ethical theories that prescribe actions that maximize happiness and well-being for the affected individuals. In other words, utilitarian ideas encourage actions that lead to the ...

George Grote George Grote (; 17 November 1794 – 18 June 1871) was an English political radical and classical historian. He is now best known for his major work, the voluminous ''History of Greece''. Early life George Grote was born at Clay Hill near Be ...

as well as the

clergyman and Cambridge moral philosophy professor

John Grote John Grote (5 May 1813, Beckenham – 21 August 1866, Trumpington, Cambridgeshire) was an English moral philosopher and Anglican clergyman. Life and career The son of a banker, John Grote was younger brother to the historian, philosopher and ...

. Flora had two older brothers – Robert J. G. Mayor (1869–1947) and Henry B. Mayor (1870–1948) – and a twin sister, Alice M. Mayor (1872–1961). Flora was educated at

Surbiton High School Surbiton High School is a private day school in Surbiton in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, Greater London, England. It has seven buildings overall including the Boys’ Preparatory School, Girls’ Preparatory School, the Senior Schoo ...

and read history at

Newnham College, Cambridge 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 ...

. Afterwards she became an actress. She later turned to writing. Her first book was a collection of short stories, ''Mrs Hammond's Children'', published in 1901 under the pseudonym Mary Strafford. In 1903 she became engaged to a young architect, Ernest Shepherd, who died in India of

typhoid Typhoid fever, also known simply as typhoid, is a disease caused by ''Salmonella enterica'' serotype Typhi bacteria, also called ''Salmonella'' Typhi. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often ther ...

before Mayor was able to travel out to join him. She never married, and lived with her twin sister Alice MacDonald Mayor (1872–1961). In 1913 her short novel, ''The Third Miss Symons'', was published, with a preface by

John Masefield John Edward Masefield (; 1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967) was an English poet and writer. He was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate from 1930 until his death in 1967, during which time he lived at Burcot, Oxfordshire, near Abingdon ...

. Her best-known novel is ''The Rector's Daughter'' (1924). (In October 2009 this was described in the BBC's 'Open Book' programme as one of the best 'neglected classics'.) She also wrote ghost stories, which were much admired by

M.R. James Montague Rhodes James (1 August 1862 – 12 June 1936) was an English Medieval studies, medievalist scholar and author who served as provost (education), provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–1918), and of Eton College (1918–1936) as w ...

. She died on 28 January 1932 in Hampstead, London. Her correspondence and some literary papers are held at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

Selected works

*''Mrs Hammond's Children'' (1901) *''The Third Miss Symons'' (1913) *''The Rector's Daughter'' (1924) (reprinted by

Persephone Books ''Persephone Books'' is an independent publisher based in Bath, England. Founded in 1999 by Nicola Beauman, Persephone Books reprints works largely by women writers of the late 19th and 20th century, though a few books by men are included. Th ...

in 2021) *''The Squire's Daughter'' (1929) *''The Room Opposite and Other Tales of Mystery and Imagination'' (1935) (reprinted by Solar Press in 2023)

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mayor, F.M. 1872 births 1932 deaths 20th-century English novelists British short story writers English short story writers Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge 20th-century English short story writers People educated at Surbiton High School Bickersteth family Writers from the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames

Life and work

Selected works

References

Further reading

External links