Mary Jemima Alger (4 February 1838 – 17 March 1894) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

headmistress. She was the founding head for three schools started by the

Girls' Public Day School Company The Girls' Day School Trust (GDST) is a group of 25 independent schools, including two academies, in England and Wales, catering for girls aged 3 to 18. It is the largest group of independent schools in the UK, and educates 20,000 girls each yea ...

at Clapham, Sheffield and Dulwich. She had no formal academic qualifications but she created and ran three successful schools when girls were first being offered high school education.

Life

Alger was born on 4 February 1838 at Diss,

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

, she was one of several daughters of John Alger, a corn merchant, and his wife Jemima (born Goldworth). Her only brother was the journalist

John Goldworth Alger John Goldworth Alger (1836–1907) was an English journalist and author. Life Born at Diss, Norfolk, Diss, Norfolk, and baptised on 7 August 1836, he was the only son of John Alger, a corn merchant there, by his wife Jemima, daughter of Salem Gold ...

. Her brother went to school and he was writing for the ''

Norfolk News The ''Norfolk News'' was a regional weekly newspaper, published every Saturday, in Exchange Street, Norwich, England. History The publication was founded in January, 1845, and ceased publication in 1961. The area it covered was the whole of Nor ...

'' at age sixteen. She had a varied private education and she taught in private schools. She became the first headmistress of the

(GPDSC) (later Trust) fifth school at Clapham when she was 37. The new middle school opened on Clapham Common on 3 May 1875. The GPDSC was transforming education for girls in Britain and Alger became one the trusts major assets, despite lacking the formal academic training of other heads. Her employers valued her but they moved her at short notice when she was showing some success. Heads of schools were valued but they would be replaced if the school started to flounder. In 1878 she was moved to Sheffield taking with her Miss E.Woodhouse. The Sheffield High School thrived and Miss Woodhouse was left there as head as Alger was again moved the same year to another school planned by the company for Dulwich. She enjoyed thanks from the Sheffield students but it is Woodhouse who is usually credited as the first head. The new girls' school opened in Dulwich in 1875 with less than 50 pupils. Within ten years there was 400. She was establishing education for girls but some only attended on a temporary basis. Exercise was avoided and the girls opted for botany and not for chemistry. Alger died in

Dulwich Dulwich (; ) is an area in south London, England. The settlement is mostly in the London Borough of Southwark, with parts in the London Borough of Lambeth, and consists of Dulwich Village, East Dulwich, West Dulwich, and the Southwark half of H ...

in 1894 in the house next door to the school. Dulwich High School continued until 1913 when it came under the control of the Church's School Company. It closed in 1938.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alger, Mary 1838 births 1894 deaths People from Diss, Norfolk Heads of schools in England