Bertha Jane Johnson (20 January 1846 – 24 April 1927),

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Todd, was the principal of the Society of Oxford Home-Students, which would become St Anne's College, University of Oxford, and a campaigner for women's education.

Life

Bertha J. Todd was born in London on 20 January 1846 to Elizabeth Mary Hart (1815–1894) and Dr.

Robert Bentley Todd Robert Bentley Todd (9 April 1809 – 30 January 1860) was an Irish-born physician who is best known for describing the condition postictal paralysis in his Lumleian Lectures in 1849 now known as Todd's palsy. Early life The son of physicia ...

, FRS (1809–1860). Her father was an enthusiast for nursing and he was a professor at

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

. Her grandfather was

Charles Hawkes Todd Charles Hawkes Todd (6 November 1784 – 19 March 1826) Cameron, Sir Charles A. (1886''History of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and of the Irish Schools of Medicine &c''Dublin: Fannin & Co. pp. 375-377. was a medical doctor and the pre ...

. Her uncles included John Hart, James Henthord Todd,

William Gowan Todd William Gowan Todd (1820–1877) was a nineteenth-century author and cleric. In the later years of his life he founded and managed St. Mary's Orphanage, Blackheath, England, where he died on 24 July 1877. Early life The son of physician and pre ...

, and

Armstrong Todd Armstrong Todd (1826–1873) was a nineteenth-century London surgeon credited with researching new medical conditions and procedures, including anesthetics. Early life The son of physician and president of the Royal College of Surgeons in Irel ...

. She grew up with two older sisters and one younger brother: * Elizabeth Marion Todd (1841–1917) unmarried, * Alice Margaret Todd (1843–1916) unmarried, and * James Henthorn Todd (1847–1891) unmarried. Bertha was educated at home. She excelled at music and the arts. She played the piano. Her art work was exhibited at the Royal Academy. She was one of the first women students at the

Slade School of Art The UCL Slade School of Fine Art (informally The Slade) is the art school of University College London (UCL) and is based in London, England. It has been ranked as the UK's top art and design educational institution. The school is organised as ...

. In 1873 she married the Reverend Arthur Henry Johnson, historian and chaplain of

All Souls College, Oxford All Souls College (official name: College of the Souls of All the Faithful Departed) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full members of t ...

(and Oxford University's 1874 FA Cup winner), and they both enjoyed Oxford university life. He was a curate who also lectured in history. Following their marriage, the couple lived at 22 Norham Gardens on the

Norham Manor The Norham Manor estate is a residential suburb in Oxford, England. It is part of central North Oxford. To the north is Park Town with its crescents, to the east is the River Cherwell, to the south are the University Parks and to the west is Wal ...

estate in

North Oxford North Oxford is a suburban part of the city of Oxford in England. It was owned for many centuries largely by St John's College, Oxford and many of the area's Victorian houses were initially sold on leasehold by the College. Overview The le ...

. They subsequently lived at 8 Merton Street before settling at 5 South Parks Road. The couple had two children: * Robert Arthur Johnson (1874–1938), and * George Wilfrid Johnson, (1876– ) Robert became Deputy Master and Controller of the

Royal Mint The Royal Mint is the United Kingdom's oldest company and the official maker of British coins. Operating under the legal name The Royal Mint Limited, it is a limited company that is wholly owned by His Majesty's Treasury and is under an exclus ...

. George became headmaster of

Alleyne's School, Stevenage The Thomas Alleyne Academy is an Academy in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England. It was founded in 2013, but can trace its roots back to 1558, when the original school was set up from the will of Thomas Alleyne. It is situated at the northern ...

. Bertha Jane Johnson died approximately thee months after her husband in 1927. They are buried together in St. Cross Churchyard (Holywell Cemetery) in Holywell, City of Oxford, Oxfordshire, England.

Advocate for women's education

Bertha Johnson co-founded the Association for Promoting the Higher Education of Women in Oxford and helped set up

Lady Margaret Hall Lady Margaret Hall (LMH) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located on the banks of the River Cherwell at Norham Gardens in north Oxford and adjacent to the University Parks. The college is more formall ...

and

Somerville Hall Somerville College, a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England, was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. Among list of Somerville College, Oxford, peop ...

. Oxford was catching up on Cambridge which had established university level education for women. The ambition in Oxford in time overtook Johnson's ambitions and she became a voice arguing against further progress. From 1894 to 1921 Bertha was the principal of the Society of Oxford Home-Students, which would later become

St Anne's College, Oxford St Anne's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 and gained full college status in 1959. Originally a women's college, it has admitted men since 1979. It has some 450 undergraduate and 200 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Bertha 1846 births 1927 deaths Principals of St Anne's College, Oxford Burials at Holywell Cemetery People associated with Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford