Frances Catherine Barnard (

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

, Mrs. Alfred Barnard; 7 May 1796 – 30 January 1869) was an English writer, poet, and playwright. She was the author of various dramatic works and tales. Active in the 1800s, her work was published in England and in Australia. Much of her writing was related to the education of children. In the preface to ''Doleful Death and The Flowery Funeral of Fancy'' she wrote:— "For myself, if but one youthful mind become wiser or better from the perusal of my rhymes, I shall consider my trouble amply repaid".

Early years and family

Frances Catherine (sometimes spelled Katherine) Smith was born at

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

, England, 7 May 1796; and christened on 5 June 1796 at Octagon-Presbyterian, Norwich. She was the eldest daughter and co-heir of Francis Smith, of Norwich (descendant of

Robert Pierrepont, 1st Earl of Kingston-upon-Hull Robert Pierrepont, 1st Earl of Kingston-upon-Hull (6 August 158425 July 1643) was an English nobleman who joined the Royalist side in the English Civil War after some delay and became lieutenant-general of the counties of Lincoln, Rutland, Hunt ...

) and Sarah (Marsh). Her uncle was

Sir James Edward Smith __NOTOC__ Sir James Edward Smith (2 December 1759 – 17 March 1828) was an English botanist and founder of the Linnean Society. Early life and education Smith was born in Norwich in 1759, the son of a wealthy wool merchant. He displayed a ...

, a successful botanist at the time who co-founded the

Linnean Society The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...

. On 10 Nov 1817, she married Alfred Barnard (b. Norwich, 1793) at St. Peter Mancroft, Norwich, gentleman, of the family of Barnard of Wansford Manor,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

, Iselham Hall,

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...

, Abington Hall,

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

, and Brampton Hall,

Huntingdonshire Huntingdonshire (; abbreviated Hunts) is a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire and a historic county of England. The district council is based in Huntingdon. Other towns include St Ives, Godmanchester, St Neots and Ramsey. The popul ...

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

s. Together they had 10 children between 1819 and 1830. Frances Hinderly was baptized in 1819, and Mary, in 1820. Their eldest son was Alfred Francis Barnard (1821–1894). Four baptisms occurred in 1836: Alicia Mildred, Robert, Frederic William, and Jane Catherine. Alicia Mildred Barnard (1825–1911) was a plant illustrator and a member of the Botanical Society of London. Francis (1823-1912) was a microscopist, chemist, druggist, as well as a member of the Botanical Society of London who emigrated from

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...

, Norfolk to Australia. Two of her sons, Frederick William Barnard and Algernon Sidney Barnard, also moved to Australia, where Algernon was stabbed to death.

Career

Barnard authored and edited may books, writing under the name "Frances Catherine Barnard" and "Mrs. Alfred Barnard". Some of them included:
''Embroidered Facts''
(1836, Orr and Smith; book of plays)
''Doleful Death and The Flowery Funeral Of Fancy''
(1837, Harvey and Darton; poems) * ''Conversations at the Work-Table''
''The Schoolfellows; Holidays at the Hall''
(1845, Joseph Graham) * ''The Cottage and The Hall'' (1840) * ''The Life of a Negro Slave'' (1846, Charles Muskett; re-edited

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...

Charles Ball Charles Ball (real name Charles Gross; 1780 – ''unknown'') was an enslaved African-American from Maryland, best known for his account as a fugitive slave, ''Slavery in the United States'' (1836). Autobiography ] The main source for Ball's life ...

Barnard died at the age of 72 on 10 January 1869 in Norwich, and was buried in

Rosary Cemetery, Norwich Rosary Cemetery was the first non-denominational burial ground in the United Kingdom. Its entrance lies on Rosary Road in Norwich, Norfolk. History The cemetery was established in 1819 by Thomas Drummond, a non-conformist minister. The land w ...

References

Attribution

* * * *

Bibliography

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barnard, Frances Catherine 1796 births 1869 deaths Writers from Norwich 19th-century English writers 19th-century English poets 19th-century English dramatists and playwrights 19th-century British women writers Pseudonymous women writers 19th-century pseudonymous writers