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 their ten children to survive into adulthood. Her grandparents, whom she was visiting in
Aldersgate
Aldersgate is a Wards of the City of London, Ward of the City of London, England, named after one of the northern City gate, gates in the London Wall which once enclosed the City.
The Ward of Aldersgate is traditionally divided into Aldersga ...
, sent her to a private school housed in the most basic accommodation "...to get me out of the way". Next she was sent to a similar school in
Kentish Town
Kentish Town is an area of northwest London, England, in the London Borough of Camden, immediately north of Camden Town, close to Hampstead Heath.
Kentish Town likely derives its name from Ken-ditch or Caen-ditch, meaning the "bed of a waterw ...
which she remembered as simply consisting of children learning Murray's ''
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of rules for how a natural language is structured, as demonstrated by its speakers or writers. Grammar rules may concern the use of clauses, phrases, and words. The term may also refer to the study of such rul ...
''. Aged 10 she attended a more advanced school in
Hampstead
Hampstead () is an area in London, England, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, located mainly in the London Borough of Camden, with a small part in the London Borough of Barnet. It borders Highgate and Golders Green to the north, Belsiz ...
; by the age of fourteen she herself was teaching there and by sixteen she was occasionally left in charge of the school.Elizabeth Coutts, 'Buss, Frances Mary (1827–1894)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004
Her father's career as an artist being at times unsuccessful, to help the family finances her mother set up a private school in Clarence Road, Kentish Town, in 1845, at which Frances assisted, and which was based on the ideas of
Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi
Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (; ; ; 12 January 1746 – 17 February 1827) was a Swiss pedagogue and educational reformer who exemplified Romanticism in his approach.
He founded several educational institutions both in German- and French-speaking ...
.
During 1848–9, she attended evening lectures at the newly opened Queen's College in
Harley Street
Harley Street is a street in Marylebone, Central London, named after Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer.F. D. Maurice,
Charles Kingsley
Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the workin ...
, and R. C. Trench, and gained certificates in French, German and Geography. To Dorothea Beale, a contemporary at Queen's, she described the education she had gained there as opening 'a new life to me, I mean intellectually'.
Career
The school was renamed the North London Collegiate School for Ladies and moved to larger premises in Camden Street on 4 April 1850. Buss was its first Headmistress and remained so for the rest of her life. Under her headship, and with the help of family members, the school became a model for girls' education. By 1865 the school had 200-day girls, with a few boarders, but was still run as a private, family concern, with her father Robert William Buss and her brother Septimus Buss teaching Art and
Scripture
Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and ...
respectively.
In July 1870 Frances Mary Buss handed over the school to trustees, and in the following year she founded the Camden School for Girls with the aim of offering more affordable education for girls. She was the first person to use the title Headmistress.
Buss was at the forefront of campaigns for the endowment of girls' schools (see
Endowed Schools Act 1869
The Endowed Schools Act 1869 ( 32 & 33 Vict. c. 56) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was one of the Endowed Schools Acts 1869 to 1948. It was passed during William Ewart Gladstone’s first ministry, to restructure endowed ...
), and for girls to be allowed to sit public examinations and to enter universities. She became the founding president of the Association of Head Mistresses in 1874, a position she held until 1894, and was also involved in establishing the Teachers' Guild in 1883 and the Cambridge Training College (later Hughes Hall) for training teachers in 1885.
In 1869 she became the first woman
Fellow
A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...
of the
College of Preceptors
The Chartered College of Teaching is a learned society for the teaching profession in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1846, the college was incorporated by Queen Victoria into a royal charter as the College of Preceptors in 1849. A supplemental ch ...
, helping to establish the College's professorship of the science and art of education along with her co-fellow Beata Doreck in 1872. Her election to a Fellowship of the College in 1873 was the only public recognition she ever received. She was also a member of the Council of the Teachers' Training and Registration Society.
Buss was also a
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 ...
, participating in the Kensington Society, a woman's discussion society, and the London Suffrage Committee.
She is buried in the churchyard of Theydon Bois in Essex.
Cupid
In classical mythology, Cupid ( , meaning "passionate desire") is the god of desire, erotic love, attraction and affection. He is often portrayed as the son of the love goddess Venus and the god of war Mars. He is also known as Amor (Latin: ...
's darts do not feel.
How different from us,
Miss Beale and Miss Buss.
In the spring of each year North London Collegiate School, North London Collegiate School Jeju (in
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
), North London Collegiate School Dubai (in
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
), North London Collegiate School (
Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
), North London Collegiate School Ho Chi Minh City (in
Vietnam
Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
) and Camden School for Girls all hold Founder's Day to commemorate Frances Mary Buss and her legacy. Pupils, staff and guests each carry a daffodil in memory of Miss Buss's favourite flower.
The educational values that Frances Mary Buss taught at the North London Collegiate School became the model for many schools throughout the UK and overseas. This included Bournemouth's Talbot Heath School started by Mary Broad and Pretoria High School for Girls, founded in South Africa by Edith Aitken, a former pupil of Miss Buss.
Notes
Further reading
* Kamm, Josephine. ''How Different From Us: A Biography of Miss Buss & Miss Beale'', London: The Bodley Head (1958)
* Richardson, Joanna. "The Great Revolution: Women's in Victorian Times." ''History Today'' (1974) 24#6 pp 420–427.