Mary Jemima Alger (1838- 17th March 1894) was the founding head for three schools started by the Girl's Public Day School Company 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.
Miss Alger was a most successful mistress not only in organising her school as a whole, but in making each girl feel that her education was an object of individual attention to the headmistress' (Journal of Education, 1 May 1894, 270–71).
She lived at "Hildersheim", Thurlow Hill, Streatham and died at 5 Lancaster Road, Dulwich.
Her funeral service was held at the church she attended, St Peter's, Streatham, and she was buried on 25 March in Norwood cemetery.
An Alger Memorial Fund was raised by the GPDSC to provide two scholarships to the school for two years, a fitting way to commemorate a woman who had played a key part in the transformation of girls' education during the reign of Queen Victoria.
23 September 20024
