Person Ada McDowall (nee Benson)

1840-1882 Ada Benson was born on 27 November 1840 at Winson Green, Birmingham. Her father died in 1843 and after her mother's death in 1850, Ada was sent to live with a relations in Rugby. Her eldest brother, Edward White Benson, the future Archbishop of Canterbury, supervised her care and education. At 17, Ada was sent to Miss Martine's School at Brighton. Ada left formal education at 19 and went to Dresden, with a curriculum set by her brotherand based on the German language and literature. Here she taught English and Music to the family she lived with and published a German translation of John Ruskin's King of the Golden River in 1861. Shortly afterward her health broke down and she returned to England. In 1864 she set up a school with her eldest sister Eleanor called Sydney lodge in Surbiton. The school closed in 1872 when Eleanor was married. In 1874, Ada was appointed the first head mistress of Norwich High School, a school opened by the Girls' Day School Trust. She proposed to resigned due to her poor health, but changed her mind when she was appointed the first head of Oxford High School, another GPDSC school, in 1875. Ada's health contiuned to deteriorate and resigned in 1879. In 1879 she married Andrew McDowall, the secretary of the GPDSC, and they had a daughter in 1881. In May 1882, Ada took the headship of the Bedford high school, despite protests from her family. Ada tackled the new school with enthusiasm but she died on 11 October 1882 shortly after the birth of her son. head mistress GB/366/482 Ruth Pryor, ‘Benson , Ada (1840–1882)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, Oct 2005 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/48641, accessed 19 June 2008] Deposited/Corporate/GDS/Heads/McDowall 19/06/2008 Mkklibyz 08/04/2009 Mkklibyz McDowall; Ada (1840-1882); head mistress McDowall Ada Female Ada Benson GB/366/579 GB/366/475 International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) 2nd edition - ICA 2004 ISBN 2-9521932-2-3 National Council on Archives, Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997 Yes 7ceb1cd7-019e-47eb-b129-96eb96a66577