Sarah Smith Herford Explained

Sarah Smith Herford
Birth Name:Sarah Smith
Birth Date:1791
Birth Place:Birmingham, England
Death Date:30 October 1831 (aged 40)[1]
Death Place:Altrincham, England
Nationality:British
Spouse:John Herford
Children:Laura, Mary Chance, William Henry, Brooke, Edward

Sarah Smith Herford (bapt. 14 May 1791 – 30 October 1831), also known as Mrs. John Herford, was an English landscape painter and educator.

Sarah was the daughter of Edward and Sarah Smith of Birmingham, and was baptised Unitarian in Aston.[2] In 1812, she married John Herford. She founded the Unitarian Boarding School for Girls in Altrincham, Cheshire. Among her children were sons Brooke, Edward, and William Henry Herford,[3] and daughters Mary Chance and Laura Herford. Mary Chance became the mother of the painter Helen Allingham, whom Sarah Herford was said to have inspired.[4]

She died in Altrincham aged only 40. A Birmingham newspaper lamented her loss as "An impressive instance of worth, talents, and acquirements, cut off in their mid-day of energy and usefulness."[1] Sarah Herford's work Landscape at Kenilworth was included in the book Women Painters of the World.[5]

Notes and References

  1. News: Died. . 19 October 2023 . Aris's Birmingham Gazette . 7 November 1831 . 5 . subscription.
  2. England & Wales, Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Registers, 1567–1936
  3. Herford, William Henry . 2 . 255-256 . Sadler . Michael . Michael Sadler (educationist) . 1912. 1.
  4. Web site: 20 Beautiful Cottage Paintings by Victorian Artist Helen Allingham. James. David. 2016-03-14. 5-Minute History. en-US. 2020-05-04.
  5. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/39000/39000-h/39000-h.htm#Page_49 Women Painters of the World