| Virginia Frances Townsend | |
| Birth Date: | 1836 |
| Birth Place: | New Haven, Connecticut |
| Death Date: | August 11, 1920[1] |
| Death Place: | Arlington, Massachusetts |
| Occupation: | author |
Virginia Frances Townsend (1836 – August 11, 1920) was an American author.
Townsend was editor of Arthur's Lady's Home Magazine and a contributing author to other magazines.[2] She later taught at Dr. Dio Lewis's School for Young Ladies where she was an advocate of exercise and physical education for women. She was a member of the Boston Authors Club.[3]
A group of librarians in Boston put Townsend's name on a list of authors whose books should be banned from libraries because of "false and dangerous ideas of life" purportedly in the books.[4]