Eleanor Smith

Eleanor Elizabeth Smith (30 September 1822 – 15 September 1896) was an Irish educational activist. She became one of three trustees running Bedford College. At the time Bedford College was one of the few places where women might receive something approaching university level education. Bedford College was said to be the first British institution run by women

Early years Smith was born in Dublin, Ireland, the daughter of John Smith (1792–1828) and his wife, Mary Murphy. Her father was a barrister, but he died in 1828, and Mary then moved the family to various locations in England before settling in Ryde on the Isle of Wight. Smith had thirteen siblings, with her younger brother Henry John Stephen Smith becoming a prominent mathematician. Smith developed a strong interest in languages, teaching herself Hebrew when she was only seven years old. She later traveled widely around Europe, indulging her interest in European literature.

Other members of the school board determined that education in the city should remain run by religious organisations, but Smith argued that they should instead set up a non-denominational board school. She was unsuccessful in this, and stood down from the board in 1873, when her brother died. They closed the school.

Smith developing an interest in health, she served on the boards of the Radcliffe Infirmary and Sarah Acland Home, and as a director of the city's Provident Dispensary.