A Brief History of Clarke House
Why are we called Clarke?

Dr. Lilian Clarke joined JAGS as a part-time mistress in sole charge of teaching Science. Her brother was Professor of Botany at Guy’s Hospital which may explain the emphasis on the study of Botany in the school. Dr. Clarke was a pioneer in the practical teaching of Science and she established the Botany Gardens in 1896, which was the first such experiment by a school in the country. The creation of the Botany Gardens was a major undertaking and the boldness of her ideas was initially met with some scepticism by many of her contemporaries. Dr. Clarke made a truly pioneering attempt to introduce study methods widely adopted much later by organisations such as the Field Studies Council. The Botany Gardens were, and remain, justly famous. Dr. Clarke gave lectures throughout the world on her teaching methods and was one of the first women to be elected a Fellow of the Linnaean Society.