Benjamin Waugh facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Benjamin Waugh |
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 Waugh c. 1900 |
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| Born | 20 February 1839 in Settle, West Riding of Yorkshire |
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| Died | 11 March 1908 (aged 69) in Westcliff, Essex |
| Nationality | English |
| Education | Theological college, Bradford |
Benjamin Waugh (born February 20, 1839 – died March 11, 1908) was an important social reformer during the Victorian era. He is best known for starting and leading the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) in the late 1800s. He was also a writer, speaker, and organizer. Waugh played a big part in creating Britain's first laws to protect children's rights.
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Early Life and Education
Benjamin Waugh was born in Settle, a town in West Riding of Yorkshire. When he was eight, his mother passed away. Soon after, his father sent him to a private school in Warwickshire. This school was run by his uncle, who was a Congregationalist minister.
At 14, Benjamin started working as an apprentice for Samuel Boothroyd, a draper (someone who sells cloth). Samuel was also a member of the Congregational Church in Southport. By age 20, Benjamin became the secretary of the local United Kingdom Alliance. This group was a big part of the Temperance movement, which worked to reduce alcohol use.
Benjamin's strong religious beliefs led him to leave the drapery business. He remained friends with his former boss, whose daughter, Sarah, later became his wife. From 1862 to 1865, he studied at Airedale Theological College in Bradford. After graduating, he married Sarah Boothroyd. They moved to Newbury, where he became a minister for the local Congregational church.
Helping People in Greenwich
In 1866, Benjamin Waugh became a minister at the Independent Chapel in Maze Hill, Greenwich. This area was very poor. Benjamin worked hard to make life better for the people living there. He started a creche (a type of daycare) for mothers who worked. He also created a group to help families in poverty or sickness.
In 1870, Benjamin was chosen to represent Greenwich on the new London School Board. He pushed for elementary education that was open to everyone, no matter their religion. He became friends with another Board member, Thomas Henry Huxley. From Huxley, Benjamin learned how important it was to investigate facts. This skill helped him greatly in his later work for neglected children.
One of his first campaigns was about child offenders being held in adult prisons. Benjamin became well-known for his book, The Gaol Cradle, Who Rocks it?. In this book, he argued against putting children in prison with adults. He also called for the creation of special courts just for young people.
Writing for The Sunday Magazine
After working very hard, Benjamin Waugh became ill in 1877. He had to leave his ministry in Greenwich for health reasons. He then accepted an offer to edit Sunday Magazine. This was a popular monthly magazine.
Many famous writers contributed to the magazine. One of them was the novelist Hesba Stretton. She later helped Benjamin start what would become the NSPCC. Benjamin also wrote poems and articles for the magazine. His monthly stories, 'Sunday Evenings with My Children', were later published as a book.
Founding the NSPCC
In 1884, Hesba Stretton suggested that Benjamin bring together important people who cared about helping others. They met to create the London Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. This group was inspired by a similar effort in Liverpool. It officially launched in London on July 8. The first chairman of the London group was Lord Shaftesbury, a well-known social reformer.
The London Society grew and became the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) about five years later, on May 14, 1889. Benjamin Waugh became its honorary director, and Queen Victoria became its patron.
Under Benjamin's leadership, the NSPCC created 200 local branches across the UK. These branches worked to protect children from harm, neglect, and abuse. Local groups raised money for the NSPCC. This money helped fund inspectors who would investigate and prevent cruelty to children. Many of the people who raised money were middle-class women.
Benjamin also supported his friend W. T. Stead in his fight against 'white slavery' in 1885. He was also key in adding a rule to the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885. This rule allowed courts to accept what children said as evidence, even if they were too young to understand an oath.
Later, Benjamin played a big role in getting the important Anti-Cruelty Act of 1889 passed. This law was often called the 'Children's Charter'. It allowed a child to be taken away from parents who were abusive.
Benjamin's achievements sometimes led to criticism. In 1896, The Echo newspaper accused him of mismanaging money. They also attacked him personally. However, Lord Herschell led an independent review of the NSPCC's management. This review cleared Benjamin of the accusations. It found that the NSPCC's finances were not mismanaged. It also made good suggestions for improving how the organization was run.
Benjamin was so dedicated to the NSPCC that he refused to take a salary for the first 11 years. He relied only on the money he earned from editing Sunday Magazine, which he eventually stopped doing in 1895.
By early 1904, he was very tired from working too much. His doctor insisted he take a long break. He went on a six-month ocean trip. Although he returned to work in August that year, his poor health forced him to resign from the NSPCC in March 1905. He died three years later while visiting Southend-on-Sea. He is buried there in the borough cemetery.
Family and Homes
Benjamin Waugh and his wife Sarah had 11 children. Three of them died when they were babies. Two of their daughters became notable: Edna became a famous watercolor artist, and Rosa wrote about her father's life and followed in his footsteps as a social activist.
While he was a minister in Greenwich, Benjamin lived at Croom's Hill and later at 53 Woodlands Villas in Blackheath. In 1879, his family moved to Oak Cottage in Shipbourne, Kent. In 1881, they moved to 33 The Green in Southgate. In 1888, the family moved to 33 Hatfield Road in St Albans. Benjamin named this house Otterleigh, after his mother's birthplace in Yorkshire. In 1902, they settled in Bedford Park, Chiswick. After he retired in 1905, he and Sarah moved to Weybridge.
A blue plaque marks the site of a house in Southgate where Benjamin Waugh lived. Another blue plaque was put up in 1984 at what was thought to be his home on Croom's Hill. However, English Heritage, the group in charge of blue plaques, later correctly identified his former home as 62 Croom's Hill.
Images for kids
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Waugh's blue plaque at Croom's Hill, Greenwich
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Benjamin Waugh's home once stood on this site at 33 The Green, Southgate.
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The plaque to Benjamin Waugh at 33 The Green.
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Benjamin Waugh with his wife Sarah and six of his children circa 1883.
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