Hannah Ball facts for kids

Hannah Ball (1734–1792) was an English Wesleyan Methodist and a pioneer of the Sunday school movement. She is remembered for starting one of the very first Sunday schools.

Hannah Ball's Life

Hannah Ball was born on March 13, 1734. She lived most of her life in High Wycombe, a town in Buckinghamshire, England. When John Wesley, a famous preacher, and other Methodist leaders visited her town, Hannah was very interested in their teachings.

In 1766, Hannah started writing a diary about her thoughts and experiences. Some parts of her diary have been published. She also wrote many letters to John Wesley, and some of these letters have been printed too. Wesley gave her advice on many things, including her personal life.

Hannah Ball passed away on August 16, 1792.

Starting Sunday Schools

In 1769, Hannah Ball began a Sunday school in High Wycombe. This was a place where children could learn about the Christian faith and how to read. Her sister, Anne, continued the school after Hannah's death. The school was reorganized in 1801 and kept going for many years, even into the late 1800s.

Early Ideas for Sunday Schools

The idea of teaching children on Sundays wasn't completely new. Some people like Martin Luther and John Knox had similar ideas long before. There were also traces of such schools in France in the 1600s.

Other people in England and elsewhere also started similar groups:

• In 1703, Bishop Thomas Wilson started schools in the Isle of Man.
• Between 1740 and 1747, a group called the Seventh Day Baptists had a school in Euphrata, Pennsylvania.
• In 1763, Mrs. Catharine Cappe and Rev. Theophilus Lindsey gathered young people for teaching in Catterick.
• Around 1770, Dr. Kennedy started one in Bright parish, County Down.
• In 1778, Rev. David Simpson opened a school in Macclesfield.

These early efforts show that many people were thinking about how to teach children on Sundays. However, Robert Raikes is often called the founder of Sunday schools because his efforts in Gloucester in 1783 helped make the idea very popular and widespread. Hannah Ball's school was one of the very first to be established, showing her important role as a pioneer in this movement.