Caroline Jacob

Caroline Jacob (18 January 1861 – 4 November 1940) was a South Australian schoolmistress, remembered in connection with Tormore House School and Unley Park School.

Caroline was born at "Woodlands" near Sevenhill and Penwortham, South Australia, the sixth child and third daughter of John Jacob (1816–1910) and his wife Mary Jacob, née Cowles, (c. 1819–1894). In 1869 the family moved to Mount Gambier, where her father had, controversially, been appointed Clerk of Court. In 1873 her mother re-opened Winnold House school, near Christ Church, Mount Gambier, which had until a few years previous been operated by the Misses or a Miss Fickling. It also served as their home. In 1878 the school was renamed Winnold House Ladies' College; its last year of advertised operation was 1886. Caroline, who had previously been home-educated, was at some stage enrolled at Winnold. She passed her first class certificate (later termed Intermediate) in May 1877, entered teachers training college 1879 and was appointed third assistant teacher at Port Adelaide in 1883, completed her second class (Leaving) that same year and was awarded her teachers certificate 1884. She studied physiology as a non-graduating student at the University in 1885 and won an Elder Prize for the subject. She had taught at Winnold for a few years.

Caroline was appointed to the Advanced School for Girls in 1885, and resigned 1897 to take over Tormore House School in Buxton Street, North Adelaide, from the Misses McMinn, Martha, Sallie and Lizzie. During the following year she had a new building constructed in Childers Street, followed by a home for boarders next door. Her sister Ann served as manager from c. 1900.

In December 1906 she took over Ellen Thornber's school at Unley Park, which she kept running as a separate entity for four or five years, closing in 1911. Around the time of The Great War interest in private girls' schools declined, and Caroline wound down her schools, closing first Unley Park then Tormore (which became the "Andover" block of flats), and opening a smaller campus on Barton Terrace, North Adelaide. By December 1920 it was closed. Caroline occupied one of the "Andover" flats.

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