See also
| Husband: | John Woolley (1816-1866) | |
| Wife: | Mary Margaret Turner ( - ) | |
| Children: | Emmeline Mary Dogherty Woolley (1843-1908) | |
| Marriage | Jul 1842 | Frankfurt am Main, Germany |
| Name: | John Woolley | |
| Sex: | Male | |
| Father: | George Woolley (1783-1860) | |
| Mother: | Charlotte Gell (1786- ) | |
| Birth | 26 Feb 1816 | Petersfield, Hampshire |
| Baptism | 2 Aug 1816 (age 0) | Church Of Christ-Independent, Petersfield, Hampshire (IGI) |
| Death fact | 11 Jan 1866 (age 49) | Drowned in the SS London while returning from Britain to Australia |
| Education | Brompton Grammar School, London Univ, Exeter Coll Oxford | |
| Death | 11 Jan 1866 (age 49) | At sea, Bay of Biscay |
| Name: | Mary Margaret Turner | |
| Sex: | Female | |
| Father: | William Turner ( - ) | |
| Mother: | - | |
| Name: | Emmeline Mary Dogherty Woolley | |
| Sex: | Female | |
| Birth | 1843 | |
| Baptism | 16 Jun 1843 (age 0) | Hereford Cathedral |
| Death | 18 Mar 1908 (age 64-65) | Darlinghurst, Sydney, Australia |
A noted educationalist in Britain and New South Wales, John Woolley was appointed headmaster of King Edward VI's Grammar School, Hereford in 1842. In 1844 he was elected the first headmaster of Rossall School, and in 1849 he was appointed headmaster of Norwich grammar school.
In January 1852 Woolley was chosen as principal of the newly formed Sydney University. He arrived in Australia in June, and delivered an inaugural speech at the opening of the university in October. Besides being principal, he was professor of classics and logic in the university. He pressed for the new university to be a secular institution and one which would offer a liberal education to equip a future colonial governing class. Woolley was one of the original trustees of the Sydney grammar school. He was the first to propose the scheme, for connecting the primary schools of New South Wales with the university by a system of public examinations.
In 1865 Woolley visited England, and during his absence in 1866 he was elected president of the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts. He drowned on his return voyage in the steamship London, which foundered in the Bay of Biscay on 11 January 1866. A public testimonial amounting to £2000 was collected in New South Wales and presented to his widow as a tribute to his services.
Source: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography