Firmin Marbeau

Marbeau in the 1860s

Jean Firmin Marbeau (1798 – October 10, 1875) was a French philanthropist who pioneered the crèche movement, a forerunner of modern day care.

Marbeau was born in Brive-la-Gaillarde, and was by profession a lawyer in Paris.^[1] He is best known for founding the first crèche, which opened in Paris on November 14, 1844.^[2] The crèche provided child care to enable working-class mothers to work jobs outside of the home, and spawned a Crèche Movement that led to a number of similar establishments being opened in France; the concept was also influential on the development of day care in North America.^[3] Marbeau wrote a number of books promoting the concept, and died in Saint-Cloud in 1875.^[1]

Writings

• Politique des intérêts (1834)
• Études sur l'économie sociale (1844)
• Des crèches (1845)
• Du pauperisme en France (1847)

References

1. "Marbeau". Meyers Konversations-Lexikon (in German) 11 (4th ed.). 1890. p. 218.
2. U.K. Board of Education (2006). "The Development of Infant Schools and of Separate Nursery Schools from 1905 to the Present Time". In Rod Parker-Rees and Jenny Willan. Early Years Education: Major Themes in Education. Routledge. p. 94. ISBN 0-415-32669-9.
3. Larry Prochner (2000). "A History of Early Education and Child Care in Canada, 1820-1966". In Larry Prochner and Nina Howe. Early Childhood Care and Education in Canada. UBC Press. p. 20. ISBN 0-7748-0772-5.