Dalton Tucker, a lifelong educator whose name was bequeathed by grateful students to Southampton Glebe School, has died at the age of 99.

A prominent figure at the West End, Mrs Tucker became Southampton Glebe’s principal in 1942, remaining head of the school until her retirement in 1974.

Her teaching career began in 1934 at the modest schoolhouse of St Mary’s Primary on Middle Road, Southampton, and she later trained in Jamaica.

Her life at Southampton Glebe started after graduation, and in the 1950s Mrs Tucker also began teaching in the Island’s prisons. She later joined the Department of Education’s Time Out Programme, tackling students’ disciplinary problems, and taught at Robert Crawford School for boys.

She taught Sunday school, served abroad in missionary work, and offered Bible classes at rest homes.

In 1999, Mrs Tucker was awarded the Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire and Queen’s Certificate of Honour for her life’s work. She kept close ties with Southampton Glebe, which in 2007 was renamed in tribute to her by students from the class of 1969.

Freddie Evans, the acting commissioner of education, last night said that Mrs Tucker held “a special place in the history of public education in Bermuda”.

“Mrs Tucker was a phenomenal teacher and principal known for her gentle ways. She inspired hundreds of students across Bermuda. She was very supportive and committed to education and the youth of Bermuda, and valued by the community. Her legacy lives on at Dalton E Tucker Primary School.”