Anália Franco (1 February 1853 — 20 January 1919) was a Brazilian educator, abolitionist, journalist, poet, writer, philanthropist and spiritist.

A woman who was distinctly ahead of her time, she was responsible for founding more than 70 schools, 23 asylums for orphaned children, two hostels, a female musical band, an orchestra, a drama group, as well as several manufacturing workshops, in 24 cities in Brazil.

[2][3][4][5] In 1872, Franco graduated as a teacher and had the opportunity to move to São Paulo, but chose to stay in the interior to help address the social consequences of the Freedom of Wombs Law, which had been approved on September 28, 1871.

[2][3][4][5] Faced with that situation, Franco decided to go to the city of São Paulo, where she rented an old house with her own money and announced the existence of the shelter in a local newspaper.

Now living permanently in São Paulo, she founded the Associação Feminina Beneficente e Instrutiva in 1901, in support of women and children, which she carried on until the end of her life.

However, some Catholic newspapers were critical because of her Spiritist ideas, which resulted in other papers jumping to her defence, including one that compared her to Joan of Arc.

[2][3] On 20 January 1919, Franco fell victim to the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, dying while preparing to travel to Rio de Janeiro to create yet another institution.