Mary Hogarth Dickens' first child was named Mary in her memory. Hogarth was the daughter of George Hogarth (1783–1870), a music critic, cellist and composer, and Georgina Hogarth Thompson (1793–1863). She was born in Edinburgh, where her father was a legal advisor to Walter Scott, whom the young Charles Dickens greatly admired. She was the fourth of ten children, and the third daughter. Hogarth was named after her paternal grandmother. The name Mary Scott had previously been given to George and Georgina's third child, born 1817 or 1818, who was an infant when she died. Mary and her sister Catherine first met
David George Hogarth graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1885: as per tradition, his BA was promoted to a Master of Arts (MA Oxon) degree. In 1886, Hogarth was elected a Fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford. Between 1887 and 1907, he travelled to excavations in Cyprus, Crete, Egypt, Syria, Melos, and Ephesus (the Temple of Artemis). On the island of Crete, he excavated Zakros and Psychro Cave. Hogarth was named director of the British School at Athens in 1897 and occupied the position until 1900. He was the keeper of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford from 1909 until his death