Celebrating Women in H&F - 2nd Edition

2nd Edition
CELEBRATING
WOMEN IN
HAMMERSMITH
& FULHAM
A Stronger, Safer, Kinder borough

CONTENTS
Welcome 3
History Trail Map 4
Women’s History Trail 5-7
Remarkable Women 8-19
Social Justice 9-11
The Suffragette Movement 12-13
The Arts 13-17
Science 18-19
21st century Women
celebrated nationally 20-21
FIND THE PEOPLE & PLACES
WOMEN’S
HISTORY
TRAILS
THAT HAVE SHAPED HAMMERSMITH & FULHAM
We’re proud to celebrate the many women who
came before us, and the women making our
borough an amazing place to live, work and
visit today.
CELEBRATING WOMEN
IN H&F’S HISTORY
Every corner of Hammersmith &
Fulham holds a story of remarkable
woman and girls, who are making
history every day.
We want to celebrate their
achievements and tackle the barriers
many of them experience going
about their day-to-day lives.
We do this by working to make
our streets safer, empowering
our communities through our
coproduction work, and celebrating
the rich cultural heritage that
women and girls bring to our
borough.
We are building resilience in our
communities by promoting equal
rights and social change to make
H&F safer, stronger and kinder.
As part of this work, we pioneered
a new tradition of celebrating
Women’s History Month in March,
alongside International Women’s
Day. It enables us to recognise the
wonderful achievements of women
and girls, past and present, and
pay homage to the rich culture and
tapestry we have around us.
This booklet celebrates some of
these pioneering women who have
shaped both our borough and the
wider history of England, including
artist May Morris, Janet Adegoke
who became London’s first Black
Mayor, suffrage champions like Dora
Montefiore and Lolita Roy as well as
all the H&F women who are making
a difference today.
Through our Women’s History
Month microgrants, we are
supporting grassroot organisations
and community groups in running
events and activities across arts,
sports, education and culture.
I hope you will join some of those
events as we work with our diverse
communities to continue to make
our borough an amazing place to
live, visit and work in.
Cllr Rebecca Harvey, H&F Cabinet
Member for Social Inclusion &
Community Safety
2 2
3

WOMEN’S HISTORY
TRAIL MAP
WOMEN’S HISTORY TRAIL
Ravenscourt Park
4
Hammersmith
3
TOWN
HALL
Hammersmith
1
2
3
4
1 2
Mary (May) Morris, (1862-1938)
Director of Embroidery at Morris & Co
Anne Cobden Sanderson (1853-1926)
Suffragette
Janet Olufunmilayo Adegoke (1942-1987)
First Black Woman Mayor in London
Lilly Langtry (1853-1929)
Entertainer
5
6
Mary (May) Morris
(1862-1938)
Director of Embroidery at
Morris & Co
William Morris Society
Kelmscott House
26 Upper Mall, Hammersmith, W6 9TA
May Morris was an artist and embroidery
designer, the daughter of famous fabric
designer, William Morris. She lived at
Kelmscott House, which is now home to the
William Morris Society, and Hammersmith
Terrace. May became the director of the
sewing department at Morris & Co. and
created many new designs, some of which
were wrongly credited to her father. In
1907 she founded the Women’s Guild
of Arts, as women could not join other
organisations for artists.
Anne Cobden Sanderson
(1853-1926)
Suffragette
1 2
River House
24 Upper Mall, Hammersmith, W6 9TA
Anne Cobden Sanderson was a suffragette
who believed strongly in women’s rights.
She spent time in prison as punishment for
taking part in a demonstration to try and
get women the vote. She believed in taking
stronger action to fight for that right, and
became a founder of the Women’s Freedom
League. Anne always fought for important
causes, and helped her husband fund his
printing and book binding shop, Doves
Press.
5
Eartha Kitt (1927-2008)
Singer and actress
6
Verity Lambert (1935-2007)
TV and film producer
4 5

Janet Olufunmilayo Adegoke
(1942-1987)
First Black Woman Mayor
in London
King St, Hammersmith, W6 9JU
When Janet Olufunmilayo Adegoke was
elected Mayor of Hammersmith in 1987,
she became the first Black woman to
hold the position of mayor of a London
borough. Janet was born in Nigeria and
came to Britain to study nursing. In her
role as a councillor, she was passionate
about improving housing and living
conditions. Sadly, Janet died aged only
45 a few months after becoming mayor.
Today, the swimming pool in White City is
named after her.
Lillie Langtry
(1853-1929)
Entertainer
3 4
Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, W6 0QL
Lillie Langtry was one of the first women
to make a career as a stage actor. When
Pears soap used her in their adverts, Lillie
also became the first celebrity to use
her famous face to sell products. As she
became more successful, Lillie became a
close friend of Oscar Wilde, and managed
her own theatre company and horse racing
stable. When the Lyric Theatre reopened
after building works in 1895, Lillie gave the
opening speech.
Eartha Kitt
(1927-2008)
Singer and actress
Riverside Studios, 101 Queen Caroline St,
Hammersmith, W6 9BN
American singer Eartha Kitt began her
career on stage in New York, although
today she is perhaps best known for the
Christmas song, ‘Santa Baby’. She starred
in plays, shows and musicals on stage
and on screen. Eartha also cared a lot
about causes supporting young people and
promoting peace. In 1956 she performed
in Mrs Patterson which was broadcast live
on the BBC, and was the first show to be
televised from the new Riverside Studios.
Verity Lambert
(1935-2007)
TV and film producer
5 6
Riverside Studios, 101 Queen Caroline St,
Hammersmith, W6 9BN
Verity Lambert started working in television
in the 1950s and was the first producer for
Dr Who between 1963 and 1965, based at
Riverside Studios. It was rare for a woman
to work in TV production, and she was the
BBC’s only female drama producer at the
time. After leaving the BBC she was Head
of Drama for Thames Television. Later,
Verity ran her own production company
and produced a film starring Meryl Streep
and Sam Neill. Today, there is a blue
plaque celebrating her on the Riverside
Studios building.
6 7

REMARKABLE WOMEN
IN HAMMERSMITH
& FULHAM
Social Justice
Social Justice
The Suffrage Movement
The Arts
Science
Ellen Craft
(c1824-1900)
Refugee and anti-slavery activist
Ellen and her husband, William Craft,
made a dangerous escape from slavery in
Georgia, America. It was illegal in America
to protect runaway enslaved people, so
they came to Britain looking for safety.
Here, they wrote a book and went on
lecture tours which promoted banning
slavery in America. There is a blue plaque
celebrating them at 26 Cambridge Grove,
Hammersmith, where they lived with their
family for eight years. Ellen and William
later returned to America and set up a
school for the children of formerly enslaved
people.
Amy Garvey
(1895-1973)
Mighty leader
Amy Jacques Garvey moved from Jamaica
to America in 1917 where she met political
activist, Marcus Garvey. She worked with
him and the United Negro Improvement
Association (UNIA). Amy was involved
with the publication of the important
Negro World newspaper, and later had
her own section in it. When Marcus (who
became her husband) was in prison, Amy
led the UNIA, went on speaking tours
and published books of Marcus’ poetry
and writing. Amy campaigned for Black
nationalism and African independence
throughout her life. The Garveys
briefly lived together in Talgarth Road,
Hammersmith in the late 1930s, before
Amy returned to Jamaica.
8 9

Social Justice
Social Justice
The Suffrage Movement
Esther Bruce
(1912-1994)
Connie Mark
(1923-2007)
Baroness Betty Boothroyd
(1930-2023)
Mary Wollstonecraft
(1759-1797)
Working-class writer
Born into a working-class household in
Dieppe Street, Fulham, Esther was taught
by her father to take pride in her Black
heritage and stand up to racism. During
World War II she volunteered as a fire
watcher, looking out for and putting out
fires during the air raids. During rationing,
she united her community by sharing food
parcels from Guyana. Later, she wrote her
autobiography, Aunt Esther’s Story, one of
the first books to document the life of
a Black working-class woman in Britain.
Community organiser and
medical secretary
Born in Jamaica, Connie served as a
medical secretary in the Auxiliary Territorial
Service (ATS) there during World War II.
She moved to Britain in the 1950s as part
of the ‘Windrush Generation’, and became
an activist after she was denied the British
Empire Medal for her services in the war.
She continued working as a medical
secretary, and was dedicated to a range
of charities, community service and
educational projects, including lobbying
for the recognition of Caribbean people
and women’s contribution to war efforts.
Later, she founded the Mary Seacole
Memorial Association to fight for the proper
recognition of the work of Mary Seacole.
Connie Mark’s activism was finally awarded
when she received a British Empire Medal
in 1991 and an MBE for community service
in 1993. After her death in 2007, she was
honoured with a blue plaque at Mary
Seacole House in Hammersmith, her former
home.
First female Speaker
Betty Boothroyd changed 700 years of
parliamentary history when she became
the first female Speaker in the House of
Commons. Born in Yorkshire, she was a
dancer before entering politics. Before
she became Labour MP in 1973, she
was an active member of Hammersmith
Borough Council between 1965 and 1968.
Betty campaigned successfully to have a
bronze sculpture put up in Whitehall, near
Downing Street, as a memorial to women
who fought in World War II.
Pioneering feminist writer
When she was young, Mary lived in many
places with her family. After leaving home
she lived as a lady’s companion in Bath
before moving to Walham Green (the area
around Fulham Broadway today) with her
good friend Frances Blood.
To support her family, she ran a school
and became a writer. She wrote novels
and political works and is celebrated for
her 1792 book, A Vindication of the Rights
of Woman, one of the earliest works of
feminist thought. She died eleven days after
the birth of her second daughter who, 21
years later, wrote Frankenstein.
10 11

The Suffrage Movement
The Suffrage Movement
The Arts
Dora Montefiore
(1851-1933)
Super suffragette
Lolita Roy
(1865-death date unknown)
Social reformer and campaigner
Princess Sophia Duleep Singh
(1876-1948)
Royal suffragette
Elizabeth Billington
(1765-1818)
Opera singer
After Dora Montefiore’s husband died in
1889, she became an active supporter
of women’s rights, and was involved
in the Suffragette movement almost
from its beginning. In 1892, Dora was
living in Clare Lodge, 32 Upper Mall in
Hammersmith.
She went on to work with wellknown
suffragists and suffragettes including
Millicent Fawcett and Emmeline and
Christabel Pankhurst and took part in
many protests. In 1906, she refused to pay
her taxes and displayed a banner across
her house saying, ‘Women should vote
for the laws they obey and the taxes they
pay.’ Later, she also became an active
socialist campaigner and writer.
Lolita Roy was born in Calcutta, India, but
she lived at 77 Brook Green with her son
Indra Lal Roy between 1907 and 1911.
Lolita fought for women’s rights in Britain
and India which included taking part in a
protest at the coronation of King George V
in 1911.
During the First World War, in which her
son Indra was killed, she set up a charity
to raise money for Indian soldiers. She
continued campaigning for women’s rights
and today she features alongside Millicent
Fawcett on a statue in Parliament Square.
Although she was born in London, Sophia
was the daughter of the last Maharaja of
the Sikh empire, and Queen Victoria was
her godmother. The Queen encouraged her
to be a socialite, but after spending time
in India she became an activist and joined
the Women’s Social and Political Union
(WSPU) upon her return to England.
She took part in a number of campaigns
and protests, and volunteered as a nurse
during the First World War. After the war,
she returned to India and campaigned
for women’s rights there. A film has been
created about her life that was shown in
Hammersmith & Fulham with the film’s
writer and producer, Beverley Andrews,
in attendance.
Elizabeth was a very successful opera
singer who performed in Britain, Ireland
and across Europe. She studied singing
with well-known teachers, and performed
in many operas, including in Covent
Garden. She produced the first opera by
Mozart in Britain, and took part in charity
performances to raise money for important
charities. Her talent made her rich - at one
point her fortune was thought to be about
£65,000 (nearly £4million today). Elizabeth
lived in a villa in Fulham but died in Italy
in 1818.
12 13

The Arts
The Arts
Fanny Eaton
(1835-1924)
Jane Morris
(1839-1914)
Edmonia Lewis
(c1844-1907)
Christina Broom
(1862-1939)
Face of an artistic movement
Embroiderer
Famous sculptor
Photographer
Fanny was born in Jamaica in 1835, soon
after slavery was banned there. She moved
to London with her mother, and worked
as a servant. Later, she became a model
for a group of artists known as the Pre-
Raphaelite Brotherhood, and her face can
be seen in paintings by famous artists such
as Dante Gabriel Rossetti and John Everett
Millais. Today, these paintings, sketches
and drawings are held by art galleries
across the world and Fanny is celebrated as
a visible Black woman, rare in nineteenth
century Britain.
Fanny was not famous in her day and
continued working as a servant in London
and beyond. She returned to live with her
daughter in Hammersmith, where she died.
In 2022 Hammersmith & Fulham Council
marked the house with a blue plaque.
Jane Morris was the wife of the designer,
writer and socialist William Morris.
Jane was a talented embroiderer and
supervised the embroidery department
of Morris & Co. from the family home,
Kelmscott House in Hammersmith. Jane
was also the model and muse of Dante
Gabriel Rossetti. She featured in numerous
paintings by the artist, her striking looks
embodying the Pre-Raphaelite ideal of
beauty.
Edmonia was the first African American
sculptor to gain international fame. On
her mother’s side she was descended from
Native Americans and her native name
was “Wildfire”. Her work focused on both
Black and Native American people and
their history. She began her career in
Boston, USA, but spent most of her life
working in Rome. Her enormous sculpture,
The Death of Cleopatra, is now part of
the Smithsonian museum collection. Later,
she moved to Paris and then to London.
She lived at 154 Blythe Road and died in
Hammersmith Borough Infirmary.
Christina Broom taught herself photography
as a way of making money to support her
family. After moving to Burnfoot Avenue,
Fulham, she developed her photos in the
basement, and could sometimes print as
many as a thousand a night, helped by
her daughter. Christina photographed lots
of local events and activities, earning her
the nickname of Britain’s ‘first female press
photographer’. In total, she took around
40,000 images, many of which are held by
museums across Britain today, including
Hammersmith & Fulham archives.
14 15

The Arts
The Arts
Constance Baker
(1868-1929)
Irene Mary Browne
(1881-1977)
Adelaide Louise Hall
(1901-1993)
Jill Dando
(1961-1999)
Mother of the Wounded
Sculptor
Beloved jazz singer
Journalist and television presenter
Constance moved to Fulham after she
got married. A mother of eight, she was
distraught when one of her sons was killed
in the First World War. Constance and
her husband decided to offer their support
to soldiers by arranging entertainment in
Bishops Park and buying gifts and food for
returning troops.
This led to her being given the affectionate
nickname, ‘Mother of the Wounded’, which
was inscribed on her gravestone after she
died in Scotland, aged 61. Today, her
dedication to the soldiers is commemorated
by a blue plaque in Bishops Park.
Irene was born in Fulham, and became
well-known for her pottery and sculptures.
She won prizes for her work, which was
exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1908.
She had links to Putney School of Art, and
used Fulham Pottery to fire her work before
she bought her own kiln. Irene originally
made female figures in plaster and bronze,
then moved into creating portraits and
earthenware statues. Her work was
collected by museums and galleries across
Britain and is still in their collections today.
Born in New York, Adelaide became one of
the best-loved jazz and cabaret singers and
tap dancers, and performed with legends
such as Duke Ellington, Fats Waller,
Josephine Baker and Louis Armstrong.
In 1941, she was Britain’s highest paid
entertainer.
She was one of the first Black performers
to top the bill at the London Palladium,
and played to full houses at Hammersmith’s
Riverside Studios and the Hammersmith
Palais. She frequently appeared on the BBC
as well as recording extensively for Decca
Records. In the early 1950s, Hall and her
husband Bert opened the Calypso Club in
Regent Street.
Jill Dando was best known for her work
for the BBC, which included presenting the
News, as well as the travel show Holiday,
and the crime appeal series, Crimewatch.
In 1997 she was voted the BBC TV
Personality of the Year. Jill who lived in
Gowan Avenue, Fulham, was a national
treasure and the nation were shock by her
unexpected and untimely death in 1999.
She lived at Fairholme Road in Fulham
from 1980 until her death aged 92 at
Charing Cross Hospital.
16 17

Science
Science
Mary Seacole
(1805-1881)
Alice Gilliatt
(1880-1957)
Edith Clara Summerskill
(1901-1980)
Winifred Watkins
(1924-2003)
Nurse and businesswoman
Pharmacist and councillor
Labour MP
British biochemist and academic
Born in Jamaica, Mary Seacole ran a
boarding house with her family, and
became practised in medicine and nursing.
With the outbreak of the Crimean War
in 1853 she offered to travel to the
battlefields and use her nursing skills but
was rejected. Instead, she went there under
her own steam to set up facilities for sick
and recovering army officers, including a
restaurant and bar. In 1857 she published
a memoir, Adventures of Mrs Seacole in
Many Lands, detailing her experiences.
This has been described as the first
autobiography written by a Black woman
in Britain. Mary lived in Hammersmith &
Fulham for nearly thirty years, from 1853
to her death in 1881. In 2004 she was
voted Greatest Black Briton in a national
poll.
Alice Gilliatt was a founding member of the
Association of Women Pharmacists, served
for many years on the committee of the
Guild of Public Pharmacists and was Head
Pharmacist at the Western Hospital.
She was elected as a councillor in 1919, in
the first London local government elections
in which women could stand, and was also
the first woman Mayor of the Metropolitan
Borough of Fulham. Alice lived in Stevenage
Road, Fulham. There is a housing estate
named after her in Star Road, West
Kensington.
Edith Clara Summerskill was a Labour
politician and writer. She was also one
of the first women admitted to medical
school. Edith was elected Labour MP for
Fulham West in 1938 thanks to the support
of working women, and caused upset when
she took the seat using her maiden name.
She was a feminist, and published books
sharing her views. Later, Edith served as
a minister in Clement Attlee’s government
and promoted women’s causes in and
outside parliament. In 1961, she joined the
House of Lords as Baroness Summerskill.
Winifred was educated in Hammersmith
& Fulham where she developed her love
of science, although her education was
disrupted by World War II. She was
awarded her degree in 1947,
and then a PhD in biochemistry only
three years later.
Her work focused on the science of blood
and blood groups, and she held roles at
different universities, as well as in the
haematology department at Hammersmith
Hospital. Winifred was awarded a number
of prizes for her work, as well as being
elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society
in 1969.
18 19

21 ST CENTURY WOMEN
CELEBRATED NATIONALLY
Influential women in Hammersmith & Fulham have seen their hard
work recognised in the annual New Year Honours list.
Millie Bright
Vivienne Wood
Louisa Mitchell
Louisa was awarded an MBE for her work
with the charity AllChild, formerly known
as West London Zone, in 2024. Louisa is
the Chief Executive of the charity, which
works to give young people a good start
in life. So far, the charity has supported
thousands of children and given them a
wide range of opportunities. Before she
worked for AllChild, Louisa had jobs in
Hong Kong and New York.
Savraj Kaur
Savraj Kaur is the executive director
of UNITED in Hammersmith & Fulham
that quickly came to the aid of many
people who were isolated in the
Covid-19 pandemic. Working with H&F
Council, the charity helped more than
130,000 people, alleviating stress for many
families in challenging conditions. As the
co-founder of Ready Tech Go, she also
helped to tackle ‘digital poverty’ - people
unable to access the technology many
people take for granted - and was awarded
the British Empire Medal in 2023. Savraj is
now a trustee for the refugee and migrant
charity West London Welcome.
Football star Millie is the captain of Chelsea
Women’s team. With Chelsea she has won
lots of championships and trophies. Millie
also plays for England’s national team as
a defender and was captain for the 2023
World Cup tournament. She grew up in
Derbyshire and started playing football
aged nine. In 2024, Millie was awarded
an OBE to celebrate her success.
Vivienne has been a volunteer at Grove
Neighbourhood Centre for many years.
She started as a cook, then became
chairperson. The centre aims to bring
people together to help prevent loneliness,
and it hosts all sorts of classes and
activities. Vivienne helped the centre
survive the Covid pandemic by raising lots
of money. In 2024, she was awarded the
British Empire Medal for all her hard work.
Sharon Tomlin
A passionate advocate for building
community trust and combating social
injustice, Sharon works as a community
organiser at Sobus, which supports more
than 400 local charities and local groups.
In her role, and as a volunteer outreach
worker across local communities, she
works to build power and bring residents
and local groups together. She plays a
key role in improving health and care
services through resident-led dialogue,
particularly within H&F’s Black and African
Caribbean communities. In recognition
of her contributions, she received a Civic
Honour in 2023 and was awarded the
British Empire Medal in the 2025 New Year
Honours list.
20 21

WHO DID WE MISS?
We know that this booklet is not a complete guide to Hammersmith
& Fulham’s Women’s history.
It’s an evolving project and we know just how big a task it is, given
H&F’s unique history and diversity. Please help us shed light on the
women who deserve more recognition, or remarkable locations that
have had a big impact in the community.
Send us your suggestions at: heritage@lbhf.gov.uk
H&F Heritage Trails
Learn about the historic people and places of Hammersmith & Fulham. We have a number of trails
across the borough that you, your family and friends can explore for yourself.
To find out more visit:
lbhf.gov.uk/celebrating-hf/heritage-trails or scan the QR code.
Page 2
H&F women working in the munitions factory in 1918.
Page 8
Woman Suffrage Picket.
Page 23
Suffragettes in 1912 at a protest march in London.
Design by Baker, bplanb.co.uk
Published March 2025.
Acknowledgements
Councillor Rebecca Harvey, Councillor Emma Apthorp, Gaverne Bennett, Annaig Boyer, Emma Jerrard,
Jessica Harris-Edwards, Yvonne Okiyo, Corinne Baker, Lydia Sabatini, Carolyn Zimba, Phoebe Tuohy,
Chloe Phillips, Svea Hundsdorf, Geoff Cowart.
22 23

JOIN US AS WE CELEBRATE
WOMEN’S
HISTORY MONTH
Celebrating women in H&F
We’re proud to celebrate the many women who came before us,
and the women making our borough an amazing place to live, work
and visit today.
To find out more visit: lbhf.gov.uk/celebrating-hf/celebrating-women-hf
or scan the QR code.