Inspiring Women of London History: A True Force for Good

As those of you who already know me will know, I’m a proud member of the Junior League of London, a volunteer force of women committed to advancing women’s leadership for meaningful community impact. As part of our work, we run an annual social media campaign called the ‘Little Black Dress Initiative’ (#LBDI) to raise awareness about the challenges faced by women today, particularly those in London fighting to escape economic hardship.

But we’re certainly not the first to champion this cause. Indeed, many of the privileges that I enjoy as a woman in London today are thanks to the tireless efforts of pioneering women who have gone before us and worked to make a difference for others in London.  So, for the last three years I’ve used the LBDI campaign as an opportunity to highlight some of those amazing women of history. 

And here they are — fifteen London heroines you should know! I’ve included excerpts from my LBDI Instagram posts noting some of their impressive accomplishments, along with info about where you can find tributes to them in London. Happy reading!

LBDI 2022 Campaign (our 10^th in London!):

• #LBDI Day 1 – Proudly wore my LBDI badge to Parliament today for a roundtable discussion with our MPs focused on supporting Londoners facing cost of living pressures — the perfect start to London Challenge Poverty Week! On my way out, I stopped by Parliament Square and the statue of my LBDI inspiring woman of the day: the Suffragette Millicent Fawcett, whose tireless campaigns for women went far beyond the vote. Here’s a fun fact: Millicent started her fist campaign while still a schoolgirl living just walking distance from my own front door! Her aim: equal rights for single mothers. If you’d like to visit her statue, it’s easy to find amongst the Parliament Square statues, as she’s the only woman there!
• #LBDI Day 2 – Kicked off with a cycle along Regents Canal with a little stop to honour my LBDI inspiring woman of the day: Sylvia Pankhurst, who’s best known for her role as a Suffragette but also deserves to be known for her role fighting poverty in London. Among many other initiatives, Sylvia established free clinics for mothers and babies, ‘cost price’ restaurants to feed the hungry, and was an outspoken advocate for supporting those fleeing persecution. Today, you can find a steel sculpture in her honour at along the canal side of Mile End Park, not far from her East London base. 
• #LBDI Day 3 – Headed to East London and the statue of my LBDI inspiring woman of the day: Catherine Booth, co-founder of the Salvation Army. Catherine was a tireless advocate for the rights of women both in the ministry and in the workforce, but today I’m most inspired by her commitment to feeding the hungry in London. She organised Food-for-the-Million shops providing access to cheap meals, and on Christmas Day, she personally cooked hundreds of meals to be distributed to the needy. You can find the statue honouring Catherine on Mile End Road near the site of the very first Salvation Army mission.
• #LBDI Day 4 – Headed to Central London and stopped by the former home of my LBDI inspiring woman of the day: Mary Wollstonecraft, Britain’s first feminist, who argued passionately that for women to be equal, they needed access to quality education. Her unconventional views were more than a century ahead of her time, and fortunately today advancement through education is a widely supported concept. You can find a blue plaque honouring Mary at her former home on Dolben Street in Southwark
• #LBDI Day 5 – Final day of the 10th LBDI Campaign! Headed into the City today where I’ve been privileged to enjoy a rewarding career. On my way I strolled along the river for a visit to my LBDI inspiring woman of the day: Ada Salter, the first female Mayor in London, who devoted her life to supporting low-paid women, including rallying 14,000 women in her local borough of Bermondsey to walk out of factories and strike in protest of low pay and terrible working conditions – and they won! You can find a statue in her honour (the first statue of a female politician erected in London!) along Bermondsey Wall overlooking the Thames.

LBDI 2023 Campaign:

• #LBDI Day 1 – This morning as I walked through town I passed by the Suffragette memorial honouring the courage and perseverance (and literal suffering!) of those fighting for votes for women; and I was reminded of the many benefits I enjoy today thanks to the social reforms they fought for a century ago. It’s also a great reminder that progress comes not from one individual, but from the collective acts of many. I’m proud to be following in their footsteps as a member of the Junior League, with more than 100,000 women around the world as catalysts for lasting community change. If you’d like to visit the Suffragette Memorial, you can find it along with some of their inspiring personal stories in Christchurch Gardens in Victoria.
• #LBDI Day 2 – I was in Victoria Park today and stopped by the lovely Victorian fountain donated by my LBDI inspiring woman of the day, Angela Burdett-Coutts. These days her fountain is popular for its gothic beauty, but she built it to provide much-needed clean drinking water for destitute Londoners. Just one of many initiatives Angela championed for health and food security in our capitol, like personally funding thousands of meals for East Londoners and creating the Columbia Road Market to bring affordable fruit and veg to the area. The then Prince of Wales said, ‘After my mother (Queen Victoria), she is the most remarkable woman in the kingdom.’ No doubt many would agree!
• #LBDI Day 3 – Earlier I passed by the blue plaque honouring my LBDI inspiring women of the day, the Match Girls, who won their landmark strike against exploitation and dangerous working conditions for the young women and girls at the matchstick factory here. The strike not only helped these girls, but showed the power of collective action, with a wave of unions and strikes across other industries to follow, and better laws for workers nationally. Today you can find their plaque on Fairfield Road in Bow at the site of the former Victorian match factory, which still stands today (albeit repurposed as flats).
• #LBDI Day 4 – I passed by Parliament earlier and reflected that it was right here a century ago that the first School Meals Act passed thanks to the tireless campaigning of my LBDI inspiring women of the day, Margaret and Rachel McMillan, who created the first nursery school and championed integrated care of the whole child, not just academics. Their approach for nurseries became a blueprint across the UK and the US, and today you can stroll past the original Rachel McMillan Nursery School on McMillan Street in Deptford which is still going strong a century later!
• #LBDI Day 5 – TGIF! Today’s a day of working from home for me, but earlier this week I passed by the statue in honour of my LBDI inspiring woman of the day, Margaret Macdonald, who dedicated her life to championing women, and set up the first trade school for girls. Thanks to a comfortable family income she didn’t need to work, but chose to do so as a secretary for a nursing association and as an active volunteer helping those in need, and then as a leader of several key social justice organisations. She also funded her husband’s political career to advance those causes. Sadly she died before he became Prime Minister, but he tributes much of his success to her support, and the statue erected in her honour can be visited today at Lincoln’s Inn Fields in central London near the site of their home. The bronze plaque at the base provides info about her and ends that she ‘took no rest from doing good.’ How inspiring is that?!?

LBDI 2024 Campaign:

• #LBDI Day 1 – Today marks Day 1 of the @jrleaguelondon Little Black Dress Initiative!  As a bit of inspiration, I was in colourful Camden earlier and passed by the blue plaque honouring the world’s first headmistress, Frances Mary Buss – a tireless campaigner for women’s rights and founder of the first modern secondary school for girls. How cool is that?!? Frances devoted her life to creating opportunities for future generations of women, and she refused to give up even when faced with rejection.  Love her motto: ‘We may not get there, but others will’. More than 150 years later, her fab school and her legacy live on today! You can find her plaque – and her school – on Sandall Road in Camden.
• #LBDI Day 2 — I was in East London earlier and passed by the blue plaque honouring my LBDI inspiring woman of the day, Mary Hughes. What an incredible human! Mary gave up a comfortable, wealthy lifestyle to serve others. She bought an old pub right here and named it the ‘Dewdrop Inn’ (a pun on ‘Do Drop In’ 😊) to provide a refuge with safe beds for homeless women, and she often slept on the floor herself so others could have a bed. A blue plaque in her honour adorns her former pub on Buxton Street, and it calls her ‘a friend of all in need’ — how touching is that?!?
• #LBDI Day 3 — The leaves are changing and London’s looking lovely! I love all the green spaces here and today I passed by the former home of another lover of green spaces (and another Allen 😊), the landscape architect Marjory Allen. Marjory was a tireless advocate for the welfare of children and in particular the creation of adventure playgrounds to enable kids to get outside and build their confidence, creativity and mental health. Her work led to the passing of important child welfare laws and the building of 61 adventure playgrounds across London. A blue plaque in her honour can be found on her home on Lawrence Street, Chelsea.
• #LBDI Day 4 – My day started in Westminster, right next to the dorms where I lived as a student. Recently while in Wimbledon I passed by a blue plaque honouring another London student, Eleanor Roosevelt. Eleanor credits her 3 years here in London for developing her social conscience, and she went on to become not only an influential First Lady in the US but a champion for human rights globally. She was also an active leader in the Junior League! I love the inspiring quote from her book: ‘We don’t have to become heroes overnight. Just a step at a time.’ You can find a plaque in her honour at her former school on Wimbledon Park Road.
• #LBDI Day 5 – Today’s the last day of our campaign, and what a lovely day it’s turned out to be! Earlier I passed by the blue plaque honouring my inspirational woman of the day, Stella Isaacs, who founded the Women’s Voluntary Service to relieve suffering caused during WWII, and thousands of women answered her call to make a difference in their community despite their own wartime challenges. Love her motto: ‘Not why we can’t, but how we can’ ♥️ After the war she championed employment opportunities for women, and became the first woman to take a seat in the House of Lords. Today you can find a plaque honouring her at her headquarters building on Tothill Street in Westminster.

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this list of inspirational women from London’s history and found some inspiration for yourself. Here’s to the many incredible women of our past, present, and future!