Agnes Caroline Lake (1887–1972) was a British

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

who was the business manager of the

Women's Social and Political Union The Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) was a women-only political movement and leading militant organisation campaigning for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom founded in 1903. Known from 1906 as the suffragettes, its membership and p ...

(WSPU)’s newspaper '' The Suffragette.''

Life

Lake was born in 1887 in

Harlow Harlow is a town and local government district located in the west of Essex, England. Founded as a Planned community, new town in 1947, it is situated on the border with Hertfordshire, and occupies a large area of land on the south bank of the ...

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

. She married Dr. William Henry Whatmough in 1910. They had one daughter, who was born in the

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

. Lake was employed as the business manager of the

(WSPU)’s newspaper ''The Suffragette.'' She liaised with

Emmeline ''Emmeline, The Orphan of the Castle'' is the first novel written by English writer Charlotte Smith; it was published in 1788. A Cinderella story in which the heroine stands outside the traditional economic structures of English society and ...

and

Christabel Pankhurst Dame Christabel Harriette Pankhurst (; 22 September 1880 – 13 February 1958) was a British suffragette born in Manchester, England. A co-founder of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), she directed Suffragette bombing and arson ca ...

about improving the publications content and layout. On 30 April 1913, Lake was arrested alongside

Beatrice Sanders Beatrice Helen Sanders (1874 – 29 November 1932) was a British suffragette and humanist, who served as financial secretary of the Women's Social and Political Union from 1904 until 1914. Life Born Beatrice Helen Martin, her mother was a ...

Rachel Barrett Rachel Barrett (12 November 1874 – 26 August 1953) was a Welsh suffragette and newspaper editor born in Carmarthen. Educated at the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth she became a science teacher, but quit her job in 1906 on hearing ...

Harriet Kerr Harriet Roberta Kerr (1859–1940) was a British suffragette and office manager of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). Life Kerr was born in 1859 in Wanstead, Essex. Her father was a professor of architecture at King's College Lond ...

and

Flora Drummond Flora McKinnon Drummond (née Gibson; 4 August 1878 – 17 January 1949) was a British suffragette. Nicknamed 'The General' for her habit of leading women's rights marches wearing a military style uniform 'with an officers cap and epaulettes'Sy ...

when police raided the WSPU headquarters. She was charged with conspiracy under the Malicious Damage to Property Act and was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment. In June 1913, she was transferred to Warwick Goal in Warwickshire, where she went on hunger strike and was force fed. She was so unwell by October 1913 that she was moved into a nursing home in

Royal Leamington Spa Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or simply LeamingtonEven more colloquially, also referred to as Lem or Leam (). (), is a spa town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England. Originally a small village called Leamington Pri ...

under the "

Cat and Mouse Act The Prisoners (Temporary Discharge for Ill-Health) Act 1913, commonly referred to as the Cat and Mouse Act, was an act passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom under H. H. Asquith's Liberal government in 1913. The Cat and Mouse Act wa ...

." It is likely that she was awarded the

Hunger Strike Medal The Hunger Strike Medal was a silver medal awarded between August 1909 and 1914 to suffragette prisoners by the leadership of the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU). During their imprisonment, many went on hunger strike while serving the ...

. After absconding from the nursing home with the help of a local suffragette called Mrs Bell, she was rearrested outside her home in

Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...

, London, during December 1913. Lake was later dismissed from her role with the WSPU's newspaper, which Christabel Pankhurst said was "purely a business matter". She died in 1972 in

Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Toponymy Wandsworth takes its name ...

, London, aged 84.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lake Agnes 1887 births 1972 deaths People from Harlow Women's Social and Political Union British suffragettes 20th-century British women journalists