Catharine Dowman (; 25 May 1878 – 19 September 1972) was an English

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

associated with

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...

and the restoration of the ''

Cutty Sark ''Cutty Sark'' is a British clipper ship. Built on the River Leven, Dumbarton, Scotland in 1869 for the Jock Willis Shipping Line, she was one of the last tea clippers to be built and one of the fastest, at the end of a long period of desig ...

''.

Family

Catharine was a member of the wealthy English

Courtauld Courtauld is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Adam Courtauld Butler or Adam Butler (British politician), DL (1931–2008), British Conservative Party politician and MP *Augustine Courtauld (1904–1959), often called August Cou ...

textile family. She was born in

Bocking, Essex Bocking is a suburban village on the northern side of Braintree, Essex, Braintree, in Essex, England. Bocking village was historically in two parts; the original settlement around the parish church became known as Bocking Churchstreet, while a ...

,''1911 England Census'' the daughter of Sydney Courtauld (1840–1899) and Sarah Lucy Sharpe (1844–1906). Her older brother Samuel Courtauld founded the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. The art collection is known particularly for ...

. In 1912, she met her future husband, Wilfred Harry Dowman, whilst a passenger sailing from London to Sydney on the ''Port Jackson'', a cadet training ship. Wilfred was already married so they had to wait for his divorce before finally marrying in 1920.

Philanthropic work

In January 1922, Wilfred saw the then ''Ferreira'' when she put into Falmouth to repair storm damage. Recognising her as the

clipper ship A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century Merchant ship, merchant Sailing ship, sailing vessel, designed for speed. The term was also retrospectively applied to the Baltimore clipper, which originated in the late 18th century. Clippers were gen ...

'', he and Catherine strived to purchase her. They sold parts of their estate, along with other vessels including the brigantine ''Lady of Avenal''. Their vision for the ''Cutty Sark'' was that she be used as a cadet training vessel. Over the next two years, the Dowmans funded the restoration of the ship and by 1924

was displayed as the flagship at the Fowey Regatta. For 16 years, the vessel was moored in Falmouth and was used to train cadets until Wilfred's death in 1936, which prompted her sale in 1938 to the Thames Nautical Training College. Catharine continued to follow the ''Cutty Sark'', last visiting the ship in 1968 at the age of 90. In 1934 the Dowmans moved to

Wyke Regis Wyke Regis is a village in the civil parish of Weymouth, in south Dorset, England. The village is part of the south western suburbs of Weymouth, on the northern shore of Portland Harbour and the south-eastern end of Chesil Beach. Wyke is sou ...

, near Weymouth in Dorset. Catherine supported the local scouts, donating the land for the 3rd Wyke Regis / Weymouth South Scout Group headquarters, and being president of the group until her death in 1972.

Women's suffrage

Catharine was a founder member of the

Suffrage Atelier Suffrage Atelier was an Artist collective, artists' collective campaigning for women's suffrage in England. It was founded in February 1909 by Laurence Housman, Clemence Housman and Alfred Pearse. Clemence was a writer, illustrator, and wood engr ...

and the

Artists' Suffrage League The Artists' Suffrage League (ASL) (1907 – c.1918) was a suffrage society formed to change parliamentary opinion and engage in public demonstrations and other propaganda activities. Activities The ASL was established in Jan 1907 to assist with ...

, and used her art for the cause. Her Suffrage Atelier posters were often witty – such as the 'Prehistoric Argument and the 'Anti-Suffrage Ostrich' – and were widely distributed as postcards.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dowman, Catharine 1878 births 1972 deaths Catharine People from Bocking, Essex English people of French descent