Louise Mary Eates (née Peters; 1877–1944) 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 ...

, chair of Kensington Women's Social and Political Union and a women's education activist.

Life

Louise Mary Peters was born in

Richmond, Yorkshire Richmond is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is located at the point where Swaledale, the upper valley of the River Swale, opens into the Vale of Mowbray. The town's population at the 2011 census was 8,413. The t ...

in 1877. She was educated at Edinburgh Ladies College. She married Augustus Reginald Eates M.B. (1871–1963), a

general practitioner A general practitioner (GP) is a doctor who is a Consultant (medicine), consultant in general practice. GPs have distinct expertise and experience in providing whole person medical care, whilst managing the complexity, uncertainty and risk ass ...

Kensal Rise Kensal Green, also known as Kensal Rise, is an area in north-west London, and along with Kensal Town, it forms part of the northern section of North Kensington. It lies north of the canal in the London Borough of Brent, and also to the south, ...

, in 1901. Eates took an interest in female workers' conditions, as honorary secretary to the Investigation Committee of the

Women's Industrial Council The Women's Industrial Council (WIC) was a British organisation active from 1894 to about 1917, promoting the interests of women at work. Federation The organisation originated as the Women's Trade Union Association, founded by Clementina Black i ...

. Her husband interested her in the suffrage issue and other public questions. He supported her when she spoke at the

London Society for Women's Suffrage The Fawcett Society is a membership charity in the United Kingdom which campaigns for women's rights. The organisation dates back to 1866, when Millicent Fawcett, Millicent Garrett Fawcett dedicated her life to the peaceful campaign for women's ...

and joined 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 ...

in 1906-7 becoming the (chair ) Secretary of the Kensington branch from 1906 to 1910. In June 1907, Eates hosted other middle-class women in her drawing room in

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End of London, West End. ...

, where she paid Minnie Baldock from WSPU one shilling and sixpence to give a talk on how important suffrage was to working women. Eates had encouraged Baldock to bring a 'real' working woman

Jane Sbarborough Jane Sbarborough also known as Sbarabara (1842 — 1925), was born in Canada East but is recognized as a British suffragette. She, along with Annie Kenney and Adelaide Knight, was part of the "Canning Town Three", as dubbed by the press. Sbarbo ...

with her. Her guests gave 'many nice compliments' to the speaker. Her two guests were later arrested for their suffrage activism. Eates again invited Baldock to 'make the rich and idle women realise the difficulties that drive poor women to demand the Vote', and this time included

Emmeline Pankhurst Emmeline Pankhurst (; Goulden; 15 July 1858 – 14 June 1928) was a British political activist who organised the British suffragette movement and helped women to win in 1918 the women's suffrage, right to vote in United Kingdom of Great Brita ...

and Gertrude Conolan as speakers. These events raised awareness of the situation of working women and may have helped encourage funding the WSPU cause in this large and active branch, which raised £32 in its first year and £804 in 2010. In one year, Eates's branch sold almost 26,000 copies of ''Votes for Women'' and set up an innovative 'Votes for Women' shop in Church Street, Kensington. A postcard etching of Eates, seated in a large hat, was drawn by Glenn Hinshaw and signed in support of women's suffrage. A copy of the postcard is in the

Museum of London London Museum (known from 1976 to 2024 as the Museum of London) is a museum in London, covering the history of the city from prehistoric to modern times, with a particular focus on social history. The Museum of London was formed in 1976 by ama ...

collection and it is displayed here.

Imprisonment and release

Eates was arrested and charged with obstruction, sentenced to one month in prison, along with eight others including

Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence, Baroness Pethick-Lawrence (; 21 October 1867 – 11 March 1954) was a British women's rights activist, suffragist and pacifist. Early life Pethick-Lawrence was born in 1867 in Clifton, Bristol as Emmeline Pethick. He ...

who rushed the St. Stephen's Entrance to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

in an attempt to meet the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

in March 1909. This was the day after three other suffragettes including

Emily Davison Emily Wilding Davison (11 October 1872 – 8 June 1913) was an English suffragette who fought for Women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, votes for women in Britain in the early twentieth century. A member of the Women's Social and Polit ...

were also in court for obstruction. The incident was reported in the WSPU ''

Votes for Women 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 ...

'' 2 April 1909, pp 506–7. Upon Eates's release from prison, a special piece of jewellery - enamelled silver pendant of the winged Hope figure singing outside prison bars with semi-precious stones in a chain in the WSPU colours of purple, white and green - was commissioned from silver artist and enameler, Ernestine Mills This is now held in the

. The old Kensington Town Hall was hired for a celebration meeting by the branch after greeting her at the gates of

Holloway Prison HM Prison Holloway was a British prison security categories, closed category prison for adult women and young offenders in Holloway, London, England, operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. It was the largest women's prison in western Europe, ...

on her release. In January 1910, Eates organised for WSPU in the election campaign in the Kensington (North) Division, and in December 2010 in the constituency of West St. Pancras. She marshalled processions in Kensington and spoke on one of the main platforms at the Hyde Park rally. She travelled throughout the country in the

Midlands The Midlands is the central region of England, to the south of Northern England, to the north of southern England, to the east of Wales, and to the west of the North Sea. The Midlands comprises the ceremonial counties of Derbyshire, Herefor ...

and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. From 1910 to 1913, she and her husband were in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, then living in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

on their return to London. Eates joined the Pethick-Lawrence's United Suffragists, with Agnes Harben and her husband, which welcomed women and men, former militants and non-militants at the start of the Great War in 1914, and continued to publish ''Votes for Women'' until the passing of the

Representation of the People Act 1918 The Representation of the People Act 1918 ( 7 & 8 Geo. 5. c. 64) was an act of Parliament passed to reform the electoral system in Great Britain and Ireland. It is sometimes known as the Fourth Reform Act. The act extended the franchise in pa ...

gave (some) women the vote and the group and its newspaper were disbanded.

Later life

Eates served on the governing committee of the St. John's Wood Infant Welfare Centre and Day Nursery from 1917 to 1923. She taught at the

Workers Educational Association Workers' Educational Associations (WEA) are not-for-profit bodies that deliver further education to adults in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. WEA UK WEA UK, founded in 1903, is the UK's largest voluntary sector provider of adult edu ...

and was involved in the

Women's Institute The Women's Institute (WI) is a community-based organization for women in the United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand. The movement was founded in Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada, by Erland and Janet Lee with Adelaide Hoodless being the ...

in the 1920s in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, where she moved in 1924. Back in London in 1927, Eates ran classes at the Young Women's' Christian Association in Acton from 1929-30: Citizenship Class and Debating Circle. Eates had one daughter, Margot Eates, who worked as curator and art historian at the Museum of London during the 1930s and World War II. Louise Eates died in London in 1944, her last address being 135 Avenue Road, Acton, West London.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eates, Louise 1877 births 1944 deaths Scottish suffragettes British women's rights activists Women's Social and Political Union Women's suffrage in the United Kingdom