RP VI - Elizabeth Rathbone. - 1804-1876
The papers of Elizabeth Rathbone (RP VI) comprise correspondence and personal papers including diaries and notebooks, dating from 1804-1876. The papers are arranged into the following groups:
- RP VI.1: General correspondence
- RP VI.2: Personal papers
| Archive level description: | Series |
|---|---|
| Physical Description: | 523 items |
| Summary: | The papers of Elizabeth Rathbone (RP VI) comprise correspondence and personal papers including diaries and notebooks, dating from 1804-1876. The papers are arranged into the following groups:
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| Date: | 1804-1876 |
| Reference Number: | RP VI |
| Biographical/Administrative Information: | Elizabeth Rathbone (1790-1882) eldest daughter of Samuel Greg of Quarry Bank, Cheshire and Hannah (née Lightbody), married William Rathbone V in 1812 and they had five children: Elizabeth (1813-1899, later Paget); Hannah Mary (later Thom), William Rathbone VI (1819-1902), Samuel Greg Rathbone (1823-1903) and Philip Henry Rathbone (1828-1895). Elizabeth became secretary of the Bible Society on its establishment in Liverpool, supported Kitty Wilkinson's work during the cholera epidemic to establish a system of washing infected clothing and bedding, which led to the introduction of public baths and wash-houses; and was also an important influence on the movement to reform standards in the Liverpool Corporation Schools. Her ideas on Forster's Education Bill (Education Act 1870) were later remembered by Forster as, "the most valuable suggestions I received during the passage of the Bill" (William Rathbone VI, A Sketch of Family History during four generations (1894). Elizabeth numbered amongst her friends and correspondents, Father Theobald Mathew, Lady Byron, William Scoresby (the Arctic explorer) and the social reformer Dorothea Dix. She died on 24 Oct 1882. |