Mary Ann Lawrenson (
née
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
Molyneux; 23 March 1850 – 1 January 1943) was an English activist in the
co-operative movement
The history of the cooperative movement concerns the origins and history of cooperatives across the world. Although cooperative arrangements, such as mutual insurance, and principles of cooperation existed long before, the cooperative movement bega ...
and an educationalist. A co-founder of the
Co-operative Women's Guild
The Co-operative Women's Guild was an auxiliary organisation of the co-operative movement in the United Kingdom which promoted women in co-operative structures and provided social and other services to its members.
History
The guild was founded ...
, she served as its general secretary from 1885 to 1889. She was also the first woman represented on the board of the
Co-operative Union
Co-operatives UK is a British co-operative federation described as "the central membership organisation for co-operative enterprise throughout the UK". It was founded in 1870 as the Co-operative Central Board, changing its name to the Co-oper ...
.
Biography
Born 23 March 1850 in
Marylebone
Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary.
An Civil parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish and latterly a ...
,
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
, England (now part of central London) to John Molyneux and Ellen Molyneux (née Keys), she was the eldest of 11 children. Her father was a printer, co-operator and trade unionist. Like her father, Lawrenson was a follower of both
Christian Socialism
Christian socialism is a religious and political philosophy that blends Christianity and socialism, endorsing left-wing politics and socialist economics on the basis of the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. Many Christian socialists believe capi ...
and
Roman Catholicism
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
. From 1869 she taught English in schools, and spent some time teaching in Paris.
In 1876 she married John Marcus Lawrenson a government clerk and fellow co-operator, with whom she had a son.
Lawrenson played a key role in the establishment of the Co-operative Women's Guild, following an appeal by
Alice Acland, with whom Lawrenson had previously met, in her column in the ''
Co-operative News
''Co-op News'' is a UK-based monthly news magazine and website for the global co-operative movement.
First published in Manchester in 1871 as ''The Co-operative News'', the paper is the world's oldest co-operative newspaper. Originally a weekly ...
''. Lawrenson advocated for a national organisation with local branches to support women in the co-operative movement and to promote the education of women and girls through instructional and recreational classes. Founded initially as the Women's League for the Spread of Co-operation, the organisation held its first formal meeting of 50 women at the 1883
Co-operative Congress
The Co-operative Congress is the national conference of the UK Co-operative Movement. The first of the modern congresses took place in 1869 following a series of meetings called the "Owenite Congress" in the 1830s. Members of Co-operatives UK (p ...
, and was soon after renamed the Co-operative Women's Guild. Lawrensen founded one of the first Guild branches in Woolwich in 1883 and joined the national Guild committee in 1884.
In 1884 she was also elected along with a friend, to the education committee of the
Royal Arsenal Co-operative Society
The Royal Arsenal Co-operative Society (RACS) was a large consumer co-operative based in south east London, England. The co-operative took its name from the Royal Arsenal munitions works in Woolwich and its motto was: "Each for all and all for e ...
(RACS), becoming the first women nationally to be elected to a co-operative educational committee. She faced resistance from men on the committee, while others supported women's involvement in educational committees if it meant they didn't try to run for management committee positions. However, she was soon followed nationally by other women gaining election to co-operative educational committees, though they struggled in securing funding from their co-operatives for educational activities.
During this period she organised classes for women and children. However she found herself at odds with others in the movement locally who placed more emphasis on the labour and suffrage movements and she subsequently resigned as secretary of the Woolwich Guild in 1885 and from the RACS education committee in 1888.
In 1885 Lawrenson succeeded Acland as general secretary of the Guild, working across the country to support the establishment of local branches during a period of rapid growth. In 1889 she was replaced as general secretary by
Margaret Llewelyn Davies, in part because of her support for co-operative production through co-operative workshops and labour co-partnerships, as opposed to the dominant focus on consumer co-operation. In 1893 she also lost her place on the Guild's national committee.
In 1905 she moved to
Bournemouth
Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...
and was active in the Guild locally. However, following her husband's death in the First World War, she ceased being active in the co-operative movement, though she was honoured as part of the Guild's 50th anniversary celebrations in 1933.
She later moved to Brighton where she died on 1 January 1943 (aged 92) following an extended period of poor health.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lawrenson, Mary
1850 births
1943 deaths
Co-operative Women's Guild
British cooperative organizers
People from Marylebone
British Christian socialists