Mary Wardell (18 August 1832 - 20 January 1917) was a British philanthropist whose establishment for the treatment of Scarlet Fever reduced the prevalence of the infection in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Hospital work

The daughter of a wine merchant, and educated at Queen's College, London, her idea for establishing a Scarlet Fever convalescent home was reported to have arisen from her work "among the poor of London" through Ellen Henrietta Ranyard's London Bible and Domestic Female Mission. Wardell's Convalescent Home for Scarlet Fever opened on the summit of

Brockley Hill Brockley Hill, Stanmore, is an area of high ground on the outskirts of North London, England. The hill, which rises to above sea level, is traversed by the A5 road. It follows the course of the Roman road known as Watling Street. The hill is ...

, Stanmore in 1884 after five years of fundraising and was still regarded as unique thirty years later. Mary Wardell presented her initial idea to the physician Alexander Patrick Stewart whose introductions to other doctors, led her to secure in just six weeks the backing of many eminent medical men in the capital for the "project she had herself devised". Wardell later secured political support from the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier 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. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

and his wife

Catherine Gladstone Catherine Gladstone (; 6 January 1812 – 14 June 1900) was the wife of British statesman William Ewart Gladstone for 59 years, from 1839 until his death in 1898. Early life and family Glynne was the daughter of Sir Stephen Glynne, 8th Baro ...

and a meeting was held at Downing Street to advance the cause in March 1882. The Ladies' Sanitary Association, of which Catherine Gladstone was a patron, reported itself not only to have contributed a donation, but to have "worked assiduously to assist Miss Wardell". Royal patronage came from the

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...

and Princess of Wales who opened the home in 1884. Presiding at the first annual meeting was

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, and

Edward Henry Sieveking Sir Edward Henry Sieveking (24 August 1816 – 24 February 1904) was an English physician. Life Sieveking was born in Bishopsgate, London. He studied medicine at the University of Berlin under eminent physiologist Johannes Peter Muller, and als ...

moved the meeting to accept the first annual report. Mary Wardell was not just the Secretary of the home but at times undertook the roles of matron and domestic as required and in due course she moved to premises next door named Sullonicae, after the Romano-British settlement of that name. One convalescent compared her to

Father Damien Father Damien or Saint Damien of Molokai, SS.CC. or Saint Damien De Veuster ( nl, Pater Damiaan or '; 3 January 1840 – 15 April 1889), born Jozef De Veuster, was a Roman Catholic priest from Belgium and member of the Congregation of the Sac ...

. One patient was the composer

Frederic Hymen Cowen Sir Frederic Hymen Cowen (29 January 1852 – 6 October 1935), was an English composer, conductor and pianist. Early years and musical education Cowen was born Hymen Frederick Cohen at 90 Duke Street, Kingston, Jamaica, the fifth and last c ...

in 1887, only months after having conducted benefit concerts for the home. One early concession she made to her original plan was to extend her mission to patients of different social classes, resulting in the provision of somewhat segregated facilities. Despite differential charges for those more able to pay, fundraising continued to be required with all outstanding debts cleared in 1911 following a grant by the executors of Lady Goldsmid. To counteract local suspicion, the nurses wore distinctive

Turkey red Turkey red is a color that was widely used to dye cotton in the 18th and 19th century. It was made using the root of the rubia plant, through a long and laborious process. It originated in India or Turkey, and was brought to Europe in the 1740s ...

uniforms, so that those fearful of infection could keep away from them. The Home also collected patients from their homes by a dedicated omnibus to reduce the likelihood of transmission. At the time of her death in 1917, the home had been repurposed as an auxiliary military hospital for the treatment of Belgian and French soldiers. After the war, the site was acquired as the Country Branch of the

Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital (RNOH) is a specialist orthopaedic hospital located in the London Borough of Harrow, United Kingdom, and a part of Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust. It provides the most comprehensive range of ...

. Mary Wardell is buried in the churchyard of S Lawrence, Little Stanmore, Middlesex the parish in which the Home was situated.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wardell, Mary 1832 births 1917 deaths British philanthropists Women philanthropists Hospital administrators