Frances Margaret Venables-Vernon, Baroness Vernon ( Lawrance; 11 July 1861 – 23 June 1940) was an American heiress who married into the British aristocracy.

Early life

She was the daughter of Francis Cooper Lawrance (1829–1911) and Frances Adelaide ( Garner) Lawrance (1835–1908), of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

.Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, Among her siblings were Francis C. Lawrance Jr. (son-in-law of banker Charles D. Lanier and brother-in-law of

John Jacob Astor IV John Jacob Astor IV (July 13, 1864 – April 15, 1912) was an American business magnate, real estate developer, investor, writer, lieutenant colonel in the Spanish–American War, and a prominent member of the Astor family. He was among the most ...

), Thomas Garner Lawrance (who died aged 21), and William Garner Lawrance. Her paternal grandparents were Thomas Lawrance and Margaret Lawrence ( Ireland) Lawrance. Her maternal grandparents were Thomas Garner of England and Frances Mathilda ( Thorne) Garner. Among her nieces and nephews were Charles Lanier Lawrance, Kitty Lawrance (wife of

W. Averell Harriman William Averell Harriman (November 15, 1891July 26, 1986) was an American politician, businessman, and diplomat. He was a founder of Harriman & Co. which merged with the older Brown Brothers to form the Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. investment ...

, the

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ...

), and Frances Alice Willing Lawrance (wife of Prince Andrzej

Poniatowski The House of Poniatowski (plural: ''Poniatowscy'') is a prominent Polish family that was part of the nobility of Poland. A member of this family, Stanisław Poniatowski, was elected as King of Poland and reigned from 1764 until his abdicati ...

, a son of Prince

André Poniatowski Prince Louis Léopold Charles Marie ''André'' Poniatowski (24 January 1864 – 8 March 1954), was a Polish nobleman, member of the Poniatowski, House of Poniatowski who became a prominent French financier and industrialist. Early life Prince And ...

). From her mother, she inherited two trusts which, as of 1922, aggregated to more than $300,000 and a third interest in a residuary estate, securities which cost $282,787 (when purchased), $33,520 in cash, and an $37,486 interest in real estate.

Personal life

On 14 July 1885, Frances married George Venables-Vernon, 7th Baron Vernon at

St George's, Hanover Square St George's, Hanover Square, is an Church of England, Anglican church, the parish church of Mayfair in the City of Westminster, central London, built in the early eighteenth century as part of a project to build fifty new churches around London ...

in London. He was the son and heir of Augustus Venables-Vernon, 6th Baron Vernon, and his wife Lady Harriet Frances Maria Anson (a daughter of

Thomas Anson, 1st Earl of Lichfield Thomas William Anson, 1st Earl of Lichfield Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, PC (20 October 1795 – 18 March 1854), known as Viscount Anson from 1818–31, was a British Whig (British political faction), Whig politician from the An ...

). Lord Vernon had succeeded his father in the barony in 1883, when he inherited around of land in

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

and

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

. Together, they were the parents of:Mosley, Charles, editor. ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes.''

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

, U.S.A.:

Burke's Peerage Burke's Peerage Limited is a British genealogical publisher, considered an authority on the order of precedence of noble families and information on the lesser nobility of the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1826, when the Anglo-Irish genea ...

(Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003, volume 3, page 3999. * Hon. Frances Lawrance Venables-Vernon (b. 1886), who married

Maurice Raoul-Duval Maurice Raoul-Duval (27 April 1866 – 5 May 1916) was a French polo player who competed in the 1900 Summer Olympics. Early life Raoul-Duval was born on 27 April 27, 1866 in Le Pecq. He was the son of Fernand Raoul-Duval (1833–1892), a mi ...

of the Château de Marolles in 1910. After he was killed in action in 1916, she married Lt. Jean de Kermaignant in 1918. * George Francis Augustus Venables-Vernon, 8th Baron Vernon (1888–1915), who died, unmarried, from illness contracted while on service in

Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...

. * Francis Lawrance William Venables-Vernon, 9th Baron Vernon (1889–1963), who married Violet Miriam Nightingale Clay, daughter of Col. Charles Herbert Clay and Violet Harriet Nightingale (a daughter of Sir Henry Nightingale, 13th Baronet), in 1915. Lord Vernon died in December 1898, aged 44, and was succeeded in the barony by their eldest son,

George George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...

. Lady Vernon, was declared incompetent in 1910 and spent the rest of her life living in Pau, France, where she died on 23 June 1940.

Legacy

In 1883, Frances had her portrait painted by

Jules Joseph Lefebvre Jules Joseph Lefebvre (; 14 March 183624 February 1911) was a French painter, educator and theorist. Early life Lefebvre was born in Tournan-en-Brie, Seine-et-Marne, on 14 March 1836. He entered the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Ar ...

. The portrait was transferred to the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

through the National Land Fund in 1967 when her grandson, John Lawrance Venables-Vernon, 10th Baron Vernon, gifted the Vernon family seat,

Sudbury Hall Sudbury Hall is a country house in Sudbury, Derbyshire, England. One of the country's finest Restoration mansions, it has Grade I listed building status, and the garden is Grade II listed in Historic England's Register of Parks and Gardens. T ...

to the National Trust.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Venables-Vernon, Frances 1861 births 1940 deaths Frances Lawrance British baronesses by marriage American emigrants to England Gilded Age