Catherine Smithies (née Bywater; c. 1796 – 25 October 1877) was an English philanthropist and social reformer active in animal welfare, abolitionism, and temperance. She founded the first Band of Mercy, which taught children kindness to animals and became the model for the wider Bands of Mercy movement.

Biography

Early life and family

Catherine Bywater was born around 1796 in Tadcaster, Yorkshire.[1] She later lived in Leeds.[2]

In 1812, she married James Smithies at St Peter's Church, Leeds. Her son, Thomas Bywater Smithies (1817–1883), the second of ten children, was born in 1817;[3] he later worked with her in abolitionist and temperance causes.[2]

After her husband's death in 1861, Smithies moved to London to live with Thomas at Earlham Grove House, Wood Green, which was built around 1865.[3][4]

Philanthropy and social reform

Smithies was a Methodist, and her religious beliefs shaped her reform work.[2] She was a member of the Band of Hope, a temperance organisation founded in Leeds in 1847 that encouraged children to abstain from alcohol through hymns, talks, and activities. Her work with the Band of Hope provided a model for her later humane education work.[2]

In the 1860s, Smithies wrote A Mother's Lessons on Kindness to Animals, which was published in several volumes.[5] In 1870, with Angela Burdett-Coutts, she founded the Ladies Committee of the RSPCA.[6]

Founding the Band of Mercy

In 1875, Smithies established the first Band of Mercy, modelled on the Band of Hope but devoted to animal welfare.[2][7] The organisation asked members to take the pledge: "I will try to be kind to all living creatures, and try to protect them from cruel usage."[2]

The Band of Mercy held meetings and used storytelling, hymns, and lantern-slide presentations. The movement spread to other countries, including Australia and the United States. Its publications included the Band of Mercy Advocate, edited and produced by Thomas Bywater Smithies.[2]

Death and commemoration

Catherine Smithies' memorial in Wood Green

Smithies died at Earlham Grove House on 25 October 1877, aged 82.[8] On her deathbed she stated: "the teaching of children to be kind and merciful to God's lower creatures is preparing the way for the gospel of Christ."[9] She was buried in Abney Park Cemetery in Stoke Newington; Thomas was buried alongside her after his death.[10] A guard of honour was formed by uniformed RSPCA officers at her funeral.[11]

After her death, Smithies was commemorated by Thomas in issue number 281 of The British Workman. Her family and friends erected an obelisk and public drinking fountain in Wood Green as a memorial.[12]

References

  1. ↑ United Kingdom census (1871). "Catherine Smithies". Ancestry.com. Retrieved 25 March 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Two women unafraid to work with animals and children: Angela Burdett Coutts and Catherine Smithies by Simon Strickland-Scott". Newington Green Meeting House. Archived from the original on 5 September 2022. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  3. 1 2 Murray, Frank (29 May 2014). "Smithies, Thomas Bywater (1817–1883), campaigner for temperance and for animal welfare". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/74113. Retrieved 22 June 2020. (Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
  4. ↑ "Mrs Catherine Smithies". London Remembers. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
  5. ↑ Donald, Diana (2019). "The 'Two religions': A Gendered Divide in Victorian Society". Women Against Cruelty: Protection of Animals in Nineteenth-century Britain. Manchester University Press. ISBN 978-1-5261-1544-7.
  6. ↑ Scales, Andy. "We remember female trailblazers on International Women's Day". RSPCA. Archived from the original on 22 June 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  7. ↑ Cronin, J. Keri (2018). Art for Animals: Visual Culture and Animal Advocacy, 1870–1914. University Park, Pennsylvania: Penn State Press. p. 58. ISBN 978-0-271-08163-2.
  8. ↑ "Smithies". The Morning Post. 27 October 1877. p. 8. Retrieved 25 March 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. ↑ Moss, Arthur William (1961). Valiant Crusade: The History of the RSPCA. London: Cassell. p. 37. ASIN B0027357XI.
  10. ↑ Pinching, Albert (9 June 2019). "Wood Green's Obelisk". Hornsey Historical Society. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  11. ↑ "The History of George Meehan House (formerly Woodside House)". Haringey Council. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  12. ↑ "Animals". BLT19: 19th-Century Business, Labour, Temperance, & Trade Periodicals. 18 July 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_Smithies