Printed and Published at the Dover Express Works. 1916.

TO BE FORMATTED

ANNALS OF DOVER.
SECTION FIVE.
THE HISTORY OF THE CORPORATION.

IX. WOMEN IN THE CORPORATION.

An innovation in Municipal affairs was made by the Act
of 1869 which conferred on single women householders the
right to vote in the election of Town Councillors; but
although that was the first time women had had a vote, they
had previously had an interest — women had played their
part as Mayoresses ever since the long line of Mayors began.
For many centuries, Mayoresses in Dover had assisted their
worshipful husbands, and although the records give but
little definite information concerning them, there are a few
examples that may be quoted. What the wives of those
old Mayors of the Middle Ages did is not recorded, but
there is no doubt they were busy in preparing ihose great
banquets of sweetmeats which were given at the several
Mayors houses year after year, to celebrate their elections.
Mrs. Kempe, the wife of Edward Kempe, a wealthy resident
of St. James' Parish, who was Mayor in the reigns of Queen
Elizabeth and James I., is mentioned in the Corporation
Minutes. She may be termed a double Mayoress, for she
was the wife of John Tench, who was Mayor in 1588, and
as Mayoress she assisted in the rejoicings of that year, on
the completion of the Great Pent, carried out by the bounty
of Queen Elizabeth. Of Mrs. Tench's doings then, however,
there is no special record, but she is especially mentioned
later, because her second husband, Edward Kempe, died
during his second Mayoralty in 16 12, and had, as wr.s
customary, a public funeral. The Minutes say that in the
funeral procession, immediately after the Jurats and Common
Councilmen followed " Mrs. Mayoresse and her daughters
in mourning gowns." Another Mayoress of some note was
Elizabeth, daughter of Captain William Stokes, R.N., who
was Mayoress in some of her father's later Mayoralties in
the time of Charles II., and she subsequently marrieil
Edward Wivell, who was thrice Mayor in the reign of WilUani
III. and thre« times in fhe reign of Queen Anne. Mrs.
Wivell was more than a Mayoress. It was the fact that she
was the daughter of Captain Siokes, a Freeman, that qualified
her husband to enter the Corporation and to become a Jurat



iHE raSTORY OF THE CORPORATION 26 1

and Mayor, so that she really gave him his seat in the
Council, as well as helped him as Mayoress. She too "was
the mother of another Mayoress of some distinction, Madame
Elizabeth Gunman. As the daughter of Edward and

Elizabeth Wivell, she was a rich heiress, and she brought
to her husband, Captain James Gunman, R.N., Buckland
Manor, and other property. She assisted her husband in
his Mayoralty of 1737 and was a pall-bearer at the funeral
of Mrs. Isaac Minet. It is presumed that the Gunman's
were of foreign origin for their wives were styled
" Madame." There was another Madame Gunman who
was Mayoress, the wife of Christopher Gunman, who was
Mayor three time in the reigns of George II., and George
III. They occupied Gunman's Mansion in Biggin Street,
were very rich and it was a common saying that " Madame
Gunman might have curled her hair with bank-notes";
hence it may be inferred that this Mayoress wore ringlets,
the graceful adornment of many stately dames of those
days. A third Madame Gunman, who was Mayoress in
1776, 1784, and 1789, was the wife of James Gunman the
second. She assisted as Mayoress in the etablishment of
the Charity School in Queen Street, and her name is on
the list of foundation donors. She was the last of the
Gunman Mayoresses who dispensed hospitality at Gunman's
Mansion which has since been demolished for street widening.

Lady Mantell was a popular Mayoress. In her maiden
days, as Miss Oakley, she was clever in amatuer theatricals
at Mr. Fector's private theatre, before the Theatre Royal,
in Snargate Street, was established. Later, she married Sir
Thomas Mantell, the Government Agent for the exchange
of Prisoners of War at Dover, and, after the Peace of 1815,
Agent for the Mail Packets. He was Mayor four times during
the war and twice after it, so that the dramatic Mayoress
saw much that was dramatic in connection with her husband's
official life. She was first Mayoress in 1795 and last in
1824. In the latter year her tresses were turning grey and
she had taken up grey subjects, frequently contributing
papers on antiquarian subjects to the journals of the learned
societies.

These were other Mayoresses who took their part in
Municipal work:— One of the Fector family, Jane Laurie,
wife of Captain Henry Pringle Bruyers, who was Mayoress



262 ANNALS OF DOVER

in 1829; and Mrs. Mummery, a lady well known in her day
for the philanthropic work she did in Dover, who was
Mayoress from 1865 to 1867, the Mummery's residence
being at the Maison Dieu House, adjoining the Town Hall.
The list of notable Mayoresses is by no means exhausted;
but in 1869 women were legally admitted to the Corporation
as burgesses, therefore the types of womanhood who assisted
the Corporation as Mayoresses need not be carried any
further.

The appearance of women Burgesses at the polls in
Municipal Elections, before and after the introduction of
the Ballot-box made no great difference in the political
complexion of the majority. One incident may be mentioned
of the third year in which women Burgesses voted in Dover,
and the last time of open voting, November ist, 187 1, when
a woman's vote turned the majority in the Pier Ward,
and the Councillor elected by that vote gave the Liberals a
Majority in the Council Chamber and enabled them to
elect Mr. Richard Dickeson as Mayor ; and Messrs Steriker
Finnis, S. M. Latham, and Rowland Rees as Aldermen.
Probably in no subsequent Municii»jl Election has a woman's
vote so strikingly affected the balance of parties in the
Town Council.



THE HISTORY OF THE CORPORATION 263