Hertfordshire's Hidden Heroines

Contents

This book is a record of the Hertfordshire’s Hidden Heroines project which took place between October 2015 - September 2016.

Copyright © 2016 Trestle Theatre Company Printed in the United Kingdom First Printing, 2016 Trestle Arts Base Russet Drive St Albans AL4 0JQ trestle.org.uk hertshiddenheroines.org.uk

What People Said Some of Hertfordshire’s Heroines Where it all began Queen Boudica Who’s your Heroine?

Jane Wenham Katherine Ferrers Recruiting Volunteers Queen Elizabeth I Lady Constance Lytton ATA Girls - Hatfield Mandeville Monologues Entomologist Eleanor Ormerod The First Herts Policewomen Lucy Kemp-Welch: Equine Artist Janet Hosier Helps the Homeless Survivor Leigh Van Hove Christina of Markyate Boudica - Graphic Novel Style Mayor Lynne Sparks Dr Mary Groves MBE Pilot Vicky Farmer The Amazing Dolly Shepherd The Daylight Club & Mary Stout Creativity for Joy Batchelor Star Professor Janet Drew A Volunteer’s Viewpoint Syeda Momotaz Rahim The Exhibition - Hertford & Judy Fryd Emily Davies Violet Cressy-Marcks Shusanah Pillinger Tessa Wheeler & Margaret Murray Emma Wiggs The Show!

The Exhibition - St Albans Hilary Ratcliffe OBE Jackie Barnett MBE

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Do you know a Hertfordshire Hidden Heroine?

What People

Tell us about her

“We began this project with a handful of wonderful women, and hoped many more would join, but we have been amazed by the way the project has picked up its own momentum and given us so many new heroines from the past and present. The excitement continues to grow and we love how many boys and men have contributed, as well as women and girls."​

How many inspiring, pioneering, ground-breaking women of Hertfordshire can you name?

Emily Gray, Artistic Director, Trestle Theatre Company

“I've enjoyed my involvement in the project - it's been fascinating, and I've learned so much about the lives of women who have shaped our area as well as improving my skills in oral history interviewing. I feel very inspired to go and talk to- and listen to- some of the ladies I work alongside and discover their stories. I am so thrilled I can now give the women who started Ascend a sort of big cheer by interviewing them and giving them some limelight they deserve."

Some of our fabulous volunteers

“This is a wonderful and much-needed project. About time! " Herts Memories

“The extraordinary is on our doorstep, just an imaginative heartbeat away. This is a terrific project that reminds us to look deeper into the past and connect with our present. " Dr Sarah Lloyd, University of Hertfordshire

“This project has been uncovering yet another rich and fascinating seam of history and experience. Hertfordshire has many famous women associated with it and many other forgotten or unknown heroines are going to join them through the contributions of the Hertfordshire's Hidden Heroines participants."

Catherine Davies, steering group member HHH

“What a wonderful experience our children have had - thank you so much. They have all learnt a lot in an engaging and creative environment and been inspired. They all came away with the sense that they could do anything with their lives!"

We asked this of every group and school we worked with. Sometimes, there were names we knew, and sometimes wonderful new names to add to our list. Sometimes, a blank stare ... or, “None.”

So, we set out on a journey of discovery to find the warrior queens, the pioneering scientists, the risk-taking writers, the doctors, the explorers, the archaeologists, the aviators, the artists, the religious campaigners, the suffragettes, the politicians, the women who would not take no for an answer, the women who changed legal history, the women who took care of people no one else would. We wanted to unearth the troublemakers, the rabble-rousers, the game-changers.

We thought that we might find ten, fifteen women of significance and that our search would probably take in Boudica, Queen Elizabeth 1, and a few more women throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.

We were wrong.

During the course of this project, we have discovered hundreds of women who have lived or worked in Hertfordshire and enriched and influenced our lives with their courage, optimism, anger, talent and energy. This book tells you how we found or rediscovered them, and what our project, Hertfordshire’s Hidden Heroines, has been about. We hope you enjoy learning about the women and girls that our county can celebrate and be proud of - and can go on adding to.

Who is your Hertfordshire Heroine?

Mandeville School

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Some of Hertfordshire’s Heroines • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

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Aethelflaed, warrior queen Boudica, warrior queen Her daughters, their names not recorded Juliana Berners, religious activist Katherine Ferrers, highway woman Christina of Markyate, religious campaigner Jane Wenham, wise woman and accused witch Mary Stout, campaigner Violet Cressy-Marcks, explorer Eleanor Ormerod, scientist Katherine Warrington, scientist Winifred Brenchley, scientist Constance Lytton, suffragette and writer Louisa Puller, suffragist and land girl E. Margaret Burnside, inspector of midwives Dolly Shepherd, parachutist Tessa Wheeler, archaeologist Lettice Curtis, aviator Lady Mary Bailey, aviator Mary Ellis, aviator Elizabeth Poston, composer Gwen Hollington, codebreaker Pauline Gower, aviation pioneer Joan Hughes, WW2 aviator The ATAgirls, WW2 pilots Rosemary Rees, aviator Judy Fryd, campaigner and founder of MenCap Yvonne Maslinska, intelligence worker

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Dr Proudlock Dunbar, medic Annie Kenney, mill girl and suffragette Dame Elizabeth Fuller, educator Regina, freed slave Rosina Wheeler, writer Margaret and Annie Johnson, first Herts policewomen Joy Batchelor, animator and director Clementine Churchill, politician Barbara Cartland, campaigner, politician, author Cornelia Clutterbuck, diarist and war worker Janet Hosier, campaigner for the homeless Zena Bullmore, warrior princess and hospital campaigner Reba Younge, anti-racism campaigner Mary Groves, doctor and hospice founder Shirley Williams, politician Mary Portas, entrepreneur Lisa Buckingham, entrepreneur and journalist Annie Brewster, mayor Casey Stoney, professional footballer Janet Drew, astrophysicist Lynne Sparks, mayor Syeda Momotaz Rahim, campaigner and activist Laura Trott, Olympic cyclist Martine Wright, Paralympian

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Where it all began

We set up our website, and visual artist Joanna Scott gets busy creating an image of how our first Hertfordshire Heroine might have looked:

October 2015: The Heritage Lottery Fund give Trestle Theatre Company £44,000 with which to explore, discover and celebrate the inspiring women of Hertfordshire. Primary and secondary schools across Hertfordshire get involved. Mandeville Primary School, St Albans, are the first on board.

They want to know about local women of science. We find out about Eleanor Ormerod, who has her plaque on Holywell Hill in St Albans, and also has a room named after her in the St Albans Council offices, but most people don’t know why. St Peters C of E Primary in Rickmansworth are next, followed by Astley Cooper Secondary in Hemel Hempstead and Onslow St Audreys in Hatfield.

Queen Boudica Queen of the Iceni, she organised her army to take revenge on the Romans by sacking Verulamium.

Boudica was married to Prasutagus, ruler of the Iceni people of East Anglia. When the Romans conquered southern England in AD 43, they allowed Prasutagus to continue to rule. However, when Prasutagus died the Romans decided to rule the Iceni directly and confiscated the property of the leading tribesmen. They are also thought to have stripped and flogged Boudica and raped her daughters.

In 60 or 61 AD, while the Roman governor Gaius Suetonius Paullinus was leading a campaign in North Wales, the Iceni rebelled. Members of other tribes joined them.

Boudica’s warriors successfully defeated the Roman Ninth Legion and destroyed the capital of Roman Britain, then at Colchester. They went on to destroy London and Verulamium (St Albans). Thousands were killed.

Finally, Boudica was defeated by a Roman army led by Paulinus. Many Britons were killed. The manner of Boudica’s death is unknown…

“She was very tall, the glance of her eye most fierce; her voice harsh. A great mass of the reddest hair fell down to her hips. Her appearance was terrifying."

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Roman scribe, Dio Cassius

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Boudica and her daughters drove round in her chariot to all her tribes before the battle, exhorting them to be brave. She cried that she was descended from mighty men but she was fighting as an ordinary person for her lost freedom, her bruised body and outraged daughters.

Perhaps as a taunt to the men in her ranks, she asked them to consider:

“Win the battle or perish: that is what I, a woman will do; you men can live on in slavery if that's what you want."

Who’s your Heroine?

“My mum is definitely my Herts Heroine... She was one of the first black sound recordists, probably the first in Hertfordshire, and she is just a very strong woman"

“What about the Spice Girls? Herts born and bred, and they were my role models when I was a girl growing up! Girl power!"

November 2015: We run a market stall in St Albans to publicise the project and ask members of the public about their heroines:

“Barbara Cartland, now, she was surprising, not just fluffy pink romances but did you know she was a glider pilot who invented a way of towing planes? And a politician, and she campaigned for local travellers to have education and health rights!

They even named their site in Welwyn after her- Barbaraville"

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“Don't forget Dr Mary Groves, she started the hospice. She's a heroine if ever there was one."

“I think lots of women are hidden heroines, to be honest, and I'm a man."

Volunteer Brian McAndrew turns himself into a Heroine to help publicise the project at St Albans Market!

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We discover the so-called Witch of Walkern, Jane Wenham, and Joanna creates some eye-catching ‘Wanted’ posters:

Jane Wenham Jane Wenham was the last woman in England to be found guilty of witchcraft in 1712.

Living in the small village of Walkern near Stevenage, she became impoverished after her second husband publicly left her. Forced to steal food, she fell foul of the local farmers, who began to blame her for the death of their livestock.

When housemaid Anne Thorn claimed that Jane had cursed her, men of high standing were quick to act. One such example was clergyman Francis Bragge, who stuck pins in her to see if she would bleed.

At the trial there were many accounts of her witchcraft: cats supposedly took on her likeness, twigs, leaves and feathers became evidence of her spells, and fits of strange behaviour were caused by her curses. Jane was found guilty by a jury and sentenced to death; however, the judge petitioned Queen Anne on her behalf.

Four months later she was pardoned, and taken into the care of the local gentry until her death in 1730.

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Katherine Ferrers Another ‘Wicked Lady’ comes to light; the much-disputed highway women of Markyate, Katherine Ferrier or Ferrers, although it is not clear how much of her dramatic story is true…

Born in 1634 in Bayford, Katherine Ferrers came from a wealthy and influential family. When her father, mother and brother died she was taken in by her stepfather’s family, the Fanshawes.

This was the time of the English Civil War and the Fanshawes gave a lot of their wealth to support King Charles I. Impoverished when Charles was executed, the Fanshawes forced Katherine to marry into their family at 14. They took control of her finances and sold off large parts of her family’s estate at Markyate Cell.

Legend has it that Katherine became desperate when her husband spent her fortune, turning to highway robbery to earn back her money. Dressed as a man she was apparently ruthless, murdering coachmen in cold blood. She died in 1660, supposedly shot in a failed robbery attempt.

Since her death, her story has fallen further and further into legend, inspiring two films and countless ghost stories.

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December 2015: We recruit and train 10 volunteers from Hertfordshire to record and transcribe oral histories of inspiring and pioneering women who are alive now. Their stories will now be kept forever, stored digitally at Hertford Museum* where the public can go and listen. *Just ring up and ask them: 01992 582 686

Recruiting Volunteers

I have come to the conclusion that most of the women I meet day to day are in their own way our heroines. Moving to Hertfordshire at the age of 54, I have tended to meet up with more mature women who have or are doing incredible things. One lady was christened Mrs Clipboard. Croxley Green had a traditional village school and she noticed that with the increasing number of cars the children were in danger - she campaigned and got railings put up around the school which remain to this day. The library was unresponsive to the needs of children and again out came the clip board which resulted in their needs being met. She set up one of the first day nurseries and now has the task of looking after her husband who has dementia. Despite this, her wonderful giggle still surfaces. So many women are having to care for their husbands or partners as they grow older and need help or nursing. Their own lives are put on hold. We must thank every voluntary organisation, many led by women, who support our community and make our lives so much better. We would be lost without them.

When looking at the frail old lady in the supermarket - put aside any prejudice, you have no idea what she might have done throughout her life."

Sian & Janet

Volunteer Janet Tublin wrote about the training:

“I am very much looking forward to interviewing my own "Hertfordshire Heroine". I have so enjoyed being part of this project. The training day was amazing- learning how to undertake oral history recording. I am also part of a shared textile project run by Three Rivers Council and Textile artist Sian Fenwick, which has been inspirational in looking at the incredible work of graphic artist Joy Batchelor.

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Queen Elizabeth I After some discussion, we add Queen Elizabeth 1 to the list: although she is not hidden, many people are not aware of her connection to the county: Elizabeth had been banished to Hatfield House where she lived between 1555 - 1558 while Queen Mary ruled, but by 6 November 1558, Mary recognised Elizabeth as her heir. Elizabeth became Queen at the age of 25, and made this speech to her Council who came to Hatfield to swear allegiance to her:

“My lords, the law of nature moves me to sorrow for my sister; the burden that is fallen upon me makes me amazed, and yet, considering I am God's creature, ordained to obey His appointment, I will thereto yield, desiring from the bottom of my heart that I may have assistance of His grace to be the minister of His heavenly will in this office now committed to me. And as I am but one body naturally considered, though by His permission a body politic to govern, so shall I desire you all ... to be assistant to me, that I with my ruling and you with your service may make a good account to Almighty God and leave some comfort to our posterity on earth. I mean to direct all my actions by good advice and counsel."

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Beaumont School student Bethan Hughes comes on board as a volunteer researcher, and discovers the history of Lady Constance Lytton from Knebworth House:

Lady Constance Lytton “To me, all that is involved in the making of a heroine can be found within the Suffragette movement.

The courageous women who took part were not only standing up and protesting for what they believed in during a time when their opinions were suppressed, they did it in such a way that completely defied the role of women in society and broke through the boundaries of ‘acceptable' behaviour for ladies. Damaging property, violence and protests might not be the first things that spring to mind when the word 'heroine' is mentioned, yet I believe that by having the courage to stand up and fight for what they wanted, the Suffragettes epitomise the meaning of the word.

As I have a keen interest in this period of history, I was delighted to discover that Hertfordshire has its own Suffragette to lay claim to!

Lady Constance Lytton was born into a wealthy family and was in a privileged position of high social standing.

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When Lytton became aware of the cause, she sympathised with the argument, but did not agree with the shocking methods the women were prepared to use to fight.

Later on however, she became more enthused by the methods and gained an understanding about why the Suffragettes had been driven to use such tactics. Lytton decided to join the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU), known to be a very militant group, much to the horror of her family! During her time in the group, Lytton took part in many protests including one at the House of Commons and one against force feeding, a practise used when imprisoned Suffragettes went on hunger strike to continue their protest. It was at this demonstration that arguably her most courageous story began to unfold.

In November 1909, Lytton was arrested at the demonstration and taken to prison where she began her hunger strike. However, after only a few days, she was released due to concerns about her health. Lytton was angry that she received different treatment due to her title and believed that, had she been poorer, she would not have been released. In January 1910 when she was next arrested, Lytton disguised herself as a poor woman and went by the name of Jane Warton, a decision that proved her theory about the different treatment o f prisoners. Lytton once again went on hunger strike under her new identity and was subjected to force feeding eight times.

When her true identity was discovered, she was released immediately. Sadly, Lady Constance Lytton died at just 54, a tragically short life for such an inspirational woman. Not only did she act as part of the mass effort of ‘Votes for Women’ but she made the brave choice to take action on her own by disguising herself and ultimately putting herself through pain that she could have chosen to avoid.

Hertfordshire should be proud to have a Suffragette who had a truly remarkable life.”

January 2016:

We start working in schools. Trestle workshop leaders Dawn Hudson, Kathryn Holt, Hilary Dawson and Joanna Scott run a series of workshops in drama, mask and visual arts. The students discover some of the Hertfordshire Heroines

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and imagine how their lives would have been, and then start to recreate some of the histories.

2 classes of year 5 pupils at Mandeville Primary School begin by learning about Boudica, scientist Eleanor Ormerod and the fabulous World War 2 aviators, the ATAgirls, who took off from de Havilland aerodrome at Hatfield from 1941 onwards:

ATA Girls - Hatfield In 1939, a group of women made aviation history in Hertfordshire...

The group from the Air Transport Auxiliary became the first females to be checked out to fly fighter aircraft by the RAF, trained and flying from Hatfield Aerodrome in 1941.

After 18 months of being restricted to flying trainer planes around Britain, at last the women had the same opportunities as their male colleagues.

They were to ferry the very latest combat aircraft, including the Spitfire, Lancaster, Wellington and other bomber planes from factories to frontline airfields of the RAF. The original eight women pilots recruited and trained by Pauline Gower were: Joan Hughes, Winifred Crossly, Margaret Unison, Mona Friedlander, Rosemary Rees, Marion Wilberforce, the Hon. Mrs. Margaret Fairweather, and Gabrielle Patterson.

Flying slow biplanes, with open cockpits in the winter, without radios or navigational aids, these eight women carried out the duties of ferrying planes.

One, seated in her first Spitfire prior to delivery was asked by the mechanic who had helped her into the cockpit: “How many times have you flown one of these?” She told him never, and he fell off the wing.

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And Boudica:

At Hatfield, the women learnt to fly Spitfires, Hurricanes and Harvards with the object of delivering the newly manufactured planes to the bases from which they would be used. The ATA delivered 308,567 aircraft during the war. 143 ATA pilots were lost - one in 10 did not survive including 14 women.

Mandeville Monologues Some of the Mandeville students write lively monologues from the point of view of the ATAGirls:

“Vanished are the days of men fighting and flying and owning us. We must change this and show everyone that we are just as brave, just as capable, just as trustworthy and are the destroyers of the rule book. You could pioneer to morph the world to equality.

I can remember the days when I gave men and women the chance to touch the sky, their faces lit up and they felt like their own leader. The leader of justice and this is justice and justice is who we are.

Come with me to see the world differently as your hair drifts in the wind.

Breathing the power in and out. Controlling the world to see equality in each other's eyes. We can fight this war, no matter what anyone will do to stop us.

We can rule the sky. We can be anyone whoever we want to be. We are able to fly. Together."

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“Boudica grew up to be passionate and intelligent. She used to run around everywhere and look at what people were doing. Then one day when she was walking down a path, she saw an army getting ready for battle. She saw them getting leaves and saw them grinding them with water in a pot. Then making marks on their faces.

Then Boudica wanted to do it. She would do it. She wasn't frightened, she was powerful, she was courageous, she was brave, and resilient. So, when her mother wasn't looking, she did what the army did.

And that is where I will leave my story..."

By Sumayyah The students also create bold artwork with visual artist and storyteller Kathryn Holt:

By Olivia

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The First Herts Policewomen The Herts Policing Archive gets in touch and we find out all about the first Herts policewomen Margaret & Annie Johnson:

Entomologist Eleanor Ormerod “...to

personally test the effect, pressed part of the back and tail of a live Crested Newt between the teeth. This was accompanied by much foam and violent spasmodic action, approaching convulsions." Eleanor's portrait hangs at the foot of the main south-east stair in Old College, University of Edinburgh, proudly proclaiming her as Edinburgh's first woman honorary graduate. Edinburgh University said of Eleanor: “Her labours have

been crowned with such success that she is entitled to be hailed the protectress of agriculture and the fruits of the earth - a beneficent Demeter of the 19th century".

Modern Heroines Councillor Annie Brewster and leading astrophysicist Professor Janet Drew tell the children about their lives and give them some advice:

“Don't give up. It is difficult but the moral of the story is that you can climb the mountain, you can see the stars."​ Professor Janet Drew, University of Herts “The workshop leaders gave us lots of input that we used in the classroom for writing and drama and thinking about the idea of a 'heroine.' The way Kathryn told the story of Boudica was a real inspiration and you can see that in the children's writing where they refer to the flames flickering. The drama helped to bring the characters alive and we have used that idea of writing heroic qualities inside a human outline since in other lessons (RE for one) so the project gave us ideas for teaching creatively in class. The way the children responded verbally in the sessions shows they have made thoughtful responses and taken on board the idea of stereotypes. Annie Brewster's visit was very powerful as she was a really dynamic, expressive speaker and a great communicator with the children. They all came away with the sense that they could do anything with their lives!"​ 22

Mandeville Primary School Assistant Headteacher

The Johnson sisters began their policing career at King Street Police Station in Watford on 7th December 1928. They were warned by the then Chief Constable, Alfred Letchworth Law, that though stationed in Watford, they could be deployed anywhere in the county should a female officer be required.

Prior to their appointment, it had been common practice to seek the assistance of police officer's wives to search female prisoners, and Margaret and Annie were initially tasked with duties centred on women and children, particularly connected with assault and prostitution.

The sisters were nearly seven months into the job before their uniforms were issued and did not receive their warrant numbers until as late as 1941.

By 1949 there were still only 14 women police officers in Hertfordshire and they did not receive equal pay to their male colleagues until 1974.

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Next, the Heroines workshop team go to New Hope Community Garden in Watford, to take Heroines info, art and drama to clients who may have experienced homelessness, domestic violence and other situations. The project was started by Janet Hosier, herself a true Herts Heroine:

Janet Hosier Helps the Homeless

One of our new volunteers tells us about the war artist Lucy KempWelch, whose WW1 paintings were ground breaking:

Lucy Kemp-Welch: Equine Artist Lucy Elizabeth Kemp-Welch (20 June 1869 - 27 November 1958) was a British painter and teacher who specialized in painting working horses. She is best known for the paintings of horses in military service, which she produced during World War One and for her illustrations to the 1915 edition of Anna Sewell's Black Beauty.

Based in Bushey and Watford, in 1914 KempWelch was engaged by the British Parliamentary Recruiting Committee to paint the artwork for the famous army recruitment poster, Forward! Forward to Victory Enlist Now which she signed, 'L.K.W 1914.'

During World War One women were employed at Army Remount Depots in training and preparing horses for military service. Kemp-Welch was commissioned by the Women's Work Section of the Imperial War Museum to paint a scene at the largest such depot, one staffed entirely by women, at Russley Park in Wiltshire.

In 1924, for the Royal Exchange, Kemp-Welch designed and completed a large panel commemorating the work of women during World War One. From 1926 onwards she focussed on depicting scenes of gypsy and circus life and spent several summers following Sanger's Circus, recording the horses. She resided in Bushey, Hertfordshire, for most of her life and a major collection of her works is in Bushey Museum.

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Janet Hosier was a champion of the homeless, who co-founded the New Hope Trust. She was instrumental in reaching out to Watford's homeless population through the work of the charity, which she formed with her friend Sheila Meaning in 1990. She devoted her time and energy to providing food, clothing and shelter to the town's disadvantaged people - her "mission of compassion". Her son, Craig Borlase, said: "I am so proud of her - so proud of the fact that while I miss her desperately as a son, there is an army of us out there whose lives she touched with equal love, grace, warmth and generosity. Grandmother, sister, mother-in-law, wife, aunt, friend, colleague, quick-smiling stranger and easy confidant - our loss takes form out of a thousand different memories."

Described as a "pioneer" for her work among the homeless, the New Hope Trust began when Janet and Sheila started serving hot food from two coaches that stood in Whippendell Road, where the Haven Day Centre can be found today.

Janet was also involved in fundraising and public relations, and she spoke to churches, companies and individuals about the New Hope Trust's work. Through her efforts, New Hope House opened in 1993 and their charity shop a year later. As a founding trustee, Janet also oversaw the development of nine other projects that continue to provide invaluable services for Watford's homeless population.

As the charity grew, she continued to work as a volunteer at the Day Centre and The Sanctuary night shelter, where she was always willing to give up her time to those who needed it. And even when her illness confined her to a wheelchair, she would be "walked" down from the Peace Hospice through the town to talk with people she would meet in the high street and to offer them encouragement.

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Survivor Leigh Van Hove A client of New Hope, Leigh Van Hove tells her own story of survival:

“My story starts in 2004. I'd been living in Bradford with another woman that I'd been with for a long time in a relationship and we were evicted. She said to me, "Oh they won't evict me" because she was actually the bionic woman, has a metal leg out of the ordinary, like a cyborg really!

She's a lot stronger than the rest of us.

So then we were literally on the streets, we got four giant cases, six holdalls that weigh a lot more than me which is why I've got a para-umbilical hernia cause I was carrying stuff that was much too heavy, and I'm afraid that I did actually, rather embarrassingly, have to take a shopping trolley, at one stage and push it round the streets. We did sleep on the streets, literally in doorways in Westminster and then, I heard it on the radio that Barnet was helping the homeless with a winter night shelter, so I said right we'll go there, and we did and even at that time, with the domestic violence, she still carried on. On the streets and some of the others that we saw in the homeless day centre at the time, said "Why are you putting up with that, Leigh?"

Well to me she keeps saying that she's like messing around, which of course she wasn't and like making up afterwards of course, so loving and affectionate, cause she's not doing it everyday because I'm not landing up in hospital you don't see it as serious, and of course being a bit of an idiot you just let it carry on... but obviously it did carry on and, well I put up with it for quite a long time till it had been 21 and a half years.

She didn't even know that I'd left, she said aw Leigh you going to go round the corner and get some cigarettes and bread and milk, and I said alright I'll see you shortly, but that day I sort of realized, right I've had enough of being a mug and an idiot , I said, I'm just going to not come back and it really did tear my heart out and I doubt if I'll ever be in a relationship again.

And I thought, well it's so important to get through to people, to really think about your life, one minute I am in a domestic violence situation cause they might not realize it neither but then you do realize and see the light.

Now I’m writing a memoir about myself.”

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Christina of Markyate The next Heroine from the past that we discover is Christina of Markyate, a religious visionary and another woman of courage:

Christina of Markyate, 1095-1155, was originally named Theodora. Her mother told a story of "knowing her daughter would be holy because a dove had flown into her sleeve and lived there for seven days while she was pregnant.

As a child, Theodora is said to have talked to Christ "as if he were a man whom she could see."She befriended an older man named Sueno, who became her first religious mentor. Sueno had once led an unholy life and Christina's faith renewed his. Theodora visited St Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire with her parents as a teenager, and the visit apparently instilled in her a deep faith that prompted her to make a private vow of chastity. While visiting an aunt, Elfgifu, Theodora met Bishop Ranulf Flambard.

Her aunt was the bishop's concubine and he sought to inflict this on Theodora as well.

According to one account, when Ranulf attempted to force his attentions on her, she suggested that she lock the door. When he agreed, she proceeded to do so, from the outside. Rebuffed, he then exacted revenge by brokering a marriage for her with a young nobleman named Beorhtred.

Theodora's parents readily agreed, but Theodora did not, in view of her vow. Her angry parents arranged for Beorhtred to have access to her room, only to discover next morning that the two had spent the night discussing religious subjects. On one occasion Theodora recounted the life of St Cecilia, who according to legend, was guarded on her wedding night by a vengeful angel. On another occasion, she hid behind a tapestry while Beorhtred searched for her in vain. As word went round of Theodora's plight, a hermit name Eadwine, with the blessing of the Archbishop of Canterbury, helped her escape, disguised in men's clothes. Here Theodora changed her name to Christina.

Christina found shelter with Roger, a hermit and sub-deacon of St Albans Abbey, whose cell was at Markyate. She spent her time in prayer, sewing to support herself. She was a skilled needlewoman, who later embroidered three mitres of superb workmanship for Pope Adrian IV. After two years, Beorhtard released Christina from the marriage contract, and Archbishop Thurstan of York formally annulled the marriage in 1122.

Thereafter Christina was able to come out of hiding and move into a small hut. Upon the death of Roger, Christina took over the hermitage near St Albans Abbey, where she reportedly experienced frequent visions of Jesus, Mary, and St Margaret. Other women, including her sister Margaret, joined her there. Christina took her vows as prioress at St Albans in 1131; Markyate Priory was established in 1145.

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Boudica - Graphic Novel Style

We are incredibly excited to discover a new Herts Hidden Heroine, the then Mayor (now deputy mayor) of Welwyn Hatfield, Lynne Sparks, who talks to Onslow St Audrey’s students frankly and bravely about her own life and journey to success:

Mayor Lynne Sparks

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“My dad was an alcoholic. I loved him very much but being a child with an alcoholic parent was difficult. It was hard being a teenager without having to deal with that on top. It drove me to do things at a young age that I'm not proud of.

For a long time I never spoke about this to anyone.

When I was growing up I swapped between thinking my upbringing was normal to thinking I was alone.

I've learned, in recent years more than ever, that I certainly wasn't alone. So many adults and children live in similar circumstances. I've used my time over the last couple of years to raise awareness of this subject as much as possible so if just one person feels less alone or decides to get help as a result, then it's all been worth it.

I've now been living with daily pain in multiple joints, nerve pain and fatigue for around 10 years. In that time I've learned what I can and can't do, what the main triggers are, I've got quite used to living with some daily pain despite strong painkillers. The biggest struggle is getting up every morning, I can't walk or use my hands properly until my tablets kick in.

For me, helping and supporting people in the community, building relationships, organising events, fundraising, solving problems are all great motivators and great reasons to get out of bed. It certainly keeps my mind off feeling sorry for myself and helps other people in the process, so a win-win situation I think.

I started getting involved with trying to make the area where I lived nicer by writing to my MP, councillors and local organisations to try to get things done. Very soon after I started doing this I was asked to stand in an election to become a Councillor. ‘No!’ was my initial answer, but I did start thinking that actually maybe I could get more done.

So I said ‘Yes!’ When I was asked in 2014 if I'd like to be Deputy Mayor, leading to Mayor the following year, I was stunned that I'd been asked. I never considered that I'd be able to do it or have the confidence to do it, I've always disliked being the centre of attention & hated public speaking. But I thought an opportunity like that isn't going to come around again so if I can get through everything I've been through in my life then I can definitely give this a go.

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And I love it! I love being Mayor, more than I ever thought possible. I'm generally introverted, that hasn't changed, but I've found I love meeting new people every day. I've also really enjoyed being Mayor ‘my way’. Of course the mayor's chain of office is a historic role and there are protocols to follow but there has been scope for me to try new ideas; particularly important for me was engaging with young people which I've thoroughly enjoyed. I have used social media throughout to tell people what I've been up to, who I've been meeting and how wonderful the borough is. More than anything I love finding out about all the amazing, dedicated, hard working and talented people who live, play, work and volunteer in our borough. That's what I find inspiring!"

Lynne also takes part in the making of the first Heroines film, High Fliers.

We find Herts film director Michelle Becker of PinkSoul Films and she quickly gets to work on the 4 minute film, which gives a flavour of the project and introduces some of the amazing women we have heard about. Cue much excitement as Michelle sets up cameras, tripod and lights in schools and at Trestle. The film also features Dr Mary Groves MBE, known to many in St Albans in particular for her pioneering work in establishing Grove House Hospice.

Dr Mary Groves MBE “The first year that I was a GP I had a patient who was the same age as myself, had three children the same age as three of mine and she had bowel cancer. She had surgery and one assumed that would be fine; that's what we thought, but then after a few months she got pain and she had a horrible recurrence. Now, at that time all I could do was try and go and visit her as much as I could, but obviously being a full-time GP you don't have so much time, and the District Nurse would pop in and give her an injection for pain every now and then. There was nothing more. I felt there should be something more, and discovered that other people were thinking exactly the same, that more was needed. We had quite a big group then, of people who began to think ‘what can we do?' And we came to develop the Hospice Care Team. It started from that; it wasn't just me - it was the consultant chest physician; it was another GP who had a daughter ill; it was another GP; it was a retired social worker; there was a nurse - who were all saying ‘there's a gap; we've got to look at this'. So we started; and over ten years later had a Hospice Care Team that built up to have volunteers in people’s homes, to have a superb social worker, to have day care eventually in a church hall. Then everyone thought ‘we’ve got to have a place to work from’."

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We ask Dr Groves what advice she would give to young people, and she says:

“Go for it! Whatever it is you want to do."

This is also the motto of our next amazing find, modern day ‘ATAgirl’, flying school owner and aviator Vicky Farmer. Vicky is filmed at her flying school near Borehamwood, and even takes the plane out for a quick spin for the cameras.

Pilot Vicky Farmer “I have now been a pilot for 40 years. I grew up in a family of travellers and so the world seemed just next door, exciting and there to be explored.

Although school was wasted on me, once in the world I found I could learn and achieve acceptable standards. After much travelling myself, back in the UK I obtained my first pilot's licence. It was thrilling to be able to manoeuvre a machine in three-dimensions, across the country looking at the fields, villages, towns, the sea. It all seemed such a privilege.

As a commercial pilot I experienced both beauty and the violence of nature and I respected it more and more. As a captain I learnt quickly to manage the expectations of passengers, risk assessment and economic requirements. Flying is a wonderful template for how to live life. So much more than just the manipulation of controls, moving an aircraft through the sky. You have to be truthful to yourself. You cannot pretend there is more fuel in the tanks or the aircraft will not take off when you have overloaded it. Emotions have to be harnessed to become informers not controllers. Whether I have been flying low level across the Sahara, approaching Greenland's green walls or just pottering around the coastline of England I am still struck, as I was then, with the beauty of this world. No two flights are ever the same, even if flown on the same day, same route; and no matter how long I exercise the skills, there is more to learn and still the chance to improve. The challenge is still there. And now in the latter part of my career I have become an instructor and an examiner running a flying school; putting myself in a position to criticise and help others. This has added a piquancy to the privilege of flying.

Passing on experience and learning the skills of a teacher in a field I love; still work to be done and new skills to be learnt.

My life and career has not necessarily helped others, but perhaps it has given pleasure, got passengers safely and gently to their destinations, encouraged others to learn skills and if life offers them the chance to do what they feel passionate to about, go for it.”

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Then to St Peter’s C of E Primary School in Mill End, Rickmansworth, where a class of 30 year 5 students are incredibly excited to find that their heroine is:

The Amazing Dolly Shepherd A new volunteer comes on board; Debra Cadet-Wallace, who is a Dolly fan:

“I found out about Dolly Shepherd in August 2015 by accident. Born: 19 November 1886 in Potters Bar. Also a resident of New Southgate, Enfield till her late teens. Died: 21. September 1983 in Eastbourne, East Sussex.

Her family home in New Southgate is no longer standing and is now part of a main road.

As the harness parachute was not invented then (she would go on to meet the man who would invent the prototype harness parachute), all she had was the hot air balloon or gas filled balloon, a limp parachute attached to the balloon (once released, you had a fall of 250 feet before your parachute opened) or you travelled via a hot air balloon basket before you made your descent, then a trapeze bar which you held on to with both hands and a sling between your legs to take your weight and no breathing aids.

If your chute did not open properly you could fall to your death and many died or, as happened to Dolly one time, when her chute did not detach and open and she drifted for 6 hours getting higher and higher, until the balloon descended back down to earth by itself.

There was another time Dolly travelled up to 18,000 feet and from being so high her nose started to bleed.

Dolly is the Guinness World Record Holder for the first mid-air rescue, where she had a terrible accident which paralysed her. She was tested on her back and legs with very early electric shock treatment which was successful. When she learned to walk again through grit and determination, she returned to work parachuting after an 8 week stay at Ashby De la Zouch, a place she loved and which still remembers her fondly to this day; she was very much a celebrity in those Edwardian days.

Her daughter Molly Sedgwick was very proud of her mother and gave talks on her mother’s life. Molly went on to do her first parachute jump (I might add with a harness) late on in life.

Let us not forget Dolly’s work in World War One as a female driver and mechanic in France. The women were not welcomed at first; however they soon showed their mechanical and driving expertise, worked long hard hours and were valued by many. She worked for 32

Captain Sedgwick, who, although at first objected to having a woman as a driver, would go on to be her husband.

For me, listening to her talk about this time in her life, it was bitter sweet and funny sometimes in many ways as she really set the scene for her life in France. Since finding out about her, Dolly has somewhat taken over my life; however it has been amazing finding out about this very interesting woman and listening to her talk, especially as I now live in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire. Dolly Shepherd should be officially celebrated and remembered.”

February 2016:

Trestle’s artistic director Emily Gray and Joanna work with adults living with physical and/or learning disabilities at the Daylight Club, based in Harpenden, and discuss some of the heroines we have discovered.

The Daylight Club The Daylight Club decorate and perform powerful scenes with their masks:

Mary Stout On a March day in 1699 the body of Sarah Stout was found in the river Lea in Hertford. After an initial inquest ruled the death a suicide, the victim's mother Mary Stout refused to accept it. Mary was convinced her daughter had been murdered.

The suspected killer was Spencer Cowper, a lawyer from a prominent political family. It was suspected that Spencer Cowper and Sarah Stout were engaging in a relationship. Cowper was the last person to see her alive, and his friends were seen in the village with wet shoes, lying about their whereabouts. Mary campaigned to have her body exhumed and examined by an independent medical professional which had never happened before in the court system.

As suspicions grew, Cowper and his friends were brought to trial but the jury acquitted them within half an hour. The acquittal caused a divide in public opinion with much speculation in the press. Cowper's reputation survived and he went on to become an MP and a judge, but the law had been changed forever by a mother's persistence.

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March 2016:

Two community groups learn about Hertfordshire Heroines and create large-scale artworks for the exhibition; the Three Rivers Creative Textiles project and ASCEND in south Oxhey, both run by textile artist Sian Fenwick.

Creativity for Joy Batchelor “After much research into local heroines my Three Rivers Creative Textiles group selected Joy Batchelor (19141991) an animator from Watford as their trailblazer, visually representing her timeline through a selection of her vast films in the form of a quilt. Using appliqué and quilting techniques each member created their own mini quilt that was joined together with metal links and displayed together as a whole. Films ranging from the Owl and the Pussy cat, Animal Farm, Popeye and the Ugly Duckling were represented. The quilt was completed during their two hour class over ten weeks.

I then took the project to ASCEND charity in South Oxhey where I had set up and currently facilitate a Creative Enterprise called 'Sew Inspired' who make and sell crafts for the charity. My learners selected the founders of the charity as their heroines: Annie Douglas, Christine Wyard and Marjorie Coombes.

Fabric was appliquéd and stitched by hand with minimal machine stitching. The blue represents ASCENDS logo. The tree theme symbolises the positive impact that ASCEND has had on the personal growth of the members of the community. Each of the 20 leaves was embroidered with an affirmation that the learners associate with the charity. The big red heart represents the heart of the community and the passion that these heroines have shared with the people's lives of South Oxhey. The quilt was completed during their two and a half hour class over ten weeks and a few extra sessions in the holidays.

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As always it is very rewarding working with community groups watching their skill base and confidences grow. The learners gained many new skills in design colour and techniques embracing the project with great teamwork and enthusiasm. Both groups were not quilt makers and had never made anything on this scale before. As a tutor their eagerness to learn these new skills is not only is very rewarding for me but truly inspires me in my own practise as a textile artist, they are my heroines We did a lot of stitching, also ate a lot of biscuits and a little cake along the way so as you can see it was the most perfect project ever!”

- Sian Fenwick

Star Professor Janet Drew Professor Janet Drew, an astrophysicist from the University of Herts, records her oral history with interviewer Romayne Hutchison- you can listen to the whole interview at Hertford Museum:

“My own research, what I'm doing now because it's a large scale project, feels like it's going to be the main thing that I will have contributed to the field. And that is surveying the whole of the Milky Way, by which I mean the bright stripe of stars you see in the night sky. And surveying the entire stellar population north and south - at special resolution.

So it's a large imaging survey carried out at optical wavelengths, which provides the means to be able to trace - to identify rare stages in stellar revolution to see the overall structure of the Milky Way. It's quite difficult to disentangle how it's organised because of the presence of obscuring material. So it's a mixture of creating a survey that will help our understanding of how stars live out their lives, and... understanding how our own galaxy is built."

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A Volunteer’s Viewpoint Romayne Hutchison tells us about her experience as a volunteer on the project:

“I became involved in conducting oral history interviews for Hertfordshire's Hidden Heroines because of an interest in local and social history and a desire to learn more about the women whose lives have shaped our area and wider society. I came to the project from a background of work with voluntary and community organisations, where I met many people both men and women - who were working to change others' lives for the better. So if I had given any thought to the concept of 'heroines' during my paid working life, I would probably have described a 'heroine' as a woman who worked, usually unpaid, in her community, or who campaigned, either as part of her job or as a volunteer, to improve the circumstances of a particular group of people such as asylum seekers or people with life-limiting health conditions.

The interviews I carried out for Hertfordshire's Hidden Heroines, and the research into the lives of the other women featured, caused me to broaden my concept of the word 'heroine' to include women who have been pioneers or done something extraordinary in their chosen field, perhaps aviation, science, or sport. I have also noted how unassuming and modest so many of the women have been about their own achievements. Indeed some of those I interviewed laughed at the idea of being described as heroines, while reluctantly admitting that it had taken courage to, for example, campaign for gender equality or improved health services. As one interviewee commented:.

‘All I've done was just if I was aware that something needed doing that I thought I could have a go at, well I've tried to do it. I don't feel a heroine at all’ While another acknowledged: ‘I suppose I've had to sort of assert myself and be courageous to actually do the things that I've done so far’ What I think distinguishes our Hertfordshire Heroines is their determination to, for example, pioneer a role not traditionally associated with women or to campaign for better treatment for others, and to reach their goals despite obstacles or setbacks. These barriers might include physical danger, difficult early personal circumstances, official bureaucracy or others' perceptions of 'suitable' activities for women. In carrying out these heroic actions they have been extremely modest about their own efforts and behaved with steely, but quiet, determination to achieve their chosen goals. In doing so they are, in my opinion, true heroines, whose no longer hidden lives can act as role models for generations of women today and in the future.”

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April 2016:

We begin preparing material for the exhibition at Hertford Museum, and another new Heroine, activist Syeda Momotaz Rahim, is interviewed:

Syeda Momotaz Rahim “I suppose as a young girl I was always looking at how I could empower myself, and so now as an adult woman it was like 'well how can I get other women to look at employment, look at training, look at going to further education?'And I suppose we don't often see ourselves as role models, but I think in the Asian community they saw a Bengali woman, a mum and a wife, working full-time and going to university one day a week and then doing the shopping on a Saturday and running around, and they often would ask 'how do you do it?' I would say 'you can do it if you want to. You've got to sit down and think what do I want to do in my life that will help myself and help my family as well?'

I think at that time I did not know of any women's organisations that focused on gender equality. I was invited to join what was then the United Kingdom Asian Women's Conference - a mouthful - and that organisation was set up in 1977 by an Asian woman, for Asian women.

And there were five branches and I then joined the Hertfordshire branch.

And that opened my eyes to what was really happening in Asian communities, what women were going through. So when I say 'Asian’ I mean Asian Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani, whether they're Sikh or Hindu, Buddhist or Muslim. And women, whilst they had established themselves in the UK, whether it was in Birmingham, or Newcastle, or London, or St Albans, there was a lot of poverty; there was isolation of women, there was domestic violence, issues of honour-based killings, forced marriages - all those things came out. And as a women's organisation we addressed those, we tackled those and we took them to the different authorities to say 'this is what women of Asian background are going through, and you need to change your services, your policies, so that you meet their needs, because when an Asian woman comes as a victim of domestic violence, how do you deal with her in a sensitive way? Are you providing interpreting, translation, a female person to talk to her; are you aware of family members who she would be fearful of?'Those kind of things, or a woman who is in a very overcrowded housing situation; the father, or the spouse, may be not in employment, so they may be in poverty. How does that woman cope; she may have four children, five children; how does she go out and seek help and advice?”

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May 2016

The Heroines team start working in Samuel Ryder Academy with a group of year 7 and 8 students, creating a dramatic piece about suffragettes that will eventually end up as part of the ‘Heroineshire’ Show. They also work with a group of home-schooled children who create a scene about Boudica’s army. Volunteer researchers discover more Heroines:

Emily Davies The Exhibition - Hertford At the end of April 2016, we open the Heroines exhibition in collaboration with Hertford Museum, featuring artwork from St Peters and Mandeville Primary schools, Onslow St Audrey and Astley Cooper secondary schools, Watford Girls Grammar School, the Daylight Club, New Hope, ASCEND and Three Rivers Textiles.

Between April 30 and July 1 approximately 3350 visitors see the exhibition and are able to listen to extracts of 14 oral histories including Linda Fryd, daughter of MenCap founder and disability campaigner:

Judy Fryd Judy Fryd (1909 - 2000) was a tenacious campaigner and founder of The National Association of Parents with Backward Children, now known as MenCap. After her daughter Felicity was born with a learning disability, she began to campaign for better support for such children and their families.

Linda Fryd says of her mother:

“Judy was the original founder of what is now known as MenCap, and worked hard for the rest of her life to assist in the development of the work of the society towards what it is today - a massively important and campaigning organisation for the protection and advance of people with a leaning disability - including the mentally disabled - and a vehicle for their parents and siblings to get their voices heard, and bring about the changes so necessary for their inclusion in today’s world.”

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Emily Davies (1830-1921) became a founder member of a women's discussion group who unsuccessfully petitioned Parliament to grant women voting rights.

Davies began campaigning for a woman's right to educate. She was active on the London School Board and in the Schools Inquiry Commission and was instrumental in obtaining the admission of girls to official secondary school examinations. She then advocated for the admission of women to the Universities of London, Oxford and Cambridge; then exclusively male domains.

She also became involved in the Suffrage movement, which centred on a woman's right to vote. She was involved in organizing John Stuart Mill's 1866 petition to the British Parliament (which was signed by Paulina Irby, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and 15,000 others), the first to ask for women's suffrage. That same year, she also wrote the book The Higher Education of Women.

In 1869, Davies led the founding of Britain's first women's college, with the support of Frances Buss, Dorothea Beale and Barbara Bodichon. Girton College was initially established in Hitchin, Hertfordshire with Charlotte Manning as the first Mistress. The college later moved in 1873 to the outskirts of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire.

Davies strongly advocated for a quality of curriculum that was equivalent to those offered to men of the time. Despite the Senate rejecting her proposal to let women officially sit for the papers, Davies continued to train students for Tripos exams on an unofficial basis.

From 1873 to 1875, Davies was mistress of Girton College, where she then served as Secretary until 1904.The College was not permitted to grant full Cambridge University degrees to women until 1948.

Davies' persistent fight for equal education for women was instrumental in the founding in 1875 of Newnham College, Cambridge University.

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June 2016

We discover Violet Cressy-Marcks, intrepid pioneering explorer:

Violet Cressy-Marcks Cressy-Marcks (1895-1970) was elected to the Royal Geographical Society (RGS) in 1922. Her journeys took her round the world many times. Though twice married, (once divorced, and with three children) she principally travelled alone. Some of her most extraordinary journeys:

In 1925, overland from Cairo to the Cape; She made her 4th round the world journey in 19312, and in 1935 she took the first ever motor transport from Addis Ababa to Nairobi during the Italian invasion.

In 1937-8 she interviewed Mao Tse Tung for 5 hours in his remote cave dwelling in Yan’an.

During 1943-5, she was a war reporter in Chungking (Chongqing), in south-western China, for the Daily Express; During the Second World War she was an ambulance driver for the British Red Cross abroad; 1945-6: accredited to the War Office as war correspondent for the Daily Express at the Nuremberg trials; 1953-4: Indo-China, Kathmandu, and Japan; 1955: seventh Round the World journey; 1956: eighth Round the World journey (during which her husband died at Nassau).

Eventually credited with travelling in every country of the world, she was keen to have a scientific grounding to her travels, and was a fellow of the Royal Asiatic and Zoological societies.

“A snake crawling over one at night is... not a pleasant proposition... The wretched thing had bitten me below the knee...' Having lanced the wound, she found a mirror 'to see if I was going black or grey... I decided on coffee, a walk and sleep, and if I was going to die... I was at peace with the world - so ... there was nothing to worry about" Cressy-Marcks, Violet (1932). Up the Amazon and over the Andes. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

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We discover the inspirational extreme athlete Shu Pillinger:

Shusanah Pillinger Shusanah Pillinger became the first British woman to complete the "world's toughest cycle race" in 2015.

She finished the 3004 mile non-stop solo Race Across America (RAAM) in 12 days, 9 hours and 14 minutes after pedalling from the West coast to the East coast on just 2 hours sleep a day.

Shusanah (or Shu) grew up on the Hertfordshire / Cambridgeshire border and has lived in St Albans since 2009. Whilst working in London, she discovered triathlon and soon found that she enjoyed the bike leg of the event the most.

Moving out of London encouraged her to start cycling longer distances instead of getting the train to work, a commute she still does by bike. She has cycled from London to Paris, John O'Groats to Land's End, London to Edinburgh and back to London amongst other rides. Winning a 24 hour continuous cycling time trial in 2012 qualified her to take part in RAAM. In 2013 she became the National Ladies Ultratriathlon Champion, competing over a double Iron-man distance (4.8 mile swim, 232 mile bike and 52.4 mile run one straight after the next).

After winning a 400 mile cycle race across India in 2014, she recruited 9 crew, raised funds and organised logistics to make the start of RAAM that year. Alas a finish was not possible after she fell asleep 9 days and 2150 miles into the transcontinental race, falling from her bike and breaking a collarbone. Undeterred and driven by the desire to be the first British woman to complete the race (in its 35 year history), she recovered, put in many more miles of training whilst working full time, recruited another crew of 8 people to drive 3 support vehicles across the USA, raised the necessary finances again and set about taking on RAAM in June 2015. This time she completed the race and was nominated for the BT Sport Action Woman of the Month award!

Photos credited to RAAM Media and Mike Moore

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Tessa Wheeler The archaeologist Tessa Wheeler, who discovered Roman Verulamium, is relatively well-known but has been overshadowed by her more famous husband, Sir Mortimer Wheeler. Tessa excavated Roman Verulamium among many other sites and some considered her to be the more talented field archaeologist of the marriage. Artist Joanna Scott gives Tessa her own coin: We hear about another hidden Heroine:

Margaret Murray Margaret Murray (1863-1963): Anglo-Indian Egyptologist, archaeologist, anthropologist, historian, and folklorist. The first woman to be appointed as a lecturer in archaeology in the United Kingdom, she worked at University College London (UCL) from 1898 to 1935. She served as President of the Folklore Society from 1953 to 1955, and published widely over the course of her career.

Murray divided her youth between India, Britain, and Germany, training as both a nurse and a social worker. Moving to London, in 1894 she began studying Egyptology at UCL, developing a friendship with department head Flinders Petrie, who encouraged her early academic publications and appointed her Junior Professor in 1898. In 1902-03 she took part in Petrie's excavations at Abydos, Egypt, there discovering the Osireion temple and the following season investigated the Saqqara cemetery, both of which established her reputation in Egyptology. Supplementing her UCL wage by giving public classes and lectures at the British Museum and Manchester Museum, it was at the latter in 1908 that she led the unwrapping of Khnum-nakht, one of the mummies recovered from the Tomb of the Two Brothers - the first time that a woman had publicly unwrapped a mummy.

Murray also became closely involved in the first-wave feminist movement, joining the Women’s Social and Political Union and devoting much time to improving women’s status at UCL. Unable to return to Egypt due to the First World War, she focused her research on the witch-cult hypothesis, the theory that the witch trials of Early Modern Christendom were an attempt to extinguish a surviving pre-Christian, pagan religion devoted to a Horned God. Although later academically discredited, the theory gained widespread attention and proved a significant influence on the emerging new religious movement of Wicca. From 1921 to 1931 Murray undertook excavations of prehistoric sites on Malta and Minorca and developed her interest in folkloristics.

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Awarded an honorary doctorate in 1927, she was appointed assistant professor in 1928 and retired from UCL in 1935. That year she visited Palestine to aid Petrie's excavation of Tall al-Ajjul and in 1937 she led a small excavation at Petra in Jordan. Taking on the presidency of the Folklore Society in later life, she lectured at such institutions as the University of Cambridge and City Literary Institute, and continued to publish in an independent capacity until her death.

Emma Wiggs This former Watford Girls Grammar School pupil is a four times World Champion in the women's K1 200m KL2 class, most recently claiming gold in Duisburg at the 2016 World Championships and she is also the 2015 European silver medallist in the same event.

Emma represented Great Britain in the GB Sitting Volleyball Team for the London 2012 Paralympic Games. After the Games she embarked on a mission to find a sport that would give her a chance to be the best she could be and found canoeing was the answer.

Emma grew up in Watford. When she was 18, she contracted a virus that initially paralysed her and left her with damaged nerves in her legs. So, with a wheelchair as her "transport", she managed to follow her chosen career as a PE teacher; studying Sports Science and gaining a PGCE in secondary PE, she started work in West Sussex in 2004.

Wiggs won gold in the KL2 class at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, the first paralympics to feature canoeing events, with a time of 53.288 seconds.

Emma is also one of the Watford Girls Grammar alumni featured in the Heroines exhibition in a beautiful piece of artwork created by the current pupils along with head of art Georgie Wheeler and artist-inresidence Sian Fenwick.

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July 2016

65 participants aged 8 to 83 take part in the show Welcome to Heroineshire! from Samuel Ryder Academy, Mandeville Primary, Let’s Dance from Hemel Hempstead Old Town Hall and the home-schooled group, all assisted and supported by a team of Heroines workshop leaders and volunteers. Each group performs in a different space in Trestle Arts Base, bringing our heroines to life through drama, physical theatre and dance. Debra Cadet-Wallace makes a powerful and passionate Dolly Shepherd:

The Show!

“I really cannot put into words how much it has meant to me.

I cannot believe that I performed as part of a cast of 60 in the Hertfordshire Hidden Heroines Theatre Show, it took me 3 days to realise I had left Heroineshire, it was truly an amazing experience and a wonderful place to be.

After waking up that Sunday morning filled with nerves, I don't really know how I did it, only to say I truly felt I did not want to let you all down at Trestle or that of Dolly's memory, so thank you for the opportunity to be able to share part of Dolly Shepherd's life with others and for trusting me to do so, I truly appreciate it."

- Debra

(Above) ...and the whole cast join together at the end to sing suffragette songs.

Dancer Audrey says:

“We were made to feel we contributed something special- at the age of 80 this is quite something! We loved working with the young in a valuable and worthwhile manner- I think it has helped the whole community, such a mix of old, young, ethnically diverse. I also feel much more confident myself and able to return to teaching."

Louise White, Let’s Dance choreographer:

“This was a great opportunity for Let's Dance to realise their potential in a community context. For me age doesn't come into it, this is about people enjoying dance. The Herts Hidden Heroines project created opportunities like this so we can celebrate life through art. Dancing in a weekly class one day to dancing as part of a community performance the next is a big leap, one these dancers all took and I was so proud of them, they looked fantastic, their performance was beautiful, sensitive and very inspiring. They are an example of what you can achieve when you are brave enough to give something a go!"

The Exhibition - St Albans August 2016

Our Heroines exhibition moves to St Albans’ Verulamium museum, home of Boudica’s battle with the Romans; lots of new Heroines come to celebrate the launch:

(Above) Debra as Dolly Shepherd with the Let’s Dance Group

(Right) Karene Horner-Hughes leads Boudica’s army into battle...

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And we continue to hear about countless more Heroines of Hertfordshire, from Hilary Ratcliffe OBE…

Hilary Ratcliffe OBE Hilary Ratcliffe was made an OBE in the UK Honours List 2014 for services “promoting Gender Equality Overseas".

A Soroptimist since 1980, Hilary lives in Harpenden and is an active member of the St Albans and District Club. She has been Club President, Regional President, Chair of the Soroptimist UK Programme Action Committee, SI Great Britain and Ireland Federation Assistant Programme Director for Education, Federation Programme Director and Soroptimist International (SI) Programme Director 2011 - 2015.

Alongside her voluntary work as a Soroptimist, Hilary is active in her local Harpenden community, she works as a freelance tour guide in London and the South East of England; she is a trained City of London Guide, Blue Badge Guide and St Albans City Guide.

Before this, she spent many years as a teacher of history in secondary schools and further education colleges and was also responsible for providing pastoral support and personal and social education to sixth form students.

Hilary has inspired countless Soroptimists around the world to get involved in local, national and international projects to improve the lives of women and girls.

As International Programme Director, Hilary led Soroptimist Internationals advocacy and policy work at the UN and other international forums, speaking up for women and girls and representing the voices of around 80,000 Soroptimists in 130 countries and territories worldwide. She provided guidance and inspiration for thousands of on-the-ground Soroptimist projects to educate, empower and enable opportunities for women and girls, helping to share good practice across the world, while developing global policies and position statements based on the experience of Soroptimists worldwide.

"When Hilary takes to the stage at conferences, Soroptimists are moved to get up and do something to change the world", says SI's Head of Programme and Advocacy, Reilly Dempsey. "She is truly an agent of change, working both behind the scenes and in the public domain to improve the lives of women and girls all over the world".

“You have to like children because it is hard work, but it is satisfying to see them grow into well-adjusted adults. I still keep in touch with lots of them and they are like family" said Jackie, “I've had a wonderful time fostering and I would recommend it to anyone" Her foster son Ricky now has his own family and Jackie has always been ‘mum' to him and ‘nanny' to his children.

“Growing up, I benefited enormously from my stable and loving upbringing with Jackie" said Ricky. “As a mixed race child living with other foster children and her own birth daughter, I always felt we were a family and that we were all given equal care and attention." …to inspiring Olympians Victoria Pendleton, Laura Trott, Martine Wright, to pioneering scientists Katherine Warrington, Winifred Brenchley, Audrey Peattie, to ground breaking politicians and campaigners Clementine Churchill, Shirley Williams, Zena Bullmore to WW2 activists Yvonne Maslinska, Gwen Hollis, Elizabeth Poston, to medics E. Margaret Burnside, Dr Gladys Proudlock Dunbar, the list goes on and will continue to grow throughout autumn 2016.

Our volunteers continue to identify and interview women so that their voices can be heard and their stories captured for eternity. You can add your own Heroines to the website at Herts Memories from the beginning of 2017. So what are you waiting for? Who’s YOUR Hertfordshire Hidden Heroine?

….to Jackie Barnett MBE…

Jackie Barnett MBE Jackie Barnett MBE from Borehamwood has fostered over 100 children since 1958. She received royal recognition after retiring in 2015 from her fostering role at the age of 80 and was nominated by one of her foster children Ricky, who Jackie fostered from the age of one and is now 52.

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Thanks to:

Mandeville Primary School St Albans St Peters C of E Primary School Mill End

Sarah Keeling and Cat Newley from Verulamium Museum

Onslow St Audreys School Hatfield

Joanna Scott, Kathryn Holt, Hilary Dawson , Sarah Strachan, Megan Donnett and Dawn Hudson

Samuel Ryder Academy

Elaine Johnston at Three Rivers/Trestle

Hertfordshire Home Educators Drama Group

Heritage Hub, University of Hertfordshire staff and students

Watford Girls Grammar School

Herts Archives and Libraries, Harpenden Historical Society, Nik Pringle, Herts Policing, Nigel Watson, Bricket Wood Society

Astley Cooper School Hemel Hempstead

New Hope Trust Watford Ascend South Oxhey The Daylight Club Three Rivers Creative Textiles Group Let’s Dance, Louise White and Annie Smith at Hemel Hempstead Old Town Hall Volunteer oral history takers, researchers, artists and bloggers: Val Langford, Romayne Hutchison, Janet Tublin, Brenda Stebbeds, Rita Castle, Ruth Herman, Bethan Hughes, Rosemary Tolley, Hilary Isham, Gail Lysaght, June Hunt, Brian McAndrew, Richard Brown, Debra Cadet Wallace, Steph Curtis, Maggie Johnston, Jennifer Ayto and Catherine James Interviewees Christine Wyard, Canon Pam Wyse, Dr Mary Groves, Professor Janet Drew, Nurse Sue Hillier, Barbara Sedassy, Bethan Hughes, Mr and Mrs Beck, Sandy Norman, Linda Fryd, Momotaz Rahim, Mayor Lynne Sparks, Sian Fenwick, Leigh Van Hove Steering group: Jo Askham, Catherine Davies Sara Taylor and Catherine Walker from Hertford Museum

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Royston Museum, Watford Museum, Verulamium Museum, Knebworth House Emily Gray, Rhian Desborough, Clare Winter, Karene Horner Hughes, Emma Rose Payne, Joseph Arm, Joe Martin at Trestle All the Heroines past and present who gave us their time, their energy, their words of wisdom, their life stories and their courage.

And those who sent us their stories of Hertfordshire’s heroines, past and present www.hertshiddenheroines.org.uk www.hertsmemories.org.uk www.trestle.org.uk Project Manager/Editor: Anna Reynolds Illustrations by Joanna Scott Design by Rhian Desborough

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