Priscilla Wakefield

Mrs. Priscilla Wakefield

Priscilla Wakefield , b. Bell (born January 31, 1751 in Stamford Hill , London , England , † September 12, 1832 in Ipswich , Suffolk , England), was a philanthropist , Quaker , writer and feminist.

Life

Priscilla Wakefield was the oldest of five children in an established Quaker family in London. Her father Daniel Bell (1726-1802) was a coal merchant, her mother Catherine Barclay (1727-1784) granddaughter of Robert Barclay (1648-1690), who had written An Apology for the True Christian Divinity in 1676. Priscilla received her education at home, with her mother playing a key role.

On January 3, 1771, she married the wealthy Edward Wakefield (1750-1826) in the City of London . They had three children, Isabella (1772–1841), Edward (1774–1854) and Daniel (1776–1846). Edward Wakefield's business activities were unsuccessful during their marriage, causing the family more and more financial difficulties and Priscilla Wakefield to secure most of the family income with her writing. Her first children's book, published in 1795, had eight editions by 1825 and was very successful.

When her son Edward married Susanna Crush in 1791 and their marriage resulted in nine children, from 1799 she was also busy raising the grandchildren and looking after her ailing daughter-in-law. In addition to this kind of grandmotherhood and writing, she was also involved in a wide variety of social areas (see Services). Not able to cope with the strain, from 1810 onwards she became increasingly depressed, dependent on mood and weather. In 1811, Instinct displayed was completed and The Traveler in Africa was in the works, complaining of being weakened and exhausted. Between 1812 and 1813 she ended up temporarily in the madhouse at Whitmore , London.

Since her books did not bring in enough money to improve their financial circumstances and not much money came from her husband and son to cover their daily needs, they moved to a cheaper house in Ipswich in 1813 . Over sixty and in poor health, she became more and more inactive and eventually became dependent on a wheelchair. Priscilla Wakefield died at the age of 81 on September 12, 1832 in Ipswich, London .

Services

In addition to textbooks and travel literature, Priscilla Wakefield wrote more than a dozen children's stories (see Works). In 1791 she founded the Lying-in Charity for Women, an organization that helped poor women with the birth of their children. Up to 120 women per year received partial, material and immaterial support. In 1792 she founded the School for Industry Initiative, which gave young girls an education. Up to 66 girls learned to read, write, arithmetic, sewing and knitting each year and were prepared to work as domestic help. In 1798 the first Penny Savings Bank in England was founded , which it called "Frugality Bank" (a kind of savings bank based on the German model). It started with women and children who were able to save part of their income from work in order to be able to fall back on the savings in old age and in the event of illness and so children could have money for clothing and education.

She organized soup kitchens in winter, took care of spinning in group work in spinning mills and worked to ensure that the chimneys of the houses were safer and could no longer be blown away by the wind. She founded the Female Benefit Club , which paid small pensions to women paying in when they were over 65, and supported the Rev. Joseph Lancaster's plans to create large schools for the poor, led by older students in their age hierarchy has been.

criticism

Throughout her life, Priscilla Wakefield was interested in education and, as a staunch Quaker , helping poor and disadvantaged people to improve their social status and living conditions, especially for women and children. But their commitment did not go beyond changing the social and political balance of power. As a middle-class woman, she was more interested in ensuring that the existing boundaries between the various social classes were not exceeded.

Works

• Juvenile Anecdotes, founded on facts. Collected for the amusement of children . Volume I . Darton & Harvey , London 1795 (English).
• An Introduction to Botany, in a Series of Familiar Letters . Darton & Harvey , London 1796 (English, online [accessed May 1, 2014]).
• Mental Improvement, or the Beauties and Wonders of Nature and Art, in a Series of Instructive Conversations . Abraham Shearman , New-Bedford 1797 (English, online [accessed May 1, 2014]).
• Juvenile Anecdotes, founded on facts. Collected for the amusement of children . Volume II . Darton & Harvey , London 1798 (English, online [accessed May 1, 2014]).
• Reflections on the Present Condition of the Female Sex, with Suggestions for its Improvement . Joseph Johnson , London 1798 (English).
• The juvenile travelers . Darton & Harvey , London 1801 (English, online [accessed May 1, 2014]).
• A Family Tour Through the British Empire . Darton & Harvey , London 1804 (English, online [accessed May 1, 2014]).
• Domestic recreation, or dialogues illustrative of natural and scientific subjects . Darton & Harvey , London 1805 (English).
• Excursions in North America, described in letters from a gentleman and his young companion, to their friends in England . Darton & Harvey , London 1806 (English, online [accessed May 1, 2014]).
• Variety; or, selections and essays, consisting of anecdotes, curious facts, interesting narratives, with occasional reflections . Darton & Harvey , London 1809 (English).
• Instinct displayed, in a collection of well-authenticated facts, exemplifying the extraordinary sagacity of various species of the animal creation . Darton & Harvey , London 1811 (English, online [accessed May 1, 2014]).
• Leisure Hours, or Entertaining Dialogues . Darton & Harvey , London 1812 (English, online [accessed May 1, 2014]).
• Perambulations in London and its Environs . Darton & Harvey , London 1814 (English).
• The Traveler in Africa . Darton & Harvey , London 1814 (English).
• The Traveler in Asia . Darton & Harvey , London 1817 (English).

literature

• Philip Temple : A sort of conscience - The Wakefields. . Auckland University Press , Auckland 2002, ISBN 1-86940-276-6 (English).

Web links

• Priscilla Wakefield (1751-1832) . Political and Feminist Economists,accessed May 1, 2014. 
• Quaker Science Texts - Priscilla Wakefield's Botany . (PDF 712 kB)College of Education at Illinois,accessed May 1, 2014(English).