Signatories to the Ladies' Petition for the Establishment of the Foundling Hospital

In 1730 Thomas Coram approached aristocratic women with a petition to support the establishment of a Foundling Hospital, which he would present to King George II.^[1][2]

The women who signed were of aristocratic backgrounds, and Coram kept a list in his pocket memorandum book, captioned 'An Exact Account when each Lady of Charity Signed their Declaration'.^[2] In several cases, he had already approached the women's husbands several years earlier, and been turned away. Their involvement is widely regarded as the gateway to wider support of his philanthropic cause. In an essay in the catalogue of an exhibition celebrating women's roles in the Foundling Hospital, Elizabeth Einberg states that:

"Coram could see that securing the approval of a group of right-thinking women, of wives and dowagers at the pinnacle of society would highlight the Christian, virtuous and humanitarian aspects of such an endeavour and make it socially acceptable. In the events, it became not only that, but one of the most fashionable charities of the day."^[3]

These female signatories are listed here in chronological order of date of their signature:

Signatories to the Ladies' Petition for the Establishment of the Foundling Hospital

Name	Title at the time of Signature	Date of Signature	Image
Charlotte Seymour	Duchess of Somerset	9 March 1729
Ann Vaughan	Duchess of Bolton	22 April 1729
Henrietta Needham	Dowager Duchess of Bolton	25 April 1729
Sarah Lennox	Duchess of Richmond	22 December 1729
Isabella Montagu	Duchess of Manchester	6 January 1730
Ann Russell	Duchess of Bedford	7 January 1730
Elizabeth Knight	Baroness Onslow	6 April 1730
Anne Pierrepoint	Dowager Baroness Torrington	14 April 1730
Frances Byron	Baroness Byron	14 April 1730
Selina Shirley	Countess of Huntingdon	21 April 1730
Juliana Hele	Duchess of Leeds	24 April 1730
Frances Finch	Countess of Winchilsea and Nottingham	25 April 1730
Frances Hales	Countess of Lichfield	27 April 1730
Dorothy Boyle	Countess of Burlington	19 May 1730
Elizabeth Brudenell	Countess of Cardigan	19 May 1730
Frances Thynne	Countess of Hertford	26 May 1730
Mary Tufton	Countess of Harold	6 November 1733
Anne Lennox	Countess of Albemarle	6 November 1734
Anne Weldon Barnard	Baroness Trevor	2 December 1734
Anne King	Dowager Baroness Ockham	21 January 1735
Margaret Cavendish Harley	Duchess of Portland	7 May 1735

In 2018 the Foundling Museum held an exhibition to raise awareness of the role of women in founding and running the Foundling Hospital, called "Ladies of Quality and Distinction".^[4][5][6] By their actions, these women succeeded.^[2][5]

References

1. Gillian., Wagner (2004). Thomas Coram, Gent., 1668-1751. Woodbridge, Suffolk: The Boydell Press. ISBN 1843830574. OCLC 53361054.
2. McClure, Ruth K. (1981). Coram's children : the London Foundling Hospital in the eighteenth century. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 276n30. ISBN 0300024657. OCLC 6707267.
3. Elizabeth Einberg, 'Elegant Revolutionaries', article in Ladies of Quality and Distinction Catalogue, Foundling Hospital, London 2018, pp. 14-15, p.15. https://foundlingmuseum.org.uk/events/ladies-of-quality-distinction/ Archived 17 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine
4. "Ladies of Quality & Distinction Exhibition". Foundling Museum. Archived from the original on 17 November 2018. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
5. Clinton, Jane (22 February 2018). "Help find Foundling 'mothers'". Camden New Journal. New Journal Enterprises. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
6. Sanderson, David (19 February 2018). "Race to honour first ladies of charity". The Sunday Times. London, England: Times Newspapers Limited. Retrieved 25 November 2018.