As a volunteer on a project looking at the Commitee Books for the Military Hospital in Maghull in WWI I was quite surprised when I opened the earliest book to find that the first name I saw was that of a woman – Mary Dendy – who was to be the “Chairman” of the newly opened military hospital. It intrigued me that at this time – 1915 – a woman was given the role of perhaps the most important person in the running of the hospital. She oversaw a lot of the administration and practical matters of the hospital, reporting once a month.
First monthly report by the “Chairman” of Moss Side Military Hospital. Mary Dendy January 1915.
I was interested to find out more about this woman, whose views and decisions on non-medical matters such as staffing, pay rises, provision of furniture, food and all manner of items feature heavily in the books.
Mary Dendy was born in Wales in 1855, the daughter of a Unitarian Minister, John Dendy and his wife Sarah Beard, whose sister was a social reformer and brother was a biologist. For reasons that I could not discover, Mary was particularly interested in the care of “feeble minded” children and sat on The Manchester School Board from 1898 (Emmeline Pankhurst also sat on this Board at the same time) where she persuaded the Board to open special day schools (which she later referred to as “colonies”). She was a eugenicist (she joined the Eugenics Society in 1900) who believed that as a result of alcohol and poverty, these conditions were inherited by future generations. Whilst views such as these may be questionable now, at the time the Eugenics movement had many adherents who might be seen as genuinely believing that they were helping society and the patients by providing such institutions for them. I have found a letter from Mary the sentiments of which show that she sometimes found it hard to bear the responsibility of her work.
"I wish I could just come and be one of your staff - not in the sense
that Miss Elderton is - of course - but just as a clerical worker and
collector. I should be so glad to be rid of responsibility and only do
what I was told"
Mary Dendy letter to Karl Pearson, follow-up on definition of
feeble-mindedness with reference to British eugenic legislation
(12/5/1912)
Miss Dendy worked tirelessly towards passing an act which made it legally possible to confine such children and in 1913 the Mental Deficiency Act was passed. She reported in her evidence to the commission that the mentally subnormal and the mentally ill should be recognised as separate problems, requiring different approaches, and hence the mentally subnormal required separate facilities and institutions distinct from the traditional lunatic asylums. She was offered and accepted the role of a Commissioner of the Board of Control, to help oversee the act – the first female to be offered such a role in the public sphere.
Mary had several roles in the North West that used her experience of, and interest in, mental health issues. As well as being a paid Commissioner, she had honorary roles in other societies, such as the Lancashire Society for the Permanent Care of the Feeble Minded. She also founded several homes and hospitals for the “mentally subnormal” and became the President and Chairman of the Governing body of these homes – all renamed “Mary Dendy Homes” after her death in 1933.
Perhaps it is not surprising therefore, that an enthusiastic, committed and practical person such as Mary, would be considered as someone who could oversee the day to day running of such a large institution. Whilst as far as I am aware she was not involved on the clinical side of how the hospital was run, she certainly had the relevant experience of running such institutions. She clearly believed that life should be made as comfortable as possible and she was exceptionally efficient and practical. For example she was involved in obtaining a piano and other musical instruments for the patients to use and had a lot of input in such things as extra food for the patients - believing leisure time and comfort was part of the process of healing those who had suffered terrible mental trauma. These views on rehabilitation were very helpful and perhaps forward-thinking at the time when soldiers and people on the Home Front were encouraged to simply “carry on”.
Entry in the Committee Book – Dec 1916 asking for approval of extra ingredients to bake a Christmas cake.
Miss Dendy’s practicality and involvement in all kinds of issues surrounding the hospital shines through on almost every page of the Committee books – which after all – are now a permanent testimony to her fortitude, sincerity and contribution to the rehabilitation of such mentally damaged men.
I am going to continue researching the hospital but not has part of the project; it is some years since the project ended but.I am now ready to delve once more into what "could" seem to be a boring primary source - a committee book - but which in reality holds so much of interest. Thank you Mary!
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Dendy
Ancestry.co.uk (Census, birth and death records)
Find my Past (Newspaper reports)
https://dnalc.cshl.edu/view/11856-Mary-Dendy-letter-to-Karl-Pearson-follow-up-on-definition-of-feeble-mindedness-with-reference-to-British-eugenic-legislation-12-5-1912-.html
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