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Catherine Smithies
Portrait from obituary
Born	Catherine Bywater 1785 Tadcaster, Yorkshire, England
Died	1877 (1878) (aged 92) London, England
Resting place	Abney Park Cemetery, London, England
Occupation(s)	Philanthropist, activist
Spouse	James Smithies ​ ​(m. 1812; died 1861)​
Children	10, including Thomas Bywater Smithies

Catherine Smithies (née Bywater; 1785 – 1877) was an English philanthropist and campaigner for animal welfare, abolitionism and temperance. She was the creator of the first Band of Mercy, which promoted teaching children kindness towards non-human animals and led to the Bands of Mercy movement.

Biography

Early life and family

Smithies was born in 1785 in Tadcaster, Yorskhire. She later lived in Leeds. Smithies was a Methodist, and her religious beliefs strongly influenced her activism.

In 1812, she married James Smithies at St Peter's Church, Leeds. Her son, Thomas Bywater Smithies (1817–1883), the second of ten children, was born in 1817; he later became a close partner in her campaigns for abolition and temperance. After her husband's death in 1861, she moved to London to live with Thomas at Earlham Grove House, which was built around 1865.

Activism and philanthropy

Smithies was an active member of the Band of Hope, a temperance organisation founded in Leeds in 1847 that encouraged children to pledge abstinence from alcohol. The organisation focused on educating youth about the dangers of alcohol through hymns, talks, and activities. Smithies' involvement in the Band of Hope shaped her later efforts to promote compassion and care for animals.

In the 1860s, Smithies authored A Mother's Lessons on Kindness to Animals, which was published in several volumes. In 1870, along with Angela Burdett-Coutts, she founded the Ladies Committee at the RSPCA.

Founding the Band of Mercy

In 1875, Catherine Smithies established the first Band of Mercy, modelled on the Band of Hope but focusing on animal welfare. The organisation encouraged its members to take a pledge: "I will try to be kind to all living creatures, and try to protect them from cruel usage."

The Band of Mercy promoted its message through meetings, storytelling, hymns, and visual presentations using lantern slides. The movement grew rapidly, spreading internationally to countries such as Australia and the United States. Publications like the Band of Mercy Advocate, edited and produced by Thomas, became instrumental in disseminating the organisation's message.

Death

Smithies died in 1877. On her deathbed she stated: "the teaching of children to be kind and merciful to God's lower creatures is preparing the way for the gospel of Christ." She was buried in Abney Park Cemetery in Stoke Newington; Thomas was buried alongside her after his death. A guard of honour was formed by uniformed RSPCA officers at her funeral.

After her death, Smithies was memorialised by Thomas, in issue number 281 of The British Workman. Smithies' family and friends erected an obelisk and a public drinking fountain in Wood Green as a memorial to honour her life and contributions.

References

1. ^ Pinching, Albert (9 June 2019). "Wood Green's Obelisk". Hornsey Historical Society. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
2. 1871 England Census. Class: RG10; Piece: 283; Folio: 67; Page: 32; GSU roll: 824922.
3. ^ "Two women unafraid to work with animals and children: Angela Burdett Coutts and Catherine Smithies by Simon Strickland-Scott". Newington Green Meeting House. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
4. ^ Murray, Frank. "Smithies, Thomas Bywater (1817–1883), campaigner for temperance and for animal welfare". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/74113. Retrieved 22 June 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
5. England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995
6. "Mrs Catherine Smithies". London Remembers. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
7. Donald, Diana (2019). "The 'Two religions': A Gendered Divide in Victorian Society". Women Against Cruelty: Protection of Animals in Nineteenth-century Britain. Manchester: Manchester University Press. ISBN 978-1-5261-1544-7.
8. Scales, Andy. "We remember female trailblazers on International Women's Day". RSPCA. Archived from the original on 22 June 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
9. Cronin, J. Keri (2018). Art for Animals: Visual Culture and Animal Advocacy, 1870–1914. University Park, Pennsylvania: Penn State Press. p. 58. ISBN 978-0-271-08163-2.
10. Moss, Arthur William (1961). Valiant Crusade: The History of the RSPCA. London: Cassell. p. 37. ASIN B0027357XI.
11. "The History of George Meehan House (formerly Woodside House)". Haringey Council. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
12. "Animals". BLT19: 19th-Century Business, Labour, Temperance, & Trade Periodicals. 18 July 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2020.

• 1785 births
• 1877 deaths
• British animal welfare workers
• British charity and campaign group workers
• Burials at Abney Park Cemetery
• English abolitionists
• 19th-century English philanthropists
• English reformers
• English temperance activists
• English women activists
• Organization founders
• People from Tadcaster
• Women of the Victorian era
• Women philanthropists
• English Methodists