'Real story' of housemaid who went on to marry legendary 19th century Harrogate mayor Samson Fox
The housemaid who went on to marry legendary 19th century Harrogate mayor Samson Fox is just one of the incredible real-life stories lined up for a forthcoming event showing the real world of Downton Abbey.
The forthcoming talk is being organised by Harrogate’s Women Winning Group as part of a successful series of events this year designed to shine the spotlight on overlooked but amazing women in the town’s rich history.
Much is known and recorded about Harrogate’s Victorian and Edwardian millionaires, those ‘upstairs’ such as industrialist Samson Fox and newspaper owner Robert Ackrill.
But much less has been recorded about the ‘downstairs’ veritable army of mostly women who looked after their beautiful mansions.
The latest Harrogate’s Women Winning Group event will feature historian Dr Paul Jennings, a highly regarded speaker, who will look at the women servants of Harrogate, where many hundreds worked in service: looking at who they were and what their lives were like.
Over the years Paul has come across many residents in Harrogate who had mothers or grandmothers who spent at least some time ‘’in service’ with mixed experiences.
His talk will uncover many fascinating stories including that of one housemaid who went on to marry the householder’s son and another of Annie Baxter who had her own ‘rags to riches’ story when aged just 28 she became the second wife of 61-year-old widower Samson Fox who at that time was one of the richest men in Harrogate.
Lynne Mee, co-founder of Women Winning, along with Paula Stott, chairman of Harrogate Film Society, said: “We are delighted that Paul is to deliver this illustrated talk for us.
"In recent years, TV programmes such as Downton Abbey have fuelled fascination with the daily lives of servants.
"They worked long hours in strict hierarchies, performing arduous chores for wealthy families in exchange for wages and accommodation.
"These women are worth remembering because of the often undervalued role they played in Harrogate Life.”
Women in Service: the case of Victorian and Edwardian Harrogate, 7pm, Thursday, October 30 in West Park Centre.
Tickets, including a welcome drink, from https://www.trybooking.com/uk/FHFG