Working-class women, local networks and philanthropy. Charity in the Women’s Co-operative Guild in 1890s London.

This dissertation uses a combination of prosopography and traditional archival research techniques to re-examine aspects of working-class women’s history from the perspective of the Women’s Co-operative Guild members. With a focus on the branch secretary at local level in the London branches of the 1890s, themes of neighbourhood, mutual help, and charity towards each other and their community emerge. The resulting analysis of their charitable work advances our understanding of the impact of working women in public life beyond the traditional narrative of political activism.