IX. WOMEN IN THE CORPORATION.
An innovation in Municipal affairs was made by the Act of 1869 which conferred on single women householders the right to vote in the election of Town Councillors; but although that was the first time women had had a vote, they had previously had an interest — women had played their part as Mayoresses ever since the long line of Mayors began. For many centuries, Mayoresses in Dover had assisted their worshipful husbands, and although the records give but little definite information concerning them, there are a few examples that may be quoted. What the wives of those old Mayors of the Middle Ages did is not recorded, but there is no doubt they were busy in preparing ihose great banquets of sweetmeats which were given at the several Mayors houses year after year, to celebrate their elections. Mrs. Kempe, the wife of Edward Kempe, a wealthy resident of St. James' Parish, who was Mayor in the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and James I., is mentioned in the Corporation Minutes. She may be termed a double Mayoress, for she was the wife of John Tench, who was Mayor in 1588, and as Mayoress she assisted in the rejoicings of that year, on the completion of the Great Pent, carried out by the bounty of Queen Elizabeth. Of Mrs. Tench's doings then, however, there is no special record, but she is especially mentioned later, because her second husband, Edward Kempe, died during his second Mayoralty in 16 12, and had, as wr.s customary, a public funeral. The Minutes say that in the funeral procession, immediately after the Jurats and Common Councilmen followed " Mrs. Mayoresse and her daughters in mourning gowns." Another Mayoress of some note was Elizabeth, daughter of Captain William Stokes, R.N., who was Mayoress in some of her father's later Mayoralties in the time of Charles II., and she subsequently marrieil Edward Wivell, who was thrice Mayor in the reign of WilUani III. and thre« times in fhe reign of Queen Anne. Mrs. Wivell was more than a Mayoress. It was the fact that she was the daughter of Captain Siokes, a Freeman, that qualified her husband to enter the Corporation and to become a Jurat and Mayor, so that she really gave him his seat in the Council, as well as helped him as Mayoress. She too "was the mother of another Mayoress of some distinction, Madame Elizabeth Gunman. As the daughter of Edward and
Elizabeth Wivell, she was a rich heiress, and she brought to her husband, Captain James Gunman, R.N., Buckland Manor, and other property. She assisted her husband in his Mayoralty of 1737 and was a pall-bearer at the funeral of Mrs. Isaac Minet. It is presumed that the Gunman's were of foreign origin for their wives were styled " Madame." There was another Madame Gunman who was Mayoress, the wife of Christopher Gunman, who was Mayor three time in the reigns of George II., and George III. They occupied Gunman's Mansion in Biggin Street, were very rich and it was a common saying that " Madame Gunman might have curled her hair with bank-notes"; hence it may be inferred that this Mayoress wore ringlets, the graceful adornment of many stately dames of those days. A third Madame Gunman, who was Mayoress in 1776, 1784, and 1789, was the wife of James Gunman the second. She assisted as Mayoress in the etablishment of the Charity School in Queen Street, and her name is on the list of foundation donors. She was the last of the Gunman Mayoresses who dispensed hospitality at Gunman's Mansion which has since been demolished for street widening.
Lady Mantell was a popular Mayoress. In her maiden days, as Miss Oakley, she was clever in amatuer theatricals at Mr. Fector's private theatre, before the Theatre Royal, in Snargate Street, was established. Later, she married Sir Thomas Mantell, the Government Agent for the exchange of Prisoners of War at Dover, and, after the Peace of 1815, Agent for the Mail Packets. He was Mayor four times during the war and twice after it, so that the dramatic Mayoress saw much that was dramatic in connection with her husband's official life. She was first Mayoress in 1795 and last in 1824. In the latter year her tresses were turning grey and she had taken up grey subjects, frequently contributing papers on antiquarian subjects to the journals of the learned societies.
These were other Mayoresses who took their part in Municipal work:— One of the Fector family, Jane Laurie, wife of Captain Henry Pringle Bruyers, who was Mayoress in 1829; and Mrs. Mummery, a lady well known in her day for the philanthropic work she did in Dover, who was Mayoress from 1865 to 1867, the Mummery's residence being at the Maison Dieu House, adjoining the Town Hall. The list of notable Mayoresses is by no means exhausted; but in 1869 women were legally admitted to the Corporation as burgesses, therefore the types of womanhood who assisted the Corporation as Mayoresses need not be carried any further.
The appearance of women Burgesses at the polls in Municipal Elections, before and after the introduction of the Ballot-box made no great difference in the political complexion of the majority. One incident may be mentioned of the third year in which women Burgesses voted in Dover, and the last time of open voting, November ist, 187 1, when a woman's vote turned the majority in the Pier Ward, and the Councillor elected by that vote gave the Liberals a Majority in the Council Chamber and enabled them to elect Mr. Richard Dickeson as Mayor ; and Messrs Steriker Finnis, S. M. Latham, and Rowland Rees as Aldermen. Probably in no subsequent Municii»jl Election has a woman's vote so strikingly affected the balance of parties in the Town Council.