Beatrice Clugston

Beatrice Clugston (19 September 1827 – 5 June 1888) was a British philanthropist active in Glasgow.

Beatrice Clugston
Born19 September 1827
Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
Died5 June 1888
Ardrossan, Scotland, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
NationalityBritish
Occupationphilanthropist

Life

Clugston was born in Glasgow in 1827.[1] She was brought up in Glasgow[2] and her parents were Mary (born Mackenzie) and John Clugston. Her father was an accountant who in time would own John Clugston & Co. (Bleachers) in south-east Glasgow.[1]

Clugston founded the Glasgow Royal Dorcas Society in 1863[2] or 1864.[3][4][5] The Dorcas Society would make sure that those leabing hospital had sufficient clothes and they would also give them some money to help see them through their recovery. Anyone who would not get any visitors would get a visit from someone from the society to check they were okay.[2]

Her remarkable talent was in fund-raising - she invited the right people to the right events. At the Botanic Gardens she organised an event that raised £24,000. She raised money for the Samaritan Society of the Western Infirmary, Glasgow's Sick Children's Hospital and the local Magdalene Institution.[2] In 1871 she ran an event at the City Hall and her supporters included Princess Louise, the duke and duchess of Argyll, the duke and duchess of Roxburghe making up twenty titled attendees.[1]

Broomhill Hospital was financed by a donation from Clugston and the "Association for the Relief of Incurables in Glasgow and the West of Scotland"[5] as a facility for incurable patients such as those suffering from cancer and it opened in 1876. The hospital would take those could not be cured and it would not accept paupers. The hospital expanded and in 1893 the hospital had a capacity for 100 patients[6]

Clugston did not fare so well and in 1876 she was very poor. Despite this she would bring back home people who needed help. They would be fed but the food stores would be emptied. An appeal brought in £3,000 and an annuity was organised. Her mother was happy when they moved away from Glasgow as it stopped her daughter from offering more help.[5]

Death and legacy

Clugston died in Ardrossan in 1888. In 1891 a memorial to her was created at Broomhill hospital. That hospital would go on to expand further closing finally in 1995.[6]

References
  1. "Clugston, Beatrice (1827–1888), philanthropist". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/50740. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  2. "Glasgow charity champion helped sick and poor". Glasgow Times. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  3. Colin Rochester (2011). Understanding the Roots of Voluntary Action: Historical Perspectives on Current Social Policy. Sussex Academic Press. pp. 142–. ISBN 978-1-84519-424-6.
  4. Elizabeth L. Ewan; Sue Innes; Sian Reynolds; Rose Pipes (8 March 2006). The Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women. Edinburgh University Press. pp. 77–. ISBN 978-0-7486-2660-1.
  5. Scott Graham - ABACUS. "TheGlasgowStory: Beatrice Clugston".
  6. "Records of Broomhill and Lanfine Hospitals, Kirkintilloch, Dunbartonshire, Scotland". Archives Hub. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
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