Grace Boutelle and Eugenie Bouvier: The Brave Persistent Russian

Grace Hosdson Boutelle was arrested,once, on October 14th 1908, as part of a contingent who attempted to deliver a petition to the House of Commons.

Grace was American, born in Maine, in 1869, to Charles and Lucy Boutelle. Her father served in the United States Navy and on his discharge, became a businessman who was elected as a Republican Congressman. Grace was musical and literary; writing poetry which was published in American magazines.  Her mother died in 1891, leaving Grace to often act as her father’s hostess. By 1900, her father was suffering from dementia, unusually, although he was confined to a Lunatic Asylum, he was re-elected to the House of Representatives, although he was too ill to ever return. Grace moved with her father from Washington to Waverley, Massachusetts. The Newcastle Courant, dated 8 December 1900, includes an article from The York World about her plight, drawing a poignant parallel with King Lear and Cordelia. Daily, Grace visited her father, spending all his waking hours with him, taking him for carriage drives, making small talk. This she did until he died on 21 May 1901.

Following her father’s death, Grace spread her wings. She travelled to England where she became a suffragette, writing articles for both the British and American press. Alongside her suffragette activities, she studied English Folk Music.

For her actions on 14 October 1908, Grace was sentenced to thirty days imprisonment. She returned to America, permanently, in 1910, where she gave lectures on her experiences as a suffragette in England and on her time in prison, often donning her prison uniform. In later life, she taught piano, singing and instructed people in the genre of English Folk music.

She died on 25 August 1957 in Maine.

 
Eugenie Bouvier who was arrested in February 1908 and July  1909.

She was born Eugenie Anna Weber in Russia in 1865. Her name has, often, been spelt Eugenia, this blog used Eugenie as she signed herself. Eugenie married Paul Emile who was born in Italy. The couple settled in Lewisham where Paul taught French. The couple had one daughter Irene Eugenie born in 1893.

In 1904 Paul died. Eugenie was often known as Jeannie; on her daughter's application to enter the London University, as an undergraduate, she signed herself as Mrs J A Bouvier, mother. In the Suffrage Movement by Sylvia Pankhurst she referred to Eugenie as the “brave, persistent Russian.”

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Eugenie November 1912 possibly with her daughter © Museum of London

​The first record of Eugenie being involved in the suffragette movement is a report, in the Berkshire Chronicle, dated 25 January 1908. A meeting in Reading, being addressed by the Chief Secretary for Ireland, Augustine Birrell, was interrupted by women demanding the vote. Entry to the meeting was by ticket only to prevent any protest, but ,somehow, the group of women had successfully gained entry. Seven women, including Eugenie, were in the hall and, at regular intervals, shouted out Votes for Women. One by one, the seven women made themselves known and having spoken either left the hall themselves or were ejected. Outside the women regrouped, addressing the gathering crowd. A group of young men heckled the speakers shouting “It’s a different girl again” “Half time”. Later, when the women walked to the train station, the men followed them, chanting and attempting to gain access to the platform, but the women managed to leave safely.

It In February 1908, Eugenie was part of a group attempting to enter the Houses of Parliament. One newspaper described the attempt as like “the wooden horse of Troy.” Two vans drove past Parliament with men, in the commonly worn green aprons of tradesmen, sitting on the tailboards. One van carried on but the other stopped. The men jumped down, opening the backdoors from which appeared a group of suffragettes who ran quickly towards the nearest door to Parliament. The police, although, caught unawares managed to stop them. More vans pulled up decanting more women, more scuffles and arrests followed.

​In the meantime, in Caxton Hall a conference, called the Parliament of Women, was taking place. After several speeches, it was resolved that the women would march to Parliament. Scuffles broke out between the women and the police, while others circled the area in cabs with megaphones shouting Votes of Women. Eugenie was one of those arrested.  She was fined £40 or six weeks in prison. It is not clear whether Eugenie went to prison.

Either having paid the fine or while on remand Eugenie continued to protest. Only a week later, Eugenie staged another protest. Along with two others, Mrs Watson and Miss Fraser, the trio dressed in evening clothes and took a cab from the WSPU headquarters at Clement’s Inn to the Admiralty. As no tickets were asked for, they had no difficulty in entering the reception being hosted by Reginald Mackenna, First Lord of the Admiralty, and his wife. Eugenie informed the press, afterwards, that she shook the hands of Mr and Mrs Mckenna and the Prime Minister, all of whom were unaware that she was a gate crasher. Towards the end of the evening, there was a lull in the music, so Eugenie mounted a chair, close to Mackenna, and asked him, from her lofty position, his views on votes for women. Surprised, he walked away but Eugenie continued to address the throng. A member of staff intervened, helped her off the chair, and escorted her from the building where she was joined by the other two women.

Two days later, Eugenie was in action, again, at the inaugural dinner of the Certified Grocers at which Augustine Birrell, among others, was present. Dressed in a white full-length dress adorned with a large spray of poppies, Eugenie interrupted Augustine Birrell’s address, while standing in the gallery. Several guests ran upstairs to remove her, only to discover that she had chained herself to the gallery railings, using steel chain and two padlocks, the whole had been disguised by wrapping it in cotton wool. Next to her was another suffragette who, it turned out, had also chained herself to the railings. The stewards resorted to forcing them into their seats and silencing them by covering their mouths with napkins. Both the women continued to attempt to speak and jump up from their seats. Eventually they were cut free, while the pianist played a Merry Widow to drown out the noise of sawing. Both women were removed from the building.

In July 1909, Eugenie was arrested for breaking a window at the Privy Council. She was fined £5 and the cost of replacing the window, or a month in prison. At this, she announced she trusted she would be treated as a political prisoner. The Magistrate retorted that it was not a political offence. He stated that throwing stones was what small hooligan boys did, Eugenie pointed out that stone throwing was used as a protest to the Reform Act. She went on hunger strike and, along with others, was released on 21 July 1909.

Eugenie continued campaigning. She addressed a meeting in Plymouth, a few months, after her release. In 1912, present at the opening of new WSPU offices in Lewisham, a branch Eugenie was Honorary Secretary of, the crowd, of around three thousand, became hostile throwing eggs. Eugenie and others had to escape, assisted by the police. This experience was  repeated, on several occasions, over the next year.

Eugenie carried on campaigning after the outbreak of the First World War. In 1915, she joined Sylvia Pankhurst on the platform, addressing a meeting in East London where it was resolved to campaign on the basis of obtaining the vote for all, women and men. To this end, the East End group was renamed the Worker’s Suffrage League. Eugenie was elected to the committee. Eugenie was against conscription, addressing the No Conscription Conference in December 1915. This led to a demonstration in January, the following year, which Eugenie addressed.

The historian Maurice Casey has followed Eugenie's fascinating journey which saw her leaving the United Kingdom, during the 1920s, and becoming a Russian citizen. His blog can found here https://mauricejcasey.com/2018/03/24/from-russia-to-east-london-and-back-again-eugenie-bouvier-1865-1933-suffragette-and-socialist/

April 1914 Eugenie is the furthest one on the right © Museum of London