Ellice Pilkington
| Ellice Pilkington | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Louisa Ellice Esmonde 1 September 1869 Ballynastragh, Gorey, County Wexford |
| Died | 24 August 1936 (aged 66) Ballsbridge, Dublin |
| Resting place | Tyrrellspass, County Westmeath |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Spouse(s) | Colonel Henry Lionel Pilkington CB |
| Parent(s) |
|
Ellice Pilkington (1 September 1869 – 24 August 1936) was an Irish women's activist and artist.
Ellice Pilkington was born Louisa Ellice Benedicta Grattan Esmonde on 1 September 1869. She was the second daughter of John Esmonde and Louisa Esmonde (née Grattan). Her father was an MP and lieutenant-colonel of Waterford artillery militia, of Ballynastragh, Gorey, County Wexford, and her mother was the granddaughter of Henry Grattan. She had four brothers, Thomas, Laurence, Walter, John, and one sister, Annette. Educated in Paris, she also studied art in Rome. She married Capt. Henry Lionel Pilkington, of the 21st Hussars, from Tore, Tyrrellspass, County Westmeath, on 23 June 1896. The Pilkingtons lived in South Africa when her husband commanded the West Australian Mounted Infantry in the Second Boer War. While there she taught in refugee camps. They had two daughters, Ellice Moira and Annette. They lived for a time at Llys-y-Gwinit, Holyhead, Wales.
Pilkington was a friend of Horace Plunkett and George Russell. It was a speech by Russell at an annual general meeting of the Irish Agricultural Organization Society that inspired the foundation of the Society of the United Irishwomen (UI) by Anita Lett in 1910. Pilkington was the first volunteer organiser of the UI, and was a leading figure during its early years. She toured extensively in 1910, founding and organising new branches in the south and west of Ireland. County Wexford was deemed the most successful during this time. Pilkington arrived in County Donegal in December 1910, armed with a map and a thermos flask, whilst there she described emigration as a blight on rural Ireland. From this point on, female emigration became one of the major concerns of the UI.
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