In Honour of Rachel McMillan

Today not only marks Rachel McMillan’s 158th birthday, but it is also the centenary of her death. Our very first blog post was about the woman who campaigned for better health and educational standards for children, along with her sister Margaret, so we would like to share some more treasures of her life that the Archive holds. The reason the McMillan sisters are fondly remembered is because they helped children by taking them out of the slums to improve their health and education through outdoor rehabilitation.  They believed that fresh air and play were the best things to improve a child’s health, so their nursery had open-air shelters for the children to learn and rest. Each child also had their own hair and toothbrush at the nursery.

Rachel’s reputation is remembered due to her sister, Margaret, naming the school the Rachel McMillan Nursery School after she had died , which is still continuing her legacy today on McMillan street in Deptford. She also went on to write a biogoraphy on Rachel in 1927 entitled The Life of Rachel McMillan.

We would like to share some photographs that the archive holds of Rachel’s life and the amazing work she carried out, as this is one of the biggest collections the University of Greenwich holds. From her childhood portraits with her sister, to Evelyn House and the daily life of the children who resided there which included outdoor play and drilling with the occasional celebrity visitor. The McMillan collection at the University of Greenwich is one of the most requested collections to look at in our archives, showing that her work is still relevant and inspiring to this day.

Rachel and Margaret c. 1879
Rachel McMillan with Students and Staff
A visit from Stanley Baldwin in 1928 during his second term as Prime Minister
Another special visit from Irish poet and playwright George Bernard Shaw and Margaret McMillan

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