Mary Seacole - serial Entrepreneur
Here we celebrate Mary Seacole the businesswoman who built, literally, from the ground up, and against the odds.
Mary was born in Kingston, Jamaica in the West Indies in 1805. Her mother was Jamaican and her father was a soldier from Scotland. Mary’s mother ran a boarding house, where she'd administer African and Caribbean herbal medicine to heal. Watching her mother was Mary’s training ground.
Mary was entrepreneurial, she travelled widely, to Panama, the Bahamas, Haiti, and Cuba selling goods, setting up temporary shops, and treating
those who couldn’t afford a doctor. She understood trade and people. When the Crimean War broke in 1853 Mary travelled to London to volunteer, she applied through official channels to join the war effort but was repeatedly turned down.
To coin a phrase Mary took the ‘bull by the horns’ and used her own money to travel to the Crimea. She built and ran her own establishment a few miles from the frontline, called The British Hotel. Mary sold hot meals, medical supplies, and provided herbal treatments. She
managed people, handled supply chains in wartime and ran a business in a male dominated arena. Her reputation spread quickly. Soldiers affectionately called her 'Mother Seacole'.
When the war ended in 1856, Mary returned to London penniless, she’d used her own money to fund the business in Crimea. However, the soldiers she served didn’t forget her. A benefit festival was held in Mary's honour to raise money, and although thousands attended the festival
Mary Seacole in The British Hotel in the Crimea
the event didn’t raise a great deal of money due to overall expenses, however the outpouring of love and respect for Mary was undeniable.
Mary went on to publish her memoir, The Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands in 1857.
Mary Seacole passed away in London in 1881.