Florence Canning
Early Life
Florence was the daughter of the Rev. Thomas Canning, vicar of Tupsley, Hereford. We do not know the year of her birth, however she trained as an artist.
There is a Florence Canning listed as working as an artist in St Ives between 1906-1910 on the Cornwall Artists Index, but this may be a different woman.
Activism
We do not know what prompted Florence's engagement in the suffrage movement. However, Emmeline and Christabel Pankhurst spoke at a rally in Hereford in 1908. It is possible that Florence witnessed Christabel being injured by a stone thrown by an audience member.
Florence was, however, injured in the Black Friday protests in November 1910. She convalesced at Eagle House but never regained her health. She was also Chair of the Church League for Women's Suffrage. Constance Lytton and Emily Wilding Davison were also members. The Kenney archive includes a badge of this organisation.
Florence planted an Oregon cedar on 25 April 1909.
Later Life
Florence did not live to see women win the vote. She died on Christmas Eve 1914. She was buried with a suffragette wreath on her grave. In 2018, she was honoured with a 'violet plaque' an initiative of Hereford Cathedral and funded by the National Lottery.
Quote
'Most Decidedly in Favour.' Florence Canning on the ordination of women.