If you’re walking down Victoria Avenue in Harrogate and keep your eyes peeled, you’ll notice a brown sign affixed to a stone wall outside one of the impressive town houses.
If you stop to take a closer look, the person commemorated by this plaque might not be known to you – but Dr Laura Veale has left a worthy legacy in the field of medicine, both in Harrogate and beyond.
As the first female doctor in North Yorkshire, she’s been described as a pioneer and a trailblazer, but it can be argued that both words fall short of encapsulating her extraordinary life.
The early years
Dr Veale was born on August 30, 1867, in Hampsthwaite, a village near Harrogate. It appears as though medicine was something of a family affair; her father Dr Richard Sobey Veale was a prominent doctor in the area, and both her brothers Henry and Rawson Augustus also pursued medical careers.
It was sadly unsurprising, and reflective of the general sentiment of the time, that Dr Veale encountered hostility and derision when she expressed her intention to follow the same path as her family.
Despite the fact her father was associated with the Leeds School of Medicine, it would not accept her as a student, which led her to apply to the University of London instead.
She felt as though she had received an ‘unsatisfactory schooling’ compared to her male peers which made the university’s matriculation especially daunting.
Hampsthwaite
In a move that must have been considered quite unusual at the time, the headmaster of Harrogate College allowed her to work with the sixth form boys in order to improve in the areas she felt she lacked knowledge.
Dr Veale then went on to the Royal Free Hospital to complete her medical studies in 1904, and once qualified she returned to Yorkshire and took up a position at the Hospital for Women and Children in Leeds.
After six months, she moved back to Harrogate and set up a general practice at 3 Victoria Avenue, cementing her status as the first female doctor not only in the town, but in the North Yorkshire region too.
An advocate for women and children’s health
While in Harrogate, Dr Veale made a big impact not only in the medical profession, but in the local community too.
At a time when not only were women and children still considered inferior to adult men, she was at the forefront of advocating for improvements in the care offered to those groups, especially in deprived communities.
Notable achievements include setting up a dispensary in New Park, acting as medical officer at the Municipal Babies Hospital and helping set up numerous child welfare and antenatal clinics in Harrogate.
The clinic at 2 Dragon’s Parade still stands today, and is a base for child and adolescent mental health services.
Dr Veale worked as an obstetrician and a gynaecologist at Harrogate Infirmary for many years. By 1937, the first maternity ward was finally opened at the hospital – something that she had campaigned hard to establish for nearly three decades at that point.
Outside of her profession, she continued to improve life for residents of the area, and was heavily involved in several charitable organisations, including the Yorkshire Council for the Empire Cancer Campaign, and organising the Yorkshire Children’s Jewel Fund.
She retired from medicine in 1936 but continued to play a huge part in the local community, taking on an integral role in establishing the Women’s Voluntary Service for Harrogate during the Second World War.
A continued legacy
The plaque outside 3 Victoria Avenue
Dr Laura Veale died on August 14,1963, at Scotton Banks Hospital in Knaresborough at the age of 95.
Her obituary in the British Medical Journal described her as a ‘remarkable woman’, and The Harrogate Advertiser accredited her with having a ‘noble mind’ that kept pace with the ‘vast changes in her profession’ over the years.
In 2017, the Harrogate Civic Society installed a brown plaque on Victoria Avenue, where her general practice had been located.
Speaking to the Stray Ferret in 2020, Dr Paul Jennings from Harrogate Civic Society History said:
“She deserves recognition as an important figure in the history of both medicine and feminism and a key figure in medical provision, especially for women and infants, in her native county and more particularly Harrogate.
“It is as a pioneering woman in the medical profession and through her wider work for the community that she is so important to Harrogate.”
Sources for the article include an article on nycroblog.com, the Harrogate Civic Society website, the Harrogate plaques website and Dr Veale’s obituary on bmj.com.
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The Stray Ferret goes behind the scenes to discover more about brands and businesses in Harrogate and the surrounding areas.
The first insider story is Neuhaus, a chocolatier that’s recently opened in Harrogate.
Jean Neuhaus was a pharmacist who covered his medicines with chocolate.
Studying medicine in Grenoble, Jean Neuhaus’ chosen career path was unfortunately not to be – mainly because he could not bear the sight of blood – but all was not lost as he could implement his skills elsewhere.
After moving to Brussels in 1857, he turned his hand to opening a pharmacy in the prestigious Queen’s Gallery where he covered his medicines with a fine layer of chocolate to make them more appealing for the sick to take them.
This method of covering medicine in chocolate is still known, and sometimes still used, in Belgium today.
When visiting the Harrogate store, located at 5 James Street, the knowledgeable store assistant Olivia de Lame recounted tales of her grandma who used to give her a cod liver oil vitamin and covered it in chocolate, calling it ‘the Neuhaus method’ so that she would take it.
She has fond memories of this, and recounts how even though 166 years have passed, this method is still well-known and sometimes used in Belgium today.
(Neuhaus Factory)
Only four people in the world know the recipe and how to make the Manon Sucre.
After a shortage of cocoa beans post-World War II, it was difficult to make chocolate so the ladies who worked in the factory thought about how they could invent an alternative sweet treat.
They had plenty of fresh cream, sugar and pecan nuts at their disposal, so after many attempts, they settled on a recipe named the Manon Sucre, which has never disappeared from Neuhaus’ offering since, even after cocoa beans came back into circulation. There are two varieties: the Manon Sucre Vanilla and Manon Sucre Café.
Neuhaus has impressive chocolate installations.
If you’ve walked past the Harrogate store, you might have already seen the giant chocolate egg gracing its windows ahead of Easter.
This was made in Belgium using the company’s 3D chocolate printer, then carefully transported to Harrogate, and put in place by the store’s staff.
(Will Claydon, Neuhaus)
The installations will change every couple of months – keep your eyes peeled for next one. And if you’re travelling down to London any time soon, pay a visit to the Covent Garden store that features a huge Big Ben chocolate statue.
Some of the chocolates are named after members of the Belgium royal family.
Neuhaus is a Belgian Royal Warrant Holder and has created two chocolates to honour the King and Queen of Belgium, Philippe and Mathilde.
Neuhaus offers an ‘Insider Club’.
This gives people the opportunity to sample the latest chocolates and new collections each month on a complimentary and commitment-free basis, as well as receiving a free box of chocolates on your birthday – all you need to do is sign up in store or online.
5 James Street, Harrogate, HG1 1QS, click here for more stories.
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