Annis Frackelton

Annis Grace Campbell Frackelton (nee Hole) (1909-2006) worked and volunteered at the Guild of Service and then Family Care for over fifty years.  Born in 1909, she was the daughter of Grace Hole (nee Chalmers) – President of the Indigent Old Women’s Society in Edinburgh and Gilbert (Gibby) Hole, a solicitor and Scottish international cricketer (Wikipedia, 2023).   

Annis Hole married William Scott Frackelton in 1935.  She started working for the Guild of Service in 1943 as an Assistant Worker, when Kay Stewart was the Secretary.  It is evident from the Guild’s Annual Reports that in addition to this work she also spent much time assisting with administration: 

(Image from Guild of Service Annual Report 1952) 

In 1955 she became the Subscription Secretary for the Guild – a role she continued in for over 45 years. 

In addition to working for the Guild of Service, Annis Frackelton was also involved with another organisation which similarly focused on supporting women in Edinburgh.  The Indigent Old Women’s Society had initially been set up in the 19th century by a group of women in Edinburgh out of concern for the situations of their (female) domestic servants once they had retired.  The Society sought to provide pensions and visited those who had been referred or were receiving support from the Society.  Annis Frackelton started off as a visitor in alongside her mother when she was young, becoming a visitor herself after she married in 1935, becoming President in 1977 (a position which she took over from her mother) – a role which she held until the Society wound up in 2002 (Cree, 2015). 

In 1975 she was received the Sir William Y Darling Bequest for Good Citizenship, which is awarded annually to a citizen who have done the most for the honour and/or welfare of the city (Edinburgh Collected, 2025).  Annis Frackelton was given the award for her services to charities, which included Family Care as well as the Indigent Old Women’s Society and the St Columba’s Hospice (Anon., 1989).  Annis Frackelton’s commitment to the organistions she was involved with was evident and she continued to be involved with the Guild and the Indigent Old Women’s Society well into her 90s, stating in a newspaper interview that “If you are healthy you must do something for people who are not.” (Anon., 1989 p.7). 

References: 

Anon (1989) Spotlight on two Capital Ladies who have special aims, Edinburgh Evening News, 4th February, page 7. 

Cree, V. (2015) A Family Concern: A History of the Indigent Old Women’s Society, 1797-2002. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh. 

Edinburgh Collected (2025) ‘Good Citizenship Award’. Available at: Good Citizenship Award – Edinburgh Collected 

Wikipedia (2023) Gilbert Hole. Available at: Gilbert Hole – Wikipedia