Amy Dillwyn

Elizabeth Amy Dillwyn (16 May 1845 – 13 December 1935) was a novelist, businesswoman, and social benefactor. She was one of the first female industrialists in Britain.

Biography

Elizabeth Amy Dillwyn was born in Britain on 16 May 1845, in Sketty in Swansea. She was the daughter of Lewis Llewelyn Dillwyn and Elizabeth (née De la Beche). She had an older sister and brother—Mary (b. 1839) and Henry (b. 1843)—and a younger sister, Sarah (b. 1852).

Her father became a Liberal MP (1855-1892), and was the owner of the Dillwyn Spelter Works at Swansea. In 1864 her fiancé, Llewelyn Thomas of Llwynmadog, died shortly before their planned wedding. In 1866 her mother died. Between 1880 and her father's death in 1892 she had six novels published.

Following the deaths of her brother in 1890 and her father in 1892 Amy Dillwyn inherited her father's works, which she managed herself. Her unorthodox appearance and lifestyle made her a well-known figure in the local community.

She died in Swansea on 13 December 1935, at the age of ninety, was cremated and her ashes buried in the churchyard of St Paul's Church, Sketty. Probate was granted to Rice Mansel Dillwyn and her estate was valued at £114,513 7s 9d.

Her house, Tŷ Glyn (now Mumbles Nursing Home), still stands at West Cross, Swansea.

Works

• The Rebecca Rioter (1880) (reprinted 2004 by Honno)
• Chloe Arguelle (1881)
• A Burglary; or Unconscious Influence (1883) (reprinted 2009 by Honno)
• Jill (1884)
• Jill and Jack (1887)
• Maggie Steele's Diary (1892)

Further reading

• David Painting, Amy Dillwyn (1987)
• David Painting: Amy Dillwyn, Cardiff : University of Wales Press, 2013, ISBN 978-0-7083-2672-5