Alice Towneley, Lady O'Hagan (1846-1921)

Alice Towneley was the third daughter of Charles Towneley (1803-1876). She married Thomas O'Hagan, 1st Lord O'Hagan, in 1871. She was allotted a part of the Towneley Estate including Towneley Hall in 1885 and sold it to Burnley Corporation in November 1901, for more detail including the contents she left at Towneley see the purchase of Towneley Hall.

Lady O'Hagan contributed generously to local welfare work and was particularly interested in local education. She was appointed chairman of the Burnley School Board in January, 1901. She served as a co-opted member of the Art Gallery and Museum sub-committee from 1902 until her death in 1921.

There are two statues and numerous photographs of her in the Museum collections. She gave a number of exhibits when the Museum first opened, in particular she presented many of the items in the Egyptology collection including a mummy.

She died 17 November 1921 and was buried at Holme Chapel in Cliviger. (See Burnley News November 23rd 1921 page 6 for obituary and page 4 for appreciation by those who worked with her.) The Towneley heirlooms that she had inherited were passed down to her son Maurice, 3rd Lord O'Hagan.