#royal-humane-society

#royal-humane-society

Worried by the potential inability to distinguish between the states of life and death, two doctors, William Hawes and Thomas Cogan, set up the Royal Humane Society in London in 1774. At the time, it was actually called the Society for the Recovery of Persons Apparently Drowned, a name that would've doubled neatly as a mission statement. Falling into the rivers and canals of London was, it seems, a common occurrence in those days, and few members of the public possessed the swimming skills to save themselves.