Mary Forbes Evans

Mary Forbes Evans (née Lander, 5 May 1936 – 29 June 2010) was a British writer, collector and the co-founder, with her husband Hilary Evans, of the Mary Evans Picture Library.

Early life Caroline Mary Forbes Lander was born on 5 May 1936 at 8 Cotswold Gardens, Hendon, London, the youngest of four daughters of Digby Forbes Lander (1891–1969), an aircraft works accounts clerk, and his wife, Norah Doris Caroline Lander, née Williams (1898–1970). She lived in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, before moving to Southern Rhodesia at the age of seven. Mary Evans embraced technological change and continued to innovate, and by the time of her death the company employed 14 people, had a website containing nearly one million images, and an annual turnover of over £1 million.

Together with Hilary, Mary Evans wrote several books featuring images from the library, including The Party that Lasted 100 Days: the Late Victorian Season (1976) and The Man who Drew the Drunkard's Daughter: the Life and Art of George Cruikshank (1978). They co-edited The Picture Researchers' Handbook, up until its eighth edition.

Later life Mary Evans died on 29 June 2010, at Riverlee Nursing Home, Greenwich. Hilary Evans died on 27 July 2011. They were survived by their daughter, Valentine Evans.