Birth place of Marguerite Boucicaut (née Guérin) at Verjux, Saône-et-Loire, France, c.1900 (b/w photo)

Childhood home of Marguerite Guérin (1816-87) where she lived with her mother and was employed as a goat herd; after the death of her mother in 1829, she moved to Paris with an uncle and became an apprentice laundry worker, learning to read and write and opening a small bistro; after marriage to Aristide Boucicaut, she would participate with her husband in the creation of the 'Bon Marché' as the largest Department store in the world in the late 19th century and after her husband's death in 1877, she continued to play an important role in the continuance of the shops; she was a benefactor of many charities, founding the Boucicaut hospital, financing the work of Pasteur and developing further the concept of pastoral and 'family' welfare including the provision of pensions for the Bon Marché employees; the bulk of her immense fortune was left to the Bon Marché staff; she also left money for the construction of a bridge over the river Saône,, a new school, a new Mairie and a home for old people in the region of her old home at Verjux; the development of department stores was a major force in democratising consumption and making society more egalitarian by giving women the freedom and ability to shop on their own; Maison natale de Mme Boucicaut;