In-Tract After all These Years

Posted on 3 September, 2018 by nspeccoll

Cheque found in ‘Mr Mill’s Subjections of Women’, from Joseph Cowen to the London Society for Women’s Suffrage (Cowen Tracts, V.40 n.2)

As students of the Museum and Heritage Studies Masters course at Newcastle University, we recently undertook a 30-day work placement with the Special Collections team at Newcastle University Library. The main focus of this placement was to research and develop a temporary exhibition showcasing some of the archival material held in Special Collections.

This year marks the centenary of the 1918 Representation of the People Act, which granted some women the right to vote in this country for the very first time, and we decided to take this as our inspiration for the exhibition. Entitled, ‘The North’s Forgotten Female Reformers’, the exhibition celebrates the involvement of Northern women in movements which fought for various causes, including female suffrage, education, homosexual equality and foreign policy.

Researching the exhibition has allowed us to explore a range of archives held in Special Collections but to begin our research, we read some of the printed pamphlets contained in the Cowen (Joseph) Tracts to provide some context and understanding of the attitudes the British public had regarding women’s suffrage and their place in society. Whilst looking for one particular pamphlet entitled, ‘Mr Mill’s Subjection of Women’, we made an interesting and unexpected discovery. Nestled in the first page of this pamphlet – perhaps to mark the page – was a receipt for a cheque for one guinea made out to the London National Society for Women’s Suffrage (LNSWS) from Joseph Cowen himself.

‘Mr Mill’s Subjection of Women’ (Cowen Tracts, V.40 n.2)

The LNSWS was formed in 1867 and was one of the earliest Suffrage societies. Cowen is remembered as a well-known politician and MP for Newcastle upon Tyne who was interested in the social, educational, economic and political issues of his day. The discovery of his cheque is tangible evidence that he was an active supporter of women’s suffrage. The discovery of this item in a volume of Tracts adds further significance, as this collection of tracts was Cowen’s own collection of pamphlets and articles which reflected his personal interest in the social, educational, political and economic issues of the day, including foreign policy, women’s rights, religion, education and public health.

Cowen’s cheque can be seen in the exhibition, ‘The North’s Forgotten Female Reformers’, curated by the two Museum and Gallery Studies students, alongside many other treasures from Newcastle University’s Special Collections and Archives. The exhibition is on show on Level 2 of the Robinson Library from Monday 6^th of August.

Written by two Art Gallery, Museum and Heritage Studies Masters students, Katie Cumming and Mariance Spence, whilst undertaking a 6 week placement to create ‘The Norths Forgotten Female Reformers’ exhibition.

Suffragette banners on the march!

Posted on 5 January, 2017 by nspeccoll

We recently came across a piece of historic film on the British Film Institute website, showing a Suffragette march through Newcastle in 1909. Clearly on view near the beginning of the film is the banner of the Newcastle Women’s Suffrage Society. A second banner can be seen later in the film.

View the video from the British Film Institute here.

One of these banners may be the one made by Newcastle’s first female GP and suffragist Dr. Ethel Williams in about 1905. These banners were carried on national demonstrations, not only in Newcastle, but also in London.

Ethel William’s suffragette banner (Item reference: GB 186 EWL/3/5) is part of our Ethel Williams Archive, which you can find more information on here.

Marching On Together: Ethel Williams’ Suffragist Banner – June 2013

Posted on 27 June, 2013 by nspeccoll

Suffragette Marching banner with 'Newcastle on Tyne' across the top and 3 castles in a reddish background — Suffragette Marching banner **(Williams (Ethel) Archive, EWL/3/5)**

The 8th June 2013 marks the 100th anniversary of the death of the suffragette Emily Davison. A militant suffragette, whose family originated from Longhorsley in Northumberland, Emily infamously ran in front of the King’s horse at the Epsom Derby on 4th June 1913. She was seriously injured and died of her injuries in hospital four days later. It has long been speculated whether Emily was actually trying to kill herself in order to draw attention to the suffragette cause. Analysis of newsreel from the day now suggests that she may have been simply trying to attach a suffragette banner to the horse.

This is Ethel Williams’ suffragist banner. Ethel was the first woman to found a general medical practice in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1906. She was also reportedly the first woman to drive a car in the North of England that same year. She attended the London School of Medicine for Women and graduated in 1891, but had to gain her hospital experience abroad in Paris and Vienna due to male prejudice against women training in British hospitals. Such obstacles and her belief in the need to supplement medical care with social reform led to her active involvement in the suffrage movement.

Ethel was an active member of the National Union of Woman’s Suffrage Societies (also known as the NUWSS or the Suffragists). Unlike the Suffragettes, the Suffragists aimed to achieve women’s suffrage using lawful and peaceful methods. Ethel took part in the ‘Mud March’ of 1907 in London, the first large procession organised by the NUWSS, so-called due to the terrible weather conditions on the day. Despite this, over 3,000 women from all walks of life took part. There is a good chance that she may have used this banner during the march as women from across the country brought banners to show which area they represented. Red and white were the official colours of the NUWSS and both colours can been seen in the banner. She was also often seen in suffrage processions along Northumberland Street in Newcastle. During World War One she formed the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.

She co-founded the Northern Women’s Hospital in 1917 and, when she retired in 1924, she left her practice to another female doctor, Dr Mona MacNaughton. By this time there were 14 female doctors practicing in Newcastle. Ethel died in 1948 and Ethel Williams’ Halls of Residence were opened in her memory in 1950 at Newcastle University.