Sibyl Taite Widdows (1876–1960) was a

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Scientist A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosophica ...

and member of the Chemistry department at the

London School of Medicine for Women The London School of Medicine for Women (LSMW) established in 1874 was the first medical school in Britain to train women as doctors. The patrons, vice-presidents, and members of the committee that supported and helped found the London School of M ...

for 40 years. Sibyl was also one of the 19 women signatories of the Letter of 19, a 1904 petition for admission of women to Fellowship in the Chemical Society which stated: "We, the undersigned, representing women engaged in chemical work in this country desire to lay before you an appeal for the admission of women to Fellowship in the Chemical Society."(p. 64-65).

Biography

Widdows was born on 27 May 1876, and attended Dulwich High School for Girls in

West Dulwich West Dulwich ( ) is a neighbourhood in South London on the southern boundary of Brockwell Park, which straddles the London Borough of Lambeth and the London Borough of Southwark. Croxted Road and South Croxted Road mark the boundary between S ...

, South

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. She continued her education and obtained a degree in chemistry from the

Royal Holloway College Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL), formally incorporated as Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, is a public research university and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It has six schools, 21 academic departm ...

in 1900. Starting at the London School of Medicine for Women as a Demonstrator in Chemistry in 1901, she was promoted to joint-in-charge of the Chemistry Department in 1904 and became head in 1935. During this she progressed to the rank of Lecturer, and stayed at the school until her retirement in 1942. In an obituary written by her Phyllis Sanderson, her successor, Widdows was described as "an ardent feminist and willingly sacrificed her own career as a chemist for the cause most dear to her heart, the training of women doctors at Hunter Street, the only training ground in Medicine open to women in England at that time" (p. 161) She authored and co-authored at least 12 research papers, with her research focusing around the composition and secretion of

human milk Breast milk (sometimes spelled as breastmilk) or mother's milk is milk produced by mammary glands located in the breast of a human female. Breast milk is the primary source of nutrition for newborns, containing fat, protein, carbohydrates (lactos ...

(see publications). This Includes two publications with other signatories on the Letter of 19,

Margaret Seward Margaret Seward MBE (22 January 1864 - 29 May 1929) became the earliest Chemist on staff at the Women's College (of which she was a founding Lecturer), from 1896 to 1915. She became the pioneer woman to obtain a first class in the honour school o ...

and

Ida Smedley Maclean Ida Smedley Maclean (born Ida Smedley 14 June 1877, died 2 March 1944) was an English biochemist and the first woman admitted to the London Chemical Society. Early life and education Ida was born in Birmingham to William Smedley, a businessma ...

Publications

* "A study of the composition of human milk in the later periods of lactation and a comparison with that of early milk". ''Biochemical Journal''. 24 (2): 327-342. * "Percentage of Fat in Human Milk: Influence of the Method of Extraction". ''Journal of Human Lactation''. 12 (1): 61-63. * "A Study of the Variations in the Chemical Composition of Normal Human Colostrum and Early Milk". ''Biochemical Journal''. 21 (1): 1-5. * "Calcium Content of the Blood during Pregnancy". ''Biochemical Journal''. 17 (1): 34-40. * "A study of the antenatal secretion of the human mammary glad and a comparison between this and the secretion obtained directly after birth". ''Biochemical Journal''. 29 (5): 1145-1166. * "The racemisation of phenyl-p-tolylacetic acid". ''Journal of the Chemical Society, Transactions''. 107: 702-715. * "The action of magnesium phenyl bromide on derivatives of phenyl styryl ketone". ''Journal of the Chemical Society, Transactions''. 105: 2169-2175.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Widdows, Sibyl British chemists British women chemists 1876 births 1960 deaths 19th-century British chemists 19th-century British women scientists People associated with Royal Holloway, University of London