Campaigners for Women's Suffrage in Barnsley, 1910

Alice Laura Embleton (1876 – 1960) was one of the first women to study sciences at the

University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

, and among the first group of women to be appointed Fellows of the

Linnean Society The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...

in 1905. A

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual cell, a multicellular organism, or a community of interacting populations. They usually speciali ...

and

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and ...

, Embleton developed work on pesticides to improve crop production. She was also a noted

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

Education and early life

Embleton was born in

Epsom Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. ...

, Surrey, and attended Sutton High School for Girls. She enrolled at the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire, now

Cardiff University , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

, in 1895, and graduated in 1899 with a Baccalaureus Scientia, first class.

Career and research

In 1900, she won the

1851 Exhibition Memorial Scholarship The 1851 Research Fellowship is a scheme conducted by the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 to annually award a three-year research scholarship to approximately eight "young scientists or engineers of exceptional promise". The fellowshi ...

, which annually awards a three-year research scholarship to '"young scientists or engineers of exceptional promise". She used the £150 scholarship to work at the Balfour Laboratory at

Newnham College, Cambridge Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicent ...

, followed by a further period of study at the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

. She is considered the second woman to publish on the topic of

copepodology Copepods (; meaning "oar-feet") are a group of small crustaceans found in nearly every freshwater and saltwater habitat. Some species are planktonic (inhabiting sea waters), some are benthic (living on the ocean floor), a number of species have p ...

, after Edith Mary Pratt. In 1903, she was appointed honorary zoologist to the

Board of Agriculture The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) was a United Kingdom government department created by the Board of Agriculture Act 1889 (52 & 53 Vict. c.30) and at that time called the Board of Agriculture, and then from 1903 the Board ...

, and won the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, r ...

's Mackinnon studentship for research into Biological Sciences. She was one of the first woman to speak at the

Burlington House Burlington House is a building on Piccadilly in Mayfair, London. It was originally a private Neo-Palladian mansion owned by the Earls of Burlington and was expanded in the mid-19th century after being purchased by the British government. Tod ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. Her paper, delivered on 4 June 1903, was entitled: "Anatomy and Development of a Hymeropterous Parasite of a Scaly Insect (Lecanium Hemisphoericum)". Among with fifteen other women, she was made a Fellow of the Linnean Society in 1905. The Linnean Society archives hold Embleton’s correspondence with the Society, of which she remained a Fellow until 1917. In 1906 she co-published the papers, "On the synapsis in amphibia" and "On the origin of the sertoli". Alice Embleton’s entry in Sutton High School’s admissions register

Alice Embleton’s entry in Sutton High School’s admissions register

In later life she conducted cancer research at the

Royal College of Science The Royal College of Science was a higher education institution located in South Kensington; it was a constituent college of Imperial College London from 1907 until it was wholly absorbed by Imperial in 2002. Still to this day, graduates from th ...

South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with t ...

Personal and non-academic life

Embleton was connected with a number of noted

suffragists Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

, including

Evelina Haverfield Evelina Haverfield ( Scarlett; 9 August 1867 – 21 March 1920) was a British suffragette and aid worker. In the early 20th century, she was involved in Emmeline Pankhurst's militant women's suffrage organisation the Women's Social and Pol ...

Vera Holme Vera Louise Holme, also known as Jack Holme (29 August 1881 – 1 January 1969), was a British actress and a suffragette. She was known as the Pankhursts' chauffeur. Early life Holme was born in Birkdale, Lancashire, England. Her parents were ...

, and

Celia Wray Celia Wray (30 May 1872 – 30 November 1954) was an English suffragette and an architect. For many years she was in a lesbian relationship with scientist Alice Laura Embleton. Early life She was born in Barnsley in Yorkshire in 1872 as Cec ...

. The 1911 census shows that Embleton was visiting Wray at Fairfield House, Barnsley on the day of the census. Like many suffragists, the two women defaced the census paper by recording their occupation as "Getting votes for women". The four women set up the private 'Foosack League' between themselves, the membership of which was restricted to women and suffragists. Evidence suggests the Foosack League was a lesbian secret society. The

Women's Library The Women's Library is England's main library and museum resource on women and the women's movement, concentrating on Britain in the 19th and 20th centuries. It has an institutional history as a coherent collection dating back to the mid-1920s, ...

holds correspondence between the women during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, in which Embleton is referred to as 'Alick', and Wray as 'Mr Wary'. In her later years, Embleton lived with Wray at The Elms in

Saxmundham Saxmundham ( ) is a market town in Suffolk, England, set in the valley of the River Fromus about north-east of Ipswich and west of the coast at Sizewell. The town is bypassed by the main A12 road between London and Lowestoft. The town is serve ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include L ...

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Embleton, Alice Laura 1876 births 1960 deaths British suffragists British zoologists British biologists People educated at Sutton High School, London Women zoologists Women biologists

Education and early life

Career and research

Personal and non-academic life

See also

Citations