Charlotte Price White (1873 - 1932) was a leading member of the North Wales Suffragist movement, local councillor and among the first British members of the

Women's Institute The Women's Institute (WI) is a community-based organization for women in the United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand. The movement was founded in Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada, by Erland and Janet Lee with Adelaide Hoodless being the ...

Education and personal life

Charlotte Bell was born in Briggart near Dumfries in Scotland in 1873. In the 1890s she was among the first women to train as science teachers at University College of North Wales, Bangor. Her first teaching post was in London. On 12 August 1902 she married Price Foulkes White. They lived in Bangor where she remained for the rest of her life. They had two children, Margaret and David Archibald. She died suddenly in 1932, and her funeral was a public event. Flags were flown at half-mast and there were over 100 floral tributes at the service in the English Presbyterian Chapel.

Activism

White was Secretary and leader of the Bangor branch of the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies. She walked to London in the

Great Pilgrimage The Great Pilgrimage of 1913 was a march in Britain by suffragists campaigning nonviolently for women's suffrage, organised by the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS). Women marched to London from all around England and Wales ...

of 1913. Descriptions that appeared in several contemporary newspapers of this journey via

Llanfairfechan ; ) is a town and community in the Conwy County Borough, Wales. It is known as a seaside resort and had a population at the 2001 Census of 3,755, reducing to 3,637 at the 2011 Census. The history of the area dates back to at least Roman time ...

and

Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, England. It is located about south of Stoke-on-Trent, north of Wolverhampton, and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 71,673 at the 2021–2022 United Kingd ...

were probably based on her account. When the

started in the UK in 1915 with a branch at

Llanfairpwll Llanfairpwllgwyngyll or Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll (), often shortened to Llanfairpwll and sometimes to Llanfair PG, is a village and community (Wales), community on the Isle of Anglesey, Wales. It is located on the Menai Strait, next to the Britann ...

, White became a member. During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

she was secretary of a North Wales committee that raised money for a Welsh hospital unit within the

Scottish Women's Hospitals for Foreign Service The Scottish Women's Hospitals for Foreign Services (SWH) was founded in 1914. It was led by Dr Elsie Inglis and provided nurses, doctors, ambulance drivers, cooks and orderlies. By the end of World War I, 14 medical units had been outfitted and ...

in Serbia. She later organised the education of a refugee Serbian boy at University College of North Wales. In 1926 she was the first woman to become a member of Caernarfonshire County Council. She was also important in the North Wales

Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom The Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) is a non-profit non-governmental organization working "to bring together women of different political views and philosophical and religious backgrounds determined to study and make kno ...

, and especially the ‘Peace Pilgrimage’ of 1926.

Legacy

White was included among the Women's Equality Network Wales list of women who have made significant contributions to national life. In 2021 a

Purple Plaque The Purple Plaques () scheme in Wales, UK aims to install plaques on buildings to increase recognition of the lives of women who have had a significant and long-lasting impact associated with Wales. The scheme was initiated by several members of ...

was installed at 50 Upper Garth Road, Bangor where she lived for most of her life.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Price White, Charlotte 1873 births 1932 deaths Welsh suffragists Welsh women activists Women councillors in Wales