Janet Robertson (Chisholm) Lee (1862–1940) was an important figure in the Niagara Region of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, best known for her role in the formation of the

Women's Institutes 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 ...

in 1897, and for pioneering the

Kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...

program in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

.Erland Lee Museum files

Life

Lee was born into the Chisholm family from

Woodstock The Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held from August 15 to 18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. Billed as "a ...

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report ...

. She was educated at the Hamilton Normal School, where she earned her teaching certificate and created the first Kindergarten program in the city. In 1890 she married

Erland Lee Erland Lee (1864 – 1926) was a Canadian farmer, teacher, and government employee from Stoney Creek, Ontario. He was a co-founder of the Women's Institutes, an international organization originally formed to promote the education of isolate ...

, a farmer, government employee, and teacher from

Stoney Creek, Ontario Stoney Creek is a community in the city of Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton in the Canadian province of Ontario located 10 km east of Downtown Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton and 57 km south-west of Toronto. It was a municipality until 2001, ...

. They had 5 children, Gordon, Alice, Hilda, Frank, and Marjorie. Janet, her husband

, and

Adelaide Hoodless Adelaide Sophia Hoodless (née Addie Hunter; February 27, 1858 – February 26, 1910) was a Canadian educational reformer who founded the international women's organization known as the Women's Institute. She was the second president of the Hami ...

are considered the co-founders of the first

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 ...

, presently a worldwide organization originally formed to promote the education of isolated

rural women Rural women play a fundamental role in rural communities around the world providing care and being involved in number of economic pursuits such as subsistence farming, petty trading and off-farm work. In most parts of the world, rural women work v ...

. The group is internationally known as the

Associated Country Women of the World The Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW) is the largest international organization for rural women, with a membership of nine million in 82 countries (per 2023). ACWW holds a triennial conference and publishes a magazine, ''The Countrywoman ...

. Janet Lee is attributed with writing the original Women's Institute constitution on her dining room table, on February 25, 1897.Ambrose, Linda M. "For Home and Country: The Centennial History of the Women's Institutes in Ontario." Stoddart Publishing Co. Limited, 1996. A primary school in

was named for Janet Lee in 1987. The Lee family home, known as "Edgemont," was converted into the

Erland Lee Museum The Erland Lee (Museum) Home is a National Historic Site of Canada located on the ridge of the Niagara Escarpment in Stoney Creek, Hamilton, Ontario. Originally a farmhouse belonging to Erland and Janet Lee, the museum is recognized as the b ...

in 1972.

External links

Erland Lee Museum Website
business site
Federated Women's Institutes of Ontario Website
website of organization
Associated Country Women of the World Website
website of organization

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Janet 1862 births 1940 deaths People from Woodstock, Ontario