Mary Gertrude Emmott, Baroness Emmott of Oldham JP (28 April 1866 – 16 November 1954) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

political activist.

Life

Emmott was born Mary Gertrude Lees in Waterhead Mill,

Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...

, Lancashire (now part of

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

), and studied at

Queen's College, London Queen's College is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school for girls aged 11–18 with an adjoining prep school for girls aged 4–11 located in the City of Westminster, London. It was founded in 1848 by theologian and social ...

. She married Alfred Emmott, a local

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

councillor on 5 October 1887; they had two children. She became involved in liberal politics, was a founder member of the local branch of the

National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) is a British child protection charity founded as the Liverpool Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (LSPCC) by Thomas Agnew on 19 April 1883. The NSPCC lobbies t ...

, and the main founder of a local branch of the National Union of Women Workers (NUWW)."Emmott, Lady Mary Gertrude (Mrs Alfred Emmott, Baroness Emmott of Oldham) (née Lees) OBE, JP", ''Women: a modern political dictionary'', pp.58–59 In 1898, Emmott was elected to the Oldham

Board of Guardians Boards of guardians were ''ad hoc'' authorities that administered Poor Law in the United Kingdom from 1835 to 1930. England and Wales Boards of guardians were created by the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, replacing the parish overseers of the po ...

, becoming its first female member. The following year, Alfred was elected as a Member of Parliament, and the couple relocated to London. There, she became a vice-chair of the national Women's Liberal Federation, served on the executive of the

London Society for Women's Suffrage The Fawcett Society is a membership charity in the United Kingdom which campaigns for women's rights. The organisation dates back to 1866, when Millicent Fawcett, Millicent Garrett Fawcett dedicated her life to the peaceful campaign for women's ...

, and chaired the NUWW's Parliamentary and Legislation Committee. In 1911, Alfred was raised to the peerage, Mary thereby becoming Baroness Emmott. She was appointed a Justice of the Peace. During

World War I 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 ...

, Emmott spent her time supporting Belgian refugees and, as a result, received the

Queen Elisabeth Medal The Queen Elisabeth Medal (, ) was a Belgian decoration created by royal decree in October 1916 to recognise exceptional services to Belgium in the relief of the suffering of its citizens during the First World War. Its statute was ratified on 14 ...

. At the

1922 United Kingdom general election The 1922 United Kingdom general election was held on Wednesday 15 November 1922. It was won by the Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister Andrew Bonar Law, which gained an overall majority over the Labour Party, led by J. R. Clynes, and ...

, she stood for the

seat herself, but took a distant fifth place. She remained active on the committees of many organisations, principally feminist and women's groups, for the remainder of her life, and was serving as the president of the

Fawcett Society The Fawcett Society is a membership charity in the United Kingdom which campaigns for women's rights. The organisation dates back to 1866, when Millicent Garrett Fawcett dedicated her life to the peaceful campaign for women's suffrage. From 190 ...

in 1954, when she died.

References

External links

Emmott, Mary Gertrude (1886–1954), wife of 1st Baron Emmott
– link to papers of official committees on which she sat (held in London School of Economics, The Women's Library) {{DEFAULTSORT:Emmott, Mary 1866 births 1954 deaths British baronesses English suffragists Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates People educated at Queen's College, London People from Oldham National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children people