Mary Watson (October 1856 – 20 February 1933) was a British chemist. She was one of the first two women to study Chemistry at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

, the other one being

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 ...

. Watson was born in October 1856 at Shirburn,

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

1911 United Kingdom census The United Kingdom Census 1911 of 2 April 1911 was the 12th nationwide census conducted in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The total population of the United Kingdom was approximately 45,221,000, with 36,070,000 recorded in England ...

. daughter of John Watson and Anne Bruce. Her father was a farmer and land agent to the

Earl of Macclesfield Earl of Macclesfield is a title that has been created twice. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1679 in favour of the soldier and politician Charles Gerard, 1st Baron Gerard. He had already been created Baron Gerard, of Bran ...

Somerville College Somerville College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. It began admitting men in 1994. The college's liberal tone derives from its f ...

archives. She was educated at home and at St John's Wood High School. Watson entered

Somerville Hall Somerville College is a constituent college A collegiate university is a university where functions are divided between a central administration and a number of constituent colleges. Historically, the first collegiate university was the Univer ...

, later Somerville College, of the University of Oxford in 1879 on a Clothworkers' Scholarship. This was a scholarship of 35 pounds for three years. Somerville was founded in the same year as one of the two first

women's college Women's colleges in higher education are undergraduate, bachelor's degree-granting institutions, often liberal arts colleges, whose student populations are composed exclusively or almost exclusively of women. Some women's colleges admit male st ...

s of Oxford. In 1881, she was awarded another two-year scholarship with a value of 30 pounds. Watson completed with a

first class honours The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading structure used for undergraduate degrees or bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees in the United Kingdom. The system has been applied, sometimes with significant var ...

in Geology in 1882 and a second class in Chemistry in 1883. However, it was not until 1920 that Oxford allowed women to matriculate and therefore formally gain degrees. Following graduation, Watson was appointed Science Mistress at

Cheltenham Ladies' College Cheltenham Ladies' College (CLC) is a private schools in the United Kingdom, private boarding and day school for girls aged 11 or older in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The school was established in 1853 to provide "a sound academic edu ...

. She held that position until 1886 when she had to resign following her marriage to John Style in

Thame Thame is a market town and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England, about east of the city of Oxford and southwest of Aylesbury. It derives its name from the River Thame which flows along the north side of the town and forms part of the ...

a year earlier. They lived in

Charlton Kings Charlton Kings is a contiguous village adjoining Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, England. The area constitutes a civil parish of 10,396 residents (2011). Landscape Charlton Kings is situated in the west foothills of the north–south Cotswo ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

. Style was Headmaster at

Cheltenham Grammar School Pate's Grammar School is a grammar school with Academy (English school), academy status in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. It caters for pupils aged 11 to 18. The school was founded with a fund bestowed to Corpus Christi College, Oxford, ...

since 1882, but was sacked in 1906. They retired to Michelmersh,

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, where she died on 20 February 1933.

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* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Mary English women chemists Alumni of Somerville College, Oxford Cheltenham Ladies' College faculty 1856 births 1933 deaths

See also

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