An in-depth history of women’s activism and achievements in one English town, with photos included. As the industrial revolution and the coming of the railways transformed the Wiltshire countryside, Swindon women were on the front line of change, shaping the new industrial town and transforming the old market one. Newcomers arrived from the great railway centers across the country to create a welcoming, tolerant and creative community with women’s contribution at its heart. Following the incorporation of Old and New Swindon in 1900, innovative women stepped up to the plate: women like Swindon-born suffragette Edith New, who challenged political conventions, and Emma Noble, Swindon’s first female councilor, who campaigned to improve living conditions in the town. During two world wars, Swindon women worked in the railway factory in jobs once considered beyond their strength and endurance. Women supported the war effort on the home front, volunteering in what little spare time they had. Struggle and Suffrage in Swindon tells the stories of women like Mary Slade and Kate Handley, two teachers who during WWI headed the Prisoners of War Committee, which sent food parcels to soldiers held in German POW camps. The story of Swindon women includes artists and actresses, political activists and social reformers—and the ordinary women who worked in the factories, raised their children, and made a difference.

Secret Swindon explores the lesser-known history of the Wiltshire town of Swindon through a fascinating selection of stories, unusual facts and attractive photographs.

The road to suffrage for the women of Leatherhead was often bumpy and unwelcomed by men and women alike. The Women’s Suffrage Caravan rolled into Leatherhead on Saturday, 16 May 1908, its presence inciting riots amongst many of the menfolk. The town’s Unionist Club in December 1908 passed the motion that it was ‘unpropitious’ for legislation on the question of women’s suffrage and yet, from behind the closed door of her home in Belmont Road, women’s rights campaigner Marie Stopes had begun to pen Married Love; suffrage campaigner Dame Millicent Fawcett would fascinate her audience at Victoria Hall in 1910; and Emmeline Pankhurst’s arrest and detention at Leatherhead police station would capture the interest of the nation, placing Leatherhead centre stage of the push towards revolution in women’s rights.By the arrival of the First World War, middle-class girls were not allowed out without a chaperone, few married women had a job and no woman was allowed the vote. It was the general view that politics and work were only suitable for men. By the arrival of the Second World War Leatherhead’s women were still expected to live up to the typical housewife persona, where their main role in life was to bring up the children and do the housework. The husband was usually the head of the house, and his word was law to both his children and his wife, the one expected to look after the children.Using numerous primary sources, this fully illustrated book tells the story of numerous famous and ordinary women who lived and visited Leatherhead between 1850 and 1950; Ella Neate, born into a family of local grocers, who discovered a talent for operetta; Pearl Kew, one of the first women in the town to own a car, enabling her to drive to work as a teacher in Guildford; the charity work of Cherkley Court’s Letitia Dixon; Emily Moore the Swan Innkeeper, these many more fascinating stories of local women whose lives have hidden in the shadows of Leatherhead’s menfolk.

This widely acclaimed book has been described by History Today as a 'landmark in the study of the women's movement'. It is the only comprehensive reference work to bring together in one volume the wealth of information available on the women's movement. Drawing on national and local archival sources, the book contains over 400 biographical entries and more than 800 entries on societies in England, Scotland and Wales. Easily accessible and rigorously cross-referenced, this invaluable resource covers not only the political developments of the campaign but provides insight into its cultural context, listing novels, plays and films.

As the industrial revolution and the coming of the railways transformed the Wiltshire countryside Swindon women were on the front line of change, shaping the new industrial town and transforming the old market one. Incomers arrived from the great railway centres across the country to create a welcoming, tolerant and creative community with women's contribution at its heart. Following the incorporation of Old and New Swindon in 1900 innovative women stepped up to the plate; women like Swindon born suffragette Edith New who challenged political conventions and Emma Noble, Swindon's first female councillor, who campaigned to improve living conditions in the town. During two world wars Swindon women worked in the railway factory in jobs once considered beyond their strength and endurance. Women supported the war effort on the home front, volunteering in what little spare time they had. Women such as teachers Mary Slade and Kate Handley who during the First World War headed the Prisoners of War Committee, which sent food parcels to soldiers from the Wiltshire Regiment held in German prisoner of war camps. Mary Slade was awarded the MBE in 1920 but her work didn't end there. Mary Slade and her team continued to support the bereaved families beyond the armistice and through to the end of the Second World War. The story of Swindon women includes artists and actresses, political activists and social reformers and the ordinary women who worked in the factories, raised their children and made a difference.

Unearths the lives of British women over 1,000 years using the rich historical record of their wills and legacies.