In observance of the contributions women have made to historical events and contemporary culture, Women’s History Month is celebrated annually. In Scotland, women’s employment and educational opportunities have a complicated past.
It wasn’t until 1892 that women were granted graduation from Scottish universities. Less than 30% of students studying in STEM fields—science, technology, engineering, and medicine—are female, despite the fact that there are more female students than ever before.
Despite the fact that many women have contributed significantly to science and medicine over the years, not many are known for their contributions to Scottish history.
Dr Christina Miller (1899 – 2001)
In 1899, Dr Christina “Chrissie” Miller, the renowned scientist, was born in Coatbridge.
Her dreams of becoming a teacher fell apart when she had increasing hearing loss as a result of childhood rubella and measles. She made the decision to pursue analytical chemistry in spite of her limitations.
Miller enrolled in Heriot-Watt College (now University) and Edinburgh University in 1917.In 1920, she graduated from Edinburgh University, making her one of the few women to have earned a degree from Heriot-Watt at this time.
At the age of 25, she received her PhD in 1924. When Miller started her PhD in 1921, the University’s chemical laboratories were still being built, which made working circumstances challenging. Still, she didn’t give up and even learned how to blow glass to manufacture her own tools.
Working with phosphorus trioxide, the chemist created the first pure sample in history in 1928. She was rewarded for her hard work when she accomplished her goal of getting a Doctor of Science (DSc) before the age of thirty.
She shifted her focus of study to microanalysis methods, and she collaborated with the War Office on quick gas detection during World War II. A highly esteemed individual, Dr. Christina Miller made history in 1949 when she was elected to the Royal Society of Edinburgh’s fellowship, making her the first female chemist to do so.
In 2000, the University of Edinburgh dubbed the new teaching chemistry labs in King’s Buildings after her, and in 2016, they established a Research Fellowship in her honour. She is the subject of building names at the University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt.
Following an incredible career, she resigned in 1961 and passed in 2001 at the age of 101.
This Lanarkshire woman is one of many incredible trailblazers who paved the way for employment opportunities, access to higher education, and equal rights.
