Women’s History Month is celebrated annually to recognise the contributions that women have made to historical developments and contemporary society. 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.
Considering the fact that many women have contributed significantly to science and medicine over the ages, not many are known for their involvement in Scottish history.
In spite of discrimination, a trailblazing Lanarkshire woman’s place in medical history was cemented
Marion Gilchrist (1864 – 1952)
Born on her family’s farm in Bothwell, Marion Gilchrist went on to become a suffragist and doctor.
Gilchrist enrolled in Queen Margaret College’s new medical programme in 1890, which was exclusively for women. In 1892, it blended with the University of Glasgow, bearing the name Saint Margaret.
Gilchrist made history in July 1894 when she graduated as the first female student from the University of Glasgow and became the first female medical graduate from a Scottish university.
Nearly ten years after she started her successful medical career, she opened a thriving general practitioner’s office in Glasgow at 5 Buckingham Terrace, where she resided until her passing. She worked as an ophthalmic surgeon at several hospitals in Glasgow, specialising in eye conditions.
Gilchrist had a strong commitment to suffrage. In 1902, she started the Glasgow and West of Scotland Association of Women’s Suffrage in addition to her medical work. She chaired meetings on a regular basis, joined more radical movements with time, and proclaimed the campaign “the greatest battle of modern times” in 1909. In 1907, she broke away from the Association to become a member of the Women’s Freedom League and the Women’s Social and Political Union.
Gilchrist spent her entire life fighting for the rights of women.
Established in 1952 by donation from Marion Gilchrist, the University of Glasgow distributes the Marion Gilchrist Prize every year to “the most distinguished woman graduate in Medicine of the year.”
This Lanarkshire woman is one of many incredible trailblazers who paved the way for employment opportunities, access to higher education, and equal rights.
