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Louisa Stevenson and Christian Guthrie Wright

Campaigners for women’s education and founders of Queen Margaret University.

Plaque Inscription

Louisa Stevenson
1835–1908
Christian Guthrie Wright
1844–1907
Campaigner for women's education and founders of Queen Margaret University

Two black and white portraits of white women, both with the appearance of white hair.
Miss CE Guthrie Wright (left) and Miss Louise Stevenson (right). Courtesy Queen Margaret University.

Location

5 Atholl Crescent, Edinburgh

Category

Society

Year

2013

Louisa Stevenson and Christian Guthrie Wright were tireless campaigners for women’s education. Individually and together, they were involved in many significant initiatives in the nineteenth century, in particular the foundation of the Edinburgh School of Cookery, which later became Queen Margaret University.

Guthrie Wright was born in Glasgow but spent most of her life in Edinburgh. She was a founder member of the Ladies' Edinburgh Debating Society and honorary treasurer of the Edinburgh Association for the University Education of Women.

Stevenson was also born in Glasgow before moving to Edinburgh and was involved in similar circles to Guthrie. She was an early suffragist and founding member of the Edinburgh National Society for Women's Suffrage.

The pair teamed up to found Edinburgh School of Cookery in 1875. After several years delivering lectures across many different locations, the school was eventually able to find a permanent home at Atholl Crescent, where it offered residential courses in addition to its established programme of public lectures.

In 1930 the school became the Edinburgh College of Domestic Science and in 1972 it took on its modern name, Queen Margaret College, before being awarded full university status in 2007.

After founding the school, Guthrie Wright and Stevenson also collaborated in developing Queen Victoria's Jubilee Institute for Nurses. Also run entirely by volunteers, the institute established facilities in Edinburgh and Glasgow to train nurses to provide care to the sick poor in their own homes.

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