Isabella May
Isabella May | |
|---|---|
| Born | Isabella Malcolm 22 June 1850 |
| Died | 1 May 1926 (aged 75) |
| Occupation | Social reformer |
| Relatives | Kate Sheppard (sister) |
Isabella May (née Malcolm, 22 June 1850 – 1 May 1926) was a New Zealand temperance worker, suffragist and dress reformer.
Early Life[edit]
May was born in Hoxton, London, England, on 22 June 1850, and was the younger sister of suffragist Kate Sheppard.[1][2] She arrived in New Zealand in 1869 with her mother, Kate, and their two brothers. In 1879, ten years after landing in Christchurch, she married Henry Ernest May. They had four children together.[1]
Political work[edit]
May would work alongside other feminists and social activists to enact changes in New Zealand. Her efforts would be recognised abroad for her role in the Women's Christian Temperance Union New Zealand.[3][4]
She joined the Christchurch branch of the Women's Christian Temperance Union New Zealand (WCTU NZ) when it was first formed under the guidance of Mary Clement Leavitt in 1885. She served as the founding superintendent of hygiene and went on to lead this department at the national level. She worked to advocate for dress reform for children and women. She traveled to London and served as the WCTU NZ representative for the council of the Women's Liberal Federation. She spoke at a meeting of the Society for the Abolition of the State Regulation of Vice at which the British activist Josephine Butler was president.[1]
When the Canterbury Women's Institute (CWI) was established in 1892, she led the hygiene department. Because this department became too radical in that first year, emphasising dress reform and wholefoods diets, the CWI decided to stop separating out in different departments.[5]
In 1897 May became president of the Canterbury Women's Institute. She continued her leadership in the WCTU NZ and campaigned against the Contagious Diseases Acts of 1869 still on the books in New Zealand.[1]
Later in Life and Death[edit]
May traveled with her family in China around 1900 then settled near London where she continued her work for women's rights.[1] She died at her home in Kingston upon Thames on 1 May 1926.[6]
For Further Reading[edit]
- Devaliant, Judith (1992). Kate Sheppard: the fight for women's votes in New Zealand. Auckland: Penguin Books.
- Havelaar, M.G.; Lovell-Smith, H.K. (1950). A Short History of the Christchurch Branch of the National Council of Women of New Zealand from 1896 to 1950. Christchurch, NZ: NCW.
- Malthus, Jane (1989). ""Bifurcated and Not Ashamed": Late Nineteenth Century Dress Reformers in New Zealand". New Zealand Journal of History. 23 (1): 32–46.
- Regional Women's Decade Committee (1979). Canterbury Women Since 1893. Christchurch, NZ: Pegasus.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Malcolm, Tessa K. "Isabella May". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ Devaliant, Judith (1992). Kate Sheppard : a biography : the fight for women's votes in New Zealand : the life of the woman who led the struggle. Auckland, N.Z.: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-017614-4. OCLC 27990446.
- ^ Nolan, Melanie (2000). Breadwinning: New Zealand Women and the State. Canterbury University Press. ISBN 978-0-908812-97-4.
- ^ The United States Army and Navy Journal and Gazette of the Regular and Volunteer Forces. Army and Navy Journal Incorporated. 1901.
- ^ Lovell-Smith, Margaret. "Canterbury Women's Institute 1892-c.1920". NZ History. New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage, Manatū Taonga. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
- ^ "Death". Star (Christchurch). No. 17870. Papers Past, National Library of New Zealand. 11 June 1926. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
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