Electrical engineer and suffragist. Born Phoebe Sarah Marks in Portsmouth. Aged 16 began teaching in London. Studied maths at Girton College Cambridge. Married William Ayrton in 1885. Elected a member of the Institution of Electrical Engineers in 1899 and was the only woman member until 1958 (shame on them). In 1902 she was proposed for the Royal Society but this was blocked because a married woman had no standing in law and so was ineligible. Not surprisingly Hertha supported the militant suffragists and marched in all the suffrage protests, in academic gown, which, of course, she was not entitled to wear. Mrs Pankhurst and other hunger strikers were nursed in her home and Hertha declared herself "proud" when her daughter Barbara was imprisoned. Barbara went on to become an MP and to produce Michael Ayrton, the artist. Hertha died in Sussex.
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Hertha Ayrton
Commemorated ati
Hertha Ayrton
Hertha Ayrton, 1854 - 1923, physicist, lived here, 1903 - 1923. English Herit...
Other Subjects
Edith Mansell-Moullin
Suffragist of Welsh heritage and social activist. Proud of her Welsh roots, she founded the Cymric Suffrage Union, which was dedicated to gaining the vote for Welsh women. She was the co-organizer ...
Minnie Lansbury
Suffragette and Poplar alderman. Daughter-in-law to George Lansbury. Her early death was brought about by being imprisoned, with other councillors, for refusing to levy a full rate, and catching pn...
Charles John Vaughan
Headmaster of Harrow School 1845 – 59. Born Leicester, son of a vicar. Educated Rugby and Cambridge, became a vicar and was then elected headmaster of Harrow. Resigned that post and went on to be: ...
Noël Barclay
Central President of the Mothers' Union in 1925. We found reference to a publication probably authored by her: Barclay, E. Noel, Marriage and Divorce (1936).
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