Ursula Bridget Constance Newell, JP (1911 – 4 June 1937) was a British barrister, magistrate and amateur golfer. She was runner-up in the 1936

British Ladies Amateur The Women's Amateur Championship, previously known as the Ladies' British Open Amateur Championship, was founded in 1893 by the Ladies' Golf Union. It is organised by The R&A, which merged with the Ladies' Golf Union in 2017. Until the dawn of th ...

, and one of the favourites for 1937. However, she died suddenly, aged 25, shortly before the 1937 tournament at Turnberry began.'Woman Golfer's Death: Miss Bridget Newell', ''

The Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 5 June 1937.

Life

Newell was born in

Eldwick Eldwick is a small village near Bingley in the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire. It is split up into two main parts, Eldwick, the main populated part, and High Eldwick, the larger but less populated section, situated on Bingley Moor. ...

. Her father, Harold Newell of Darley Hall in

Darley Dale Darley Dale, also known simply as Darley, is a town and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England, with a population of 5,413. It lies north of Matlock, on the River Derwent and the A6 road. The town forms part ...

, was a County Court judge for the Derbyshire circuit.'Death of Judge Newell', ''The Times'', 6 November 1937. She was called to the Bar from the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

in November 1932, aged 21. At the age of 23 she became the youngest magistrate in England, sitting on the Matlock bench. Newell often played in pairing with Gwen Cradock-Hartopp. The couple won the ''Bystander'' Ladies' Autumn Foursomes in 1934, and reached the final of the ''Bystander'' Scottish Ladies' Foursomes in June 1935.'Scottish Ladies' Foursomes', ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'', 7 June 1935, p. 7 Newell won the Derbyshire ladies golf championship in 1935, and was Midland champion in 1936. She reached the semi-final of the French women's championship in 1936. She was in the British team against the United States in the

1936 Curtis Cup The 3rd Curtis Cup Match was played on 6 May 1936 on the King's Course at Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Perthshire, Scotland. The match ended in a tie at 4 each and the United States, as the holders, retained the trophy. The final match to ...

, though did not play, and played for England in the

Women's Home Internationals The Women's Home Internationals were an amateur team golf championship for women contested between the four Home Nations of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, where Ireland was represented by the whole island of Ireland on an All-Ireland basi ...

the following week. She played for Britain against France in the

Vagliano Trophy The Vagliano Trophy is a biennial women's amateur golf tournament. It is co-organised by The R&A and the European Golf Association and is contested by teams representing "Great Britain and Ireland" and the "Continent of Europe". It is played in ...

in 1936 and 1937. She was runner-up against Pam Barton in the 1936

. In October 1936 she was beaten by Wanda Morgan in the English Ladies Golf Championship at

Hayling Island Hayling Island is an island off the south coast of England, in the borough of Havant in the county of Hampshire, east of Portsmouth. History An Iron Age shrine in the north of Hayling Island was later developed into a Roman temple in the 1st c ...

. In June 1937, Newell was due to play in the

at Turnberry, and in the British Ladies Amateur there the following week. However, she had been suffering from

tonsilitis Tonsillitis is inflammation of the tonsils in the upper part of the throat. It can be acute or chronic. Acute tonsillitis typically has a rapid onset. Symptoms may include sore throat, fever, enlargement of the tonsils, trouble swallowing, and en ...

. She practiced on the morning of 3 June, but after lunch withdrew from the England team and retired to her hotel bedroom. The Home Internationals started the next day, and Newell died that evening. She was said to have died of

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild clinical course, but in some outbreaks more than 10% of those diagnosed with the disease may die. Signs and s ...

although the family have always believed she died of anaphylactic shock from medicine given for her illness. As a result of her death, the Home Internationals were cancelled. In November 1937, the Duke of Devonshire unveiled tablets to Newell's memory in

St Helen's Church, Darley Dale St Helen's Church, Darley Dale is a Grade II* listed parish church in the Church of England in Darley Dale, Derbyshire. History The church has elements of architecture from the Norman to the Perpendicular Gothic periods. It was restored and enl ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Newton, Bridget English female golfers English barristers English justices of the peace Members of the Middle Temple Deaths from diphtheria 20th-century English lawyers 20th-century English women 1911 births 1937 deaths