Martha Louise Munger Black OBE (February 24, 1866 – October 31, 1957) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

politician. Black was the second woman elected to the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

Biography

Martha was born in on February 24, 1866 in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

to George and Susan Munger. Of the five children her mother had over four years, Martha was the only one to survive. She was followed by two younger siblings, George Jr. and Belle. Her father lost his laundry business in the

Great Chicago Fire The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 10 ...

, but started over with great success, affording Black a comfortable, upper-class childhood. She was educated at Saint Mary's College in Indiana, a school operated by the

Sisters of the Holy Cross The Sisters of the Holy Cross (CSC) are one of three Catholic congregations of religious sisters which trace their origins to the foundation of the Congregation of Holy Cross by the Blessed Basil Anthony Moreau, CSC, at Le Mans, France in 1837. ...

. Martha married Will Purdy in 1887. Together the couple raised two sons, Warren and Donald. Martha and Will made plans to join the Klondike Gold Rush in 1899, but Will backed out, departing instead for

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. Martha did not join Will in Hawaii, choosing to travel to the Klondike with her brother in 1898. In 1898 she crossed the

Chilkoot Pass Chilkoot Pass (el. ) is a high mountain pass through the Boundary Ranges of the Coast Mountains in the U.S. state of Alaska and British Columbia, Canada. It is the highest point along the Chilkoot Trail that leads from Dyea, Alaska to Bennett La ...

into Canada, heading for the gold rush in the Klondike. She travelled with a party funded by her father and led by Captain Edward Spencer. The group, which included her brother George Jr. and cousin Harry Peachy, arrived in

Dawson City Dawson City, officially the City of Dawson, is a town in the Canadian territory of Yukon. It is inseparably linked to the Klondike Gold Rush (1896–99). Its population was 1,577 as of the 2021 census, making it the second-largest town in Yuko ...

by boat on August 5. They built a log cabin where she gave birth to her and Will's third son, Lyman, on January 31, 1899. Martha returned home to Chicago, and returned again to the Klondike in 1900. She earned a living by staking gold mining claims and running a sawmill and a gold ore-crushing plant. In 1904, she married George Black, who later became

Commissioner of the Yukon The commissioner of Yukon (french: Commissaire du Yukon) is the representative of the Government of Canada in the Canadian federal territory of Yukon. The commissioner is appointed by the federal government and, in contrast to the governor gene ...

from 1912–1916. In the 1935 federal election, she was elected for the riding of

Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...

as an Independent Conservative taking the place of her ill husband. She was the second woman ever to be elected to the House of Commons of Canada. She published an autobiography, ''My Seventy Years'', in 1938. This work was subsequently updated and republished in her lifetime as ''My Ninety Years'' and later further updated posthumously and republished in 1998 as ''Martha Black: Her Story from the Dawson Gold Fields to the Halls of Parliament''. Black died October 31, 1957, in Whitehorse, at the age of 91. She was buried in the city's Pioneer Cemetery.

Honours and awards

In 1917, she was made a Fellow of the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

for her series of lectures on the Yukon that she presented in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

. In 1946, she was made an Officer of

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

for her cultural and social contributions to the Yukon. In 1986 a

Canadian Coast Guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; french: links=no, Garde côtière canadienne, GCC) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues in ...

high-endurance multi-tasked vessel was given the name ''"Martha L. Black"'' in her honour. The vessel sails in the

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

Region area. In 1997,

Canada Post Canada Post Corporation (french: Société canadienne des postes), trading as Canada Post (french: Postes Canada), is a Crown corporation that functions as the primary postal operator in Canada. Originally known as Royal Mail Canada (the opera ...

issued a $0.45 stamp in her honour.

Mount Martha Black Mount Martha Black, elevation , is the highest point in the Auriol Range of the Saint Elias Mountains in Yukon, Canada. The multi-summit massif is situated southwest of Haines Junction, northwest of Mount Worthington, and southeast of Mount A ...

in Yukon bears her name.

References

External links

*
Martha Louise Black
at

The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; french: L'Encyclopédie canadienne) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with the support of Canadian Heritage. Available fo ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Martha Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Yukon Independent Conservative MPs in the Canadian House of Commons People from Dawson City Saint Mary's College (Indiana) alumni Canadian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society Women members of the House of Commons of Canada Canadian autobiographers Writers from Whitehorse Women in Yukon politics 1866 births 1957 deaths Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) Women autobiographers Politicians from Chicago American emigrants to Canada 20th-century Canadian women politicians 20th-century Canadian non-fiction writers

Biography

Honours and awards

Archives

References

External links