Minna Galbraith Cowan

OBE 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 o ...

(1 May 1878 – 8 July 1951) was a British political activist.

Biography

Cowan was born on 1 May 1878 in

Paisley, Renfrewshire Paisley ( ; sco, Paisley, gd, Pàislig ) is a large town situated in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. Located north of the Gleniffer Braes, the town borders the city of Glasgow to the east, and straddles the banks of the White Cart Wate ...

to Williamina Galbraith and Hugh Cowan, a

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

. She was educated in Hendon and Glasgow, going on to study at

Girton College, Cambridge Girton College is one of the 31 constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college in Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college status ...

, before completing a social science diploma at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. She sat on numerous committees, and in 1914 visited India to study the conditions of women there, writing ''The Education of the Women of India'' to relay her conclusions. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Cowan served in the

Women's Royal Naval Service The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in 1939 at the ...

, while also sitting on Edinburgh School Board. In 1919, she became the first convener of the city's new education authority, in which role she introduced limited free school meals and play centres to occupy children out of school hours, and reduced the maximum class sizes to fifty pupils. Four years later, she moved to the city's higher education committee, with responsibility for secondary schools, and in 1930 to its overarching education committee. In the 1928 birthday honours list she was made an OBE (civil division) for her political and public services in Edinburgh. Cowan was also active in the Unionist Party, standing unsuccessfully in Paisley at the

1929 United Kingdom general election The 1929 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday, 30 May 1929 and resulted in a hung parliament. It stands as the fourth of six instances under the secret ballot, and the first of three under universal suffrage, in which a party ha ...

, and again unsuccessfully for

Edinburgh East Edinburgh East is a burgh constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. In present form, the constituency was first used at t ...

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude Franco-Italian Agreement of 1935, an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * ...

. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Cowan worked for the

Ministry of Food An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

, where she took the lead in establishing

British restaurant British Restaurants were communal kitchens created in 1940 during the Second World War to help people who had been bombed out of their homes, had run out of ration coupons or otherwise needed help. In 1943, 2,160 British Restaurants served 600,0 ...

s in eastern Scotland. After the war, she served on the

National Council of Women of Great Britain The National Council of Women exists to co-ordinate the voluntary efforts of women across Great Britain. Founded as the National Union of Women Workers, it said that it would "promote sympathy of thought and purpose among the women of Great Brita ...

, and was its president in 1946/7, in which role she tried to build links with the German women's movement, and also campaigned for better treatment of Greek refugees.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowan, Minna 1878 births 1951 deaths Alumni of Girton College, Cambridge Alumni of the University of Edinburgh People from Paisley, Renfrewshire Unionist Party (Scotland) parliamentary candidates Scottish women in politics Scottish activists